Jaffna Islands
Punkudutivu Island
A long, low island linked to Kayts by causeway — the road that delivers you to the ferry for Nainativu and Delft.
November to March; dry months only for ferry days
Best time to visit
Open landscape; ferry timings dictate the day
Opening hours
Free
Entrance fee
Punkudutivu sits between Kayts and the open Palk Strait, a flat island reached by a long causeway that runs straight as a ruler across the shallows. Its western tip is where the Kurikadduwan jetty operates the daily ferries to Nainativu and Delft. For most visitors, that is what brings them here.
The drive across the island takes about thirty minutes. The land is low and the sky takes up most of the view: paddy in the wet months, dry scrub in the hotter ones, with palmyra rising above and the occasional kovil set back from the road. Local fishermen launch from the shallow inlets along the southern shore.
There are a handful of village kovils worth a brief stop if you have the time before your ferry. The road itself, particularly in the late afternoon when the light comes in low across the water, is the more memorable part of any day on Punkudutivu.
What to know
Visiting quietly
- Best season
- November to March
- Etiquette
- If you stop at a village kovil along the way, remove shoes at the outer gate and stay outside the inner sanctum unless invited.
- Getting there
- 1 hour from Jaffna town to the western jetty
A closer look
Location
On the map
Practical things
Frequently asked
Is Punkudutivu reached by road or ferry?
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