Travel destination
Tea country, ancient cities and the south coast. A compact island that still takes in very different settings in a fortnight.
Sri Lanka travel health centres on food-and-water illness, dengue (a significant risk) and rabies. Hepatitis A and typhoid come up for most travellers, with Japanese encephalitis for longer rural stays. Malaria has been largely eliminated, so tablets are not usually needed. We match the current advice to your route.
Sri Lanka, from Colombo and the coast to the hill country and cultural triangle, is a rewarding trip where food-and-water illness and dengue are the main themes.
Your pharmacist matches advice to your route at South London Clinic.
Vaccines
A starting point, not a prescription. What you actually need depends on where exactly you're going, what you'll be doing, how long for and what you've already had — a pharmacist confirms all of it at your appointment.
What to check before you fly
Sri Lanka may require a yellow fever certificate from travellers arriving from a country with a risk of yellow fever transmission — including some stopovers. There is no yellow fever risk in Sri Lanka itself. A record of polio vaccination may be required if you are staying longer than four weeks. We will check the current requirement for your dates. Entry requirements change — we confirm the current rules for your exact itinerary at your appointment.
Bites, risk and tablets
Malaria risk changes by region, altitude and season, and depends on exactly where you are going and when. We check the current TravelHealthPro country advice against your itinerary at your appointment, and talk you through bite avoidance and, where it is needed, antimalarial tablets.
Give yourself enough time
Ideally see us six to eight weeks before you travel, as some vaccines are given as a course over several weeks. A rabies course runs over about three to four weeks, so start that one early. Travelling sooner than that? Book anyway — there is usually still something worth doing.
The coast, the hill country and the cultural triangle are slightly different pictures, and how you travel and the season shape what you need, at your South London Clinic consultation.
Hepatitis A and typhoid come up for most travellers because both spread through food and water, with the highest typhoid risk in South Asia. Hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis and rabies come in for longer, rural or repeated trips, plus a routine vaccine check.
Dengue is a significant risk in Sri Lanka and rises in the monsoon, spread by daytime-biting mosquitoes, so bite avoidance matters year-round; there is no preventive tablet. Malaria has been largely eliminated in Sri Lanka, so antimalarial tablets are not usually needed, though we confirm the current position via the TravelHealthPro Sri Lanka advice.
Rabies is present, so any bite, scratch or lick needs urgent care, and pre-travel doses are worth discussing for rural or long trips.
Six to eight weeks ahead where possible so any courses can be completed.
Q: Do I need malaria tablets for Sri Lanka?
A: Usually not, as malaria has been largely eliminated; we confirm the current position.
Q: Is dengue a risk in Sri Lanka?
A: Yes, a significant one, so daytime bite protection matters.
Q: Which vaccines for Sri Lanka?
A: Hepatitis A and typhoid for most, with hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis and rabies for longer or rural trips.
Who you'll see
Superintendent Pharmacist & Independent Prescriber
Rafay has been a pharmacist for more than 12 years and runs the travel clinic at Hills Pharmacy. He'll go through where you're going, what you'll be doing and what you've already had, then explain in plain language what's worth having for your trip and what isn't.
GPhC registration 2240995
Hills Pharmacy, 99 Kennington Lane, Kennington, South London SE11 4HQ — GPhC premises 1093041 (Marlborough UK Limited)
Check on the GPhC registerUsually not. Malaria has been largely eliminated in Sri Lanka, so antimalarial tablets are not typically needed. Your pharmacist at South London Clinic confirms the current position for your trip.
Yes, a significant one, and it rises in the monsoon. It is spread by daytime-biting mosquitoes, so bite avoidance matters and there is no preventive tablet.
Hepatitis A and typhoid for most travellers, with hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis and rabies for longer, rural or repeated trips, plus a routine vaccine check.
Yes, so any bite, scratch or lick needs urgent care. Pre-travel doses are worth discussing for rural or long trips.
Book a travel appointment and a pharmacist will go through your itinerary with you — where you're going, what you'll be doing and what you've already had — then tell you what's worth having and what isn't.
Vaccines and antimalarial tablets are prescription only medicines. Suitability is assessed at your consultation — nothing is sold or supplied without it.
Book an appointment
Appointments are with a pharmacist at Hills Pharmacy, 99 Kennington Lane — free parking nearby.
What to bring: a list of any medicines you take, and any records that are relevant to what you're coming in for.
Book an appointmentSouth London Clinic at Hills Pharmacy, 99 Kennington Lane, Kennington, South London, Lambeth, SE11 4HQ · Free parking nearby
Bookings for this clinic are taken by phone and email. Give us a call during opening hours and we'll go through the times that are free.
Opening hours
Appointments are subject to availability. If you are travelling, call as early as you can — some travel vaccines need a course started in advance.
Where to find us
The clinic is inside Hills Pharmacy on High Street. Come in through the shop and tell the counter you're here for an appointment.
Address
South London Travel Clinic at Hills Pharmacy99 Kennington LaneOpening hours
Clinic appointments run within these hours. Bank holiday hours can differ — please call before travelling in.
South London Travel Clinic at Hills Pharmacy, 99 Kennington Lane, Kennington, Lambeth, SE11 4HQ