Get online the moment you land in Sri Lanka. An eSIM installs over wifi before you fly, so there is no airport queue, no shop, no passport photocopy and no swapping the SIM you already use. Your data only starts counting down once you arrive and connect to a network in Sri Lanka.
Travelling beyond Sri Lanka? The Asia plan covers Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Macao, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam on a single eSIM, so it keeps working when you cross a border instead of dying at it.
Most phones made since 2018 support eSIM, including iPhone XS and newer, Google Pixel 3 and newer, and recent Samsung Galaxy S and Note models. The phone also has to be carrier-unlocked. There is a device checker on this page.
Buy it, and the eSIM arrives by email with a one-tap install link, a manual activation code and a QR code. Install it on wifi before you travel. After installing, turn Data Roaming ON for that line — that is the single most common reason an eSIM shows as connected but gives no internet.
Every Ceylon Community Pass includes an Asia eSIM as well as local perks and Zirra, our Sri Lanka travel assistant. If you want data and a travel agent rather than data alone, that is usually the better buy.