Following the Footsteps of Duran Duran in Sri Lanka: Timeless Sri Lanka Holidays from UK

In April 1982, Duran Duran filmed three music videos in Sri Lanka: “Hungry Like the Wolf”, “Save a Prayer” and “Lonely in Your Nightmare”. The locations include Colombo’s Pagoda Tea Room, Sigiriya, Polonnaruwa, Lankathilaka Temple, Taprobane Island and, in all three videos, Galle, Sri Lanka. This guide maps every confirmed location and shows how to visit them in style, from staying at the hotel where the band filmed to seeing Sigiriya from the air.

For anyone who grew up in Britain in the 1980s, the images are unforgettable: Simon Le Bon tearing through a jungle, the band standing on top of an ancient rock fortress, waves rolling onto a palm-lined beach. Those scenes weren’t filmed on a set. They were shot in Sri Lanka, when Duran Duran stopped on the island in April 1982 on the way to an Australian tour.

Directed by Russell Mulcahy, the three videos helped define the early MTV era and introduced a generation of UK viewers to Sri Lanka. More than forty years on, almost every location is still there to visit. Here’s where each video was filmed, and how to follow the trail on a private, luxury trip.

Let’s take a little stroll down memory lane and discover where the magic happened:

Which Duran Duran Videos Were Filmed in Sri Lanka?

All three videos were shot during the same 1982 visit. According to the band’s official location guide, these are the confirmed Sri Lankan locations:

Why Is Galle at the Heart of the Duran Duran Trail?

Galle, Sri Lanka is the only place that appears in all three videos, which makes it the natural base for any Duran Duran pilgrimage. The UNESCO-listed Galle Fort, built by the Portuguese and expanded by the Dutch, is a compact grid of cobbled lanes, colonial villas, galleries and cafés, all wrapped in sea-facing ramparts. Walk the ramparts at sunset and you’re retracing the closing scenes of “Lonely in Your Nightmare”. Our guide to things to do in Galle covers the fort in more detail.

Stay Where the Band Filmed: Amangalla

The band filmed interior scenes for all three videos at the hotel now called Amangalla, then known as the New Oriental Hotel. The dance scene in “Save a Prayer” was shot in a room off the lobby called the Zaal. Today it’s one of the most atmospheric hotels in Galle, Sri Lanka, with polished teak floors, a colonnaded veranda and a pool garden hidden behind the fort walls. Staying here puts you inside the story.

If you’d prefer more space, luxury villas in Galle, Sri Lanka range from restored merchant houses inside the fort to private estates in the hills just outside it, many with a pool and a resident chef. A short drive away, Unawatuna beach is one of the prettiest on the south coast and close to the stretch of shoreline seen in “Save a Prayer”.

Taprobane Island: The Private Island From “Lonely in Your Nightmare”

The small island with a house on top, seen behind the band on the beach, is Taprobane Island at Weligama, about 30 minutes east of Galle. The villa was built by a French count in the 1920s and later owned by the writer Paul Bowles. At low tide you can wade across from the beach. Taprobane is also let as a private villa for exclusive stays, which makes it one of the most unusual places to sleep in Sri Lanka. We can check availability for you.

Where Was “Save a Prayer” Filmed? Sigiriya, Polonnaruwa and Lankathilaka

“Save a Prayer” moves inland to Sri Lanka’s ancient heritage sites. Its best-known shot, filmed from a helicopter, shows the band standing on the summit of Sigiriya among the ruins of a 5th-century royal palace. Our Sigiriya Lion Rock guide explains how to plan the climb.

Further scenes were filmed at the Polonnaruwa ancient city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, including the Gal Vihara, where huge Buddha figures are carved from a single granite rock face. You can explore the ruins by bicycle or with a private guide; see our page on places to visit in Polonnaruwa. The video’s final temple scene, with Simon Le Bon leaning against a stone platform, was shot at Lankathilaka, a 14th-century temple on a rock outcrop near Kandy.

One detail worth knowing: the band filmed barefoot at the temples out of respect, just as visitors do today. Bring a pair of socks, as the stone can get very hot by midday.

See Sigiriya the Way the Video Did

If you’d like to recreate that aerial view, helicopter tours in Sri Lanka can be arranged for a scenic flight over the Cultural Triangle, or as a time-saving transfer between regions. Stay in a jungle lodge or private villa near Sigiriya, and climb the rock at first light before the heat and crowds arrive.

Where Was “Hungry Like the Wolf” Filmed?

The video’s opening and closing scenes were shot at the Pagoda Tea Room on Chatham Street in Colombo Fort, where Simon Le Bon sits in a hat and glacier glasses before the chase begins. The market sequence was filmed in Galle’s Old Market, and the bar scene at the hotel now called Amangalla. The jungle and river scenes were filmed in Sri Lanka too, although the exact spots were never recorded. Rhythm guitarist Andy Taylor famously fell ill after swallowing lagoon water during the shoot.

Colombo is worth at least a night at the start or end of your trip. Pair a visit to the Pagoda Tea Room with a walk around the restored colonial buildings of the Fort district and a sunset on Galle Face Green.

For serious fans, it’s worth bringing a few stills from the videos on your phone. Your chauffeur-guide can help you line up the same angles, whether that’s the café table in Colombo, the rampart wall in Galle or the stone platform at Lankathilaka. It’s a fun way to compare the island today with the Sri Lanka captured on film in 1982.

A 9-Day Luxury Duran Duran Trail

Every Silk Way Ceylon Tours itinerary is tailor-made, but here’s how a 9-day trip built around the videos could look:

Want to extend the trip? Add the hill country for a stay in a tea bungalow, or Yala National Park for a leopard safari, before finishing on the south coast.

Planning Your Trip From the UK

• Flights: Direct flights from London Heathrow to Colombo take roughly 11 hours, and one-stop connections via the Gulf run from Manchester, Birmingham and other UK airports.
• Entry: British passport holders need an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA). Since 25 May 2026, the tourist ETA has been free for UK citizens and allows a 30-day stay with double entry.
• When to go: December to April brings the best weather to Galle and the south coast, and it’s also dry in the Cultural Triangle, so you can follow the whole trail in one trip.
• Temple etiquette: Cover your shoulders and knees, and remove your shoes and hats before entering sacred sites.

Plan Your Own Duran Duran Trail in Sri Lanka

Duran Duran showed millions of British viewers what makes Sri Lanka special: ancient cities, jungle, colonial streets and golden beaches, all within a few hours of each other. As an SLTDA-licensed specialist based in Colombo, Silk Way Ceylon Tours can build a private itinerary around every location, with a dedicated chauffeur-guide and hand-picked luxury stays. For more inspiration, explore our Sri Lanka luxury holidays, then contact us to start planning your tailor-made itinerary.

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