Stairway

The Ancient Cities


In a series of flights, 1843 ancient granite slab steps lead majestically up the hillside, passing the occasional rock inscription and side trail. The first flight is the widest and shallowest.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby The Ancient Cities attractions

1. Quincunx

0.05 MILES

The remains of a quincunx of buildings, laid out like the five dots on a die, sits beside the path leading from the museum to the stairway.

2. Kantaka Chetiya

0.07 MILES

At the first landing, a side flight of 100 steps branches right to this partly ruined dagoba, one of the oldest at Mihintale. It’s 12m high (originally…

3. Monks’ Refectory & Relic House

0.12 MILES

On the second landing is the monks’ refectory with huge stone troughs that the lay followers kept filled with rice for the monks.

4. Mihintale Ruins

0.13 MILES

The sleepy ruins of Mihintale are closely associated with the earliest introduction of Buddhism to Sri Lanka. A ceremonial staircase climbs past pools,…

5. Assembly Hall

0.14 MILES

On the same level as the relic house, this hall, also known as the convocation hall, is where monks met to discuss matters of common interest. The raised…

6. Mihintale Museum

0.17 MILES

This small museum on the road leading to the stairway base is worth a short visit for its modest collection of artefacts collected from Mihintale.

7. Sinha Pokuna

0.17 MILES

Just below the monks’ refectory on the second landing, and near the entrance if you are coming via Old Rd, is a small pool surmounted by a 2m-high rampant…

8. Naga Pokuna

0.21 MILES

Halfway back down the steep flight of steps from the Ambasthale Dagoba, a path leads to the left, around the base of the hill topped by the Mahaseya…

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