National railway museum, Railway museum in Kadugannawa, Sri Lanka

The National Railway Museum in Kadugannawa displays locomotives, train cars, and machinery from 150 years of Sri Lankan rail history. The exhibits span from steam-powered engines to contemporary rail equipment and show the evolution of transport technology.

Rail transport arrived in Sri Lanka in 1864 and transformed how the island was connected. The museum was established to preserve and tell the story of this long railway heritage.

The museum shows how railways shaped daily life in Sri Lanka and connected distant towns and villages. The displays reveal the important role trains played in bringing people and goods across the island.

The museum is in Kadugannawa, west of Kandy, and is open daily from 9.00 AM to 4.00 PM, closing on Poya days. Payment is cash only at the counter. Allow about an hour to see the locomotives, carriages and machinery.

The museum opened in Kadugannawa on 27 December 2014, the 150th anniversary of Sri Lanka's railways; its earlier version had opened in Colombo in May 2009. It is owned by Sri Lanka Railways, and the collection holds engines, locomotives, rail cars, trolleys, carriages, machinery and equipment used since the railway began.