Dambulla's reason for existing as a tourist stop is the Dambulla Cave Temple, which is one of Sri Lanka's supreme sights. Everything else in town is secondary to the caves, though the Ibbankatuwa Megalithic Tombs nearby add a less-visited prehistoric dimension, and the Rangiri Dambulla Cricket Stadium is a landmark in its own right — one of the most extraordinary cricket grounds in the world.
The town also functions as the gateway to Sigiriya (20 km north) and Polonnaruwa (65 km northeast), and most visitors use it as a base for one or both.