'Touring Sri Lanka'
In May 2010 I was lucky enough travel to Sri Lanka with the Sri Lankan tourist board. Sri Lanka contains as many variations of cultures, scenery and climate as some countries dozen times its size, it really has astonishing diversity.
The country is now a peaceful destination following the civil unrest on the north in 2008. It is the ideal destination for a varied holiday consisting of idyllic beaches, cultural sights, national parks and stunning scenery. There is really something to suit everyone.
We flew overnight direct to Colombo with Sri Lankan airlines. On arrival to Colombo our 1st stop was a hotel visit to the Walawwa, which is a boutique hotel located not to far from the airport. So if you don’t fancy staying in the city this would be an ideal option. After this we travelled into the heart of the city of Colombo for our first night at the Galadari hotel. Whilst here we had a short city tour visiting Independence Square and Gangarama Temple.
The next morning we travelled north to the Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage which has the biggest herd of rescued elephants. It was an amazing sight to see the elephants make their journey down to the river to bathe and enjoy a dip. This happens twice a day under the eye of the tourist.
Our next stop on this day was to the Dambulla Caves which is one of seven UNESCO world heritage sites. The rock towers 160m over the surrounding plains, the cave temples are masterpieces of Buddhist art. Each is filled with murals depicting scenes from the Buddhist life and statues of the Buddha in various poses.
This evening we stayed at the Amaya Lake hotel in Dambulla.
We left early the next morning before the temperatures soared to climb Sigiriya (Lions Rock), which is an ancient rock fortress and ruin. Sigiriya is one of the islands most awe inspiring archaeological sites and leading tourist attraction. There are approx 1200 steps to reach the top, so definitely not for the faint hearted! Once at the top there are breathtaking views of the central Matale district of Sri Lanka.
Once down from the rock we made our way to do an elephant trek in the vicinity of the area. This was great fun and got some wonderful views of the rock. The elephants even took us in the water so that they could cool down.
Our next stop was another UNESCO heritage site to see the temples in Polonnaruwa which was the islands 2nd ancient capital.
This evening we checked into the Chayya Village located in Habarana. The hotel consisted of cozy cottages throughout the grounds.
The next day was an early departure towards Kandy. A visit to Kandy must include going to see the ‘Temple of the Tooth’.Said to have been snatched from the Buddhas’ funeral pyre and smuggled to Sri Lanka in the hair of a princess. The tooth relic is of great spiritual significance.
We next started to ascend to the tea country, otherwise known as ‘Little England’ the temperature is a lot cooler up there. On the way we stopped at Labookelie tea centre for a tea tasting event which was much fun. Afterwards we continued to the hill station of Nuwara Eliya and checked into the Grand Hotel. This was like a typical English hotel, with beautiful gardens, log fires and we were even greeted with hot soup.
On the following day we made our way down to one of 14 national Parks ‘Yala’ which is the largest and the most visited in Sri Lanka. Also one of the best places in the World to see the elusive leopard as it is said to have the highest density of them. That afternoon we did a jeep safari in the park and were lucky enough to see a leopard, elephants even the tusker, an array of birdlife and even the sloth bear. The safari was so much fun that we decided to do another one the following morning at 5.30am!
After the early morning safari we headed further down the coast towards the walled city of Galle. On the way we did a hotel visit at the Fortress hotel which has a beautiful beachfront setting this was a very nice contemporary style hotel. The Dutch fort at Galle is said to be the best preserved fort in South Asia and was modified by the Dutch in the 17th century. We also visited the Amangalle hotel for lunch and a visit, this hotel was very much boutique style an very small and personal. We captured a beautiful sunset this evening from the fortress walls.
It was an overnight at the Jetwing Lighthouse hotel which has a magnificent position on the coast with amazing coastal views. The hotel was contemporary style with spacious comfortable rooms.
Finally on our last day we headed towards Beruwela and then onto the Blue Water hotel in Waaduwa, stopping at the Eden hotel on the way for another hotel visit. It was an overnight at the Blue water before heading back to the UK on a direct flight with Sri Lankan airlines.
This was a truly amazing trip and gave me the opportunity to see the highlights of Sri Lanka. The people were very welcoming, the food was fantastic and of a very high standard, the beaches were idyllic. Sri Lanka is a year round destination as it has 2 monsoons that cover in different halves of the island at different times. So if you wish to enjoy the western and southern coastal areas when the weather is best then it is best to come between Dec-Apr. However even during monsoon time sunny warm days are common.
I would certainly recommend Sri Lanka as a holiday destination, either on its on or maybe you could twin it up with Dubai or the Maldives.
If you would like more information or would like me to put an itinerary together for you then please feel free to contact me.