Day 1 – Arrival & Dambulla: Your amazing adventure will start once your plane lands at Colombo International Airport. You will be welcomed by a friendly guide who will be your travel buddy for the rest of your stay in Sri Lanka. You will then be transferred to your hotel in Dambulla, which is around 5 hours away. Along the way, you will have the option to stop at Ambepussa Rest House, which is around 2 hours away from the airport. Feel free to freshen up with a cup of tea and sandwiches or cool off with a dip in the streamlet nearby. Once you arrive in Dambulla, you will be welcomed with a glass of tropical fruit juice, before check-in. After you have unpacked, you will be free to relax and make the most of the hotel’s facilities.
Day 2 – Dambulla, Sigiriya, & Minneriya: Be sure to wear comfy shoes today as you set off on a full day of sightseeing. First you will uncover the beauty of Sigiriya Rock Fortress. You will have the chance to climb the fortress, which is known as the 8th wonder of the world. Discover how this rock fortress was built by King Kasyapa in the 5th century A.D and was a royal citadel for more than 18 years. The summit of the rock was the site of the palace and the outer walls were once built on the very brink of the precipice. More recently, The UNESCO sponsored Central Cultural Fund has restored Sigiriya 5th century water gardens to their former glory. This is definitely a place to pull out your camera and snap a holiday photo that you will treasure for years to come. Once you have worked up an appetite, you will stop for lunch at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, you will have the option of experiencing a game drive at the Minneriya National Park. If you are visiting between July to September, then you will be able to view one of the most spectacular wildlife event in Sri Lanka known as the ‘The Gathering’. This occurs during the dry season, when the water supplies starts to diminish, which means various animals, including elephants, congregate around the Minneriya reservoir for several months at a time. This is also because the grass here is rich and fertile. It is possible to witness up to 400 elephants at a time. Keep your eyes peeled as you are bound to see these gentle giants socialize, bathe, feed and possibly mate. Minneriya National Park is also a great place to spot Sri Lankan leopards and sloth bears. In fact, it is also home to 26 species of mammals, 160 species of bird, 9 species of amphibians, 25 species of reptiles, 26 species of fish and 75 species of butterfly. As the safari comes to an end, you will be transferred back to your hotel in Dambulla to spend the rest of the day at leisure.
Day 3 – Dambulla, Matale & Kandy: Start the day with a delicious breakfast, before travelling to Kandy. But along the way you will visit the famous Dambulla Cave Temple. You will be awe-inspired by this vast isolated rock mass, which is where King Valagambahu took refuge in the 1st century B.C. Dambulla is a complex of five caves with over 2000 square meters of painted walls and ceiling. The caves contain over 150 images of the Buddha including a colossal 14-metre figure, which has been carved out of rock. Afterwards, you will visit Matale Spice Garden, which provides a wonderful opportunity to view the spices that are used for cooking and medicinal use. After an eventful day, you will arrive in Kandy and check-in at your hotel. You will have time to freshen up before a trip to explore the Temple of the Tooth to witness the traditional blessings known “Thewawa”. After the ceremony, you will be able to explore the Temple of the Tooth Relic, which is located in the royal palace complex. The palace temple stands surrounded by a moat, and you will be wowed by its golden roof, which gleams in the sunlight. Inside, it houses the relic of the tooth of Buddha. The relic is kept in a two-storey inner shrine fronted by two large elephant tusks. According to legend at the time, the tooth that was taken from the Buddha as he lay on his funeral pyre. Since ancient times, the relic has played an important role in local politics because it is believed that whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country. Kandy was the last capital of the Sinhalese kings and is a UNESCO world heritage site partly due to the temple. After such an eventful day, you will return to your hotel for a relaxing overnight stay.
Day 4 – Kandy & Peradeniya: Enjoy a delicious breakfast before heading to the stunning Peradeniya Botanical Garden. You will treat your eyes to an amazing, wide and rare collection of tropical flowers as soon as you step foot inside the garden. This was originally the King’s own royal pleasure garden but was later converted into a botanic garden and later opened up to the public. The garden also boasts an orchid house with the largest collection in Asia. This is a perfect spot to enjoy a relaxing stroll or pull out your camera and snap stunning photos. Next, you will go sightseeing around Kandy, which will involve a stop at market square where you can fetch souvenirs in wood, copper, ceramics, batiks, and reed-ware at bargain prices. Finally, you will travel to Udawalawe and check-in at your new hotel.
Day 6 – Udawalawe & Benota: Get ready for a wild adventure when you start the day with a game drive at Udawalawe National Park. The Park is located approximately 200 km south-east of Colombo city and is a major eco-tourism destination in Sri Lanka. It is home to scenic landscapes and rare wildlife that rival the savannah reserves of Africa. In fact, the park is a treasure of this emerald isle and is most popular for elephant sightings as the shelters close to 500 elephants. You will be wowed as you get close-up to these gentle giants. It is not unusual to see whole herds of adults and young elephants– feeding or bathing and playing in the water. In addition to this main attraction, the park is home to many water buffalo, water monitor lizards, sambar deer, monkeys and the occasional leopard, as well as being an exciting location for bird enthusiasts. In the evening, you will travel to Bentota for check in at your beach resort.
Day 7 to 9 – Bentota : Spend the next 3-days unwinding and doing as little or as much as your heart desires. Your hotel is the perfect place to experience the joys of Sri Lanka as it is just steps from the beach. Just imagine waking up to sweeping sea views from your modern room. It also has an outdoor pool, which is the perfect place to soak up the sunshine. Free wi-fi is also available, which is great for anyone who loves to post holiday selfies online. The air-conditioned rooms also are fitted with a flat-screen TV and have a large balcony with outdoor seating which will no doubt become your favourite spot to watch the sunrise or sunset. If you love adventure, then you can also go whale and dolphin watching nearby or enjoy a range of water sports in the ocean or the Bentota River. What better way to have fun than to feel the sun on your skin and the sea breeze in your hair.
Day 10 -Departure: After breakfast, you will be transferred to Colombo Airport to catch your flight back home. As you jet off, you will be accompanied with many happy memories of the tropical isle. If you would like to extend your stay or travel in a premium class, then please speak with our Travel Specialist who will be happy to assist you.
