Treasures of Sri Lanka

Itinerary

Day 1: Fly to Colombo (N)

Day 2: Colombo

Arrive and transfer to Cinnamon Lakeside for a
1-night stay. (N)

Day 3: Habarana

Drive to Habarana. Stay 3 nights at Cinnamon Lodge, set in a 10 hectare woodland on the fringe of a tranquil, ancient irrigation lake. (B)

Day 4: Habarana

Visit Sigiriya rock fortress which rises 200 metres from the scrub jungle below and was the innermost stronghold of a 70 hectare fortified town. At the top, there are some stunning views over the surrounding countryside, although the climb is steep and in parts very narrow. (B)

Day 5: Polonnaruwa Minneriya

Visit Polonnaruwa and Minneriya National Park. At Polonnaruwa you will be able to see the ruins of the Royal Palace, the Gal Viharaya and the Parakrama Samudraya lake. Minneriya National Park is a habitat for elephants, deer, leopards, sloth bears and crocodile. (B)

Day 6: Dambulla Kandy

Drive to Kandy and stay 2 nights at Jim’s Farm Villas. En-route visit Popham arboretum and the Dambulla caves, which has a history thought to date back as far as the first century BC when King Valagam Bahu took refuge here, having been driven out of Anuradhapura. (B)

Day 7: Kandy

At leisure or visit the Royal Botanical Gardens at Peradeniya which covers 60 hectares and is the largest botanical garden in Sri Lanka. (B)

Days 8-9: Hill country

En route to Kothmale, visit Kandys Temple of the Tooth which dates from the 16th century and is entered via two doors showing mythical beasts. Stay 2 nights at Mas Villa. At leisure
to explore the tea fields, grand temples and
waterfalls on foot or by bike. (B)

Day 10: Yala

Drive to Yala and spend 2 nights at Jetwing Yala. Yala is the largest, and busiest, national park in Sri Lanka and its terrains consist mainly of dry woodlands with patches of light forest, grasslands and lagoons, which provide residence for the park’s main attraction – the leopard. (B)

Day 12: Galle

Drive to Galle and stay 2 nights at the Jetwing
Lighthouse. (B)

Day 13: Galle

Explore Galle fort which once played an important role in the trade route between Arabia and China. It was built in the late 16th century by the Portuguese and later destroyed and rebuilt by the Dutch in 1640. Galle Fort is today a listed Unesco world heritage site. (B)

Day 14: Wadduwa

Drive to Wadduwa, a quiet stretch of the coast, near to a small fishing community. Spend 2 nights at the Blue Water. (B)

Day 15: Wadduwa

At leisure. (B)

Day 16: Fly home

Drive to Colombo and fly home. (B)