.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Locations in Sri Lanka
Adam's Peak
At 2,243 metres tall, Adam's Peak is well known for the Sri Pada "sacred footprint", a 1.8 metres rock formation near the summit. With history spanning back thousands of years, Buddhists believe the footprint is that of Buddha, in Hindu tradition ...
Ambalangoda
Located in Galle District, Ambalangoda is a small coastal town in southern Sri Lanka. The town is close to some wonderful beaches and is famous for their crafts which are carved from light woods such as Kaduru. The masks and puppets made in Ambala...
Anamaduwa
Anamaduwa is a small town situated in the Putlam District of Sri Lanka. Only a 2 hour drive from Colombo, this town is a perfect...
Anuradhapura
The sprawling ancient city of Anuradhapura is full of dreamy stepped pools and bell-shaped stupas, or dagobas (some as large as 60 metres high and 340 metres in circumference), many of them gleaming white, while others have faded to overgrown, sun...
Balapitiya
A traditional fishing village with a golden sand beach, Balapitiya also sits on the Madu Ganga (River) estuary, connected to inland Randombe Lake by two winding channels. Together they form one of Sri Lanka's biggest wetlands, a vast swathe of densel...
Bandarawela
The bustling hill town of Bandarawela is, like Nuwara Eliya, in the cool Central Highlands, though it is further south and at a lower altitude (1,230 metres) than its more famous cousin. Often considered to be the "forgotten" hill station, it tends t...
Bentota
Around 60 kilometres south of Colombo and bridging the Bentota River as it reaches the coast, Bentota was an early arrival on the resort scene because of its sweeping bays and lovely beaches. It also has a strong Bawa connection; over 60 years, from ...
Bogawantalawa Valley
The Bogawantalawa Valley in central Sri Lanka is known as the Golden Valley of Tea and is considered to be one of the most beautiful tea growing areas in the country. Here in solitude, at an elevation of 1,500 metres, lies Ceylon Tea Trails, four cla...
Bolgoda Lake
Only 45 minutes' drive due south of Colombo, this 400-square-kilometre wetland consists of two lakes - North Lake and South Lake - connected to each other and to the sea by broad waterways, effectively turning a huge tract of the Western Province int...
Buttala
Buttala, north of Kataragama and fringing Yala National Park, is known as the rice bowl of Sri Lanka. The region is mostly jungle with plenty of opportunities for trekking, wildlife spotting, rock-climbing and even rafting. The Menik Ganga (Gem River...
Colombo
Sri Lanka's former capital (the modern capital is next-door Sri Jayawardenpura Kotte) has one of the most perfect settings in Asia. Stretching for 14 kilometres along the island's western shore, it has a sheltered harbour that attracted Indian Ocean ...
Dambulla
This is Sri Lankas greatest Cave Temple complex; the walls are alive with frescoes of religious and secular scenes and beautiful geometric designs in warm oranges and golds. People have sheltered under the overhang of the smooth, water-marked gran...
Galle
Like Colombo, Galle was a thriving port long before colonial times; on the southwest of the country, it attracted Arabs, Persians, Romans and Greeks on their way across the Indian Ocean. In 1505 the Portuguese attacked and settled the town, 135 ye...
Giritale
The lake of Giritale was built in the 7th Century as part of a regional irrigation plan. The area is extremely beautiful and peaceful and allows easy access to the ancient city of Polonnaruwa and the elephant filled Minneriya National Park....
Habarana
Habarana is an important crossroads connecting the northern provinces of Sri Lanka with Kandy and Colombo. Although the place itself is an area of nondescript jungle it has several good hotels and is centrally located providing easy access to the pri...
Horton Plains
This high grassland plateau (1,800 to 2,160 metres above sea level) became a national park, The Peak Wilderness Sanctuary, in 1969 and is the only park in Sri Lanka that allows hiking. Often compared to the Scottish Highlands because of its misty ...
Kalpitiya
Kalpitiya is located on the East coast, four hours north of Colombo. A dry and hot part of the island, Kalpitiya is rarely beaten when it comes to weather. The area remains home to a large fishing community and the crabs caught here in the lagoon ...
Kandalama
Kandalama is a beautiful ancient man-made lake close to Sigiriya and Dambulla. Located on its shores is the famous Kandalama Hotel built by Sri Lanka's foremost architect Geoffrey Bawa. The lake is also the starting point for balloon safaris which...
Kandy
Kandy was the last royal capital and it is one of the most charming towns in Sri Lanka, famous for its gorgeous setting beside a lake, cradled by hills and surrounded by the sinuous lines of tea plantations. It is home to the gold-roofed Temple of...
Kataragama
The mystical temple town of Kataragama has been a centre of worship and pilgrimage for over 2000 years, significant for Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians alike. Hindus worship at the Katirkamam Temple, dedicated to Murugan, and bathe in th...
Kitulgala
Kitulgala - which is named after the sago palms that surround it - is in the low hills to the west of the Central Highlands, sprawling along a beautiful wide river called the Kelani. This has helped to turn it into an adventure destination; upriver t...
Knuckles Mountain Range
Knuckles Mountain Range is a conservation area that stretches 155 square kilometres, just one hour south of Kandy. Located right in the heart of Sri Lanka, the area is formed of an impressive array of forests, endemic flora and fauna and breathtak...
Minneriya
King Mahasena built this 300-square-hectare water tank in the fourth century, and it became popular with modern visitors because of the herds of wild elephant which gather on its shores to drink in the afternoons. It eventually became the centrepi...
Mirissa
The beach at Mirissa is a beautiful wide stretch of golden sand backed by luxuriant vegetation. It has been sensitively developed and is still one of the most idyllic spots on the south coast of Sri Lanka.
...
Negombo
Located close to the international airport Negombo is the principle beach resort north of Colombo. It has a picturesque lagoon, numerous Catholic churches and an impressive network of canals built by the Dutch which are currently being restored. For ...
Nuwara Eliya
The cool, misty hill station of Nuwara Eliya (pronounced Noor elia) was first established as a summer retreat by the Governor of Ceylon, Sir Edward Barnes, in 1828. Twenty years later it was developed into a resort by Samuel Baker to provide 19th-cen...
Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage
The Sri Lanka Wildlife Service set up this much-loved institution halfway between Colombo and Kandy in 1975. It has at least 60 elephants at any one time, several of them mischievous babies, who are fed twice a day and then walked in line down to ...
Polonnaruwa
The extraordinary ancient city of Polonnaruwa was the island's medieval capital between the 11th and 13th century. Built alongside a huge man-made lake (referred to as a sea in Sinhala), there is an outstanding collection of well-preserved remain...
Ritigala
Legends swirl around the mountain of Ritigala, which towers like a pile of huge, sculptural granite blocks over the surrounding jungle, and whose low peak is often shrouded in mist. It is said that Ritigala won a dual against his fellow-giant, Son...
Sigiriya
There are few more impressive sights in the world than the 370-metre-high rock citadel of Sigiriya, a UNESCO World Heritage. Known as the “Lion Rock”, it crouches in red splendour, enveloped by the dense jungle, dominating the surrounding plains. Bui...
Sinharaja
This 8,800-hectare reserve, near the gem-mining town of Ratnapura, in the far south of Sri Lanka, is vitally important as one of the last remaining areas of virgin rainforest - plus introduced species such as teak and mahogany - left on the island. I...
Tangalle
Tangalle is a small fishing village on the southernmost coast of the island and is best known for its beautiful stretches of palm-fringed beaches, sheltered bays, golden sands and azure waters. Should you tire of lying on the beach you can visit the ...
Trincomalee
Trincomalee, the largest town on Sri Lanka's eastern coast, spreads across a number of rocky promontories surrounding a beautiful harbour and bay. The Portuguese, the Dutch, the king of Kandy, the French and the English repeatedly fought over this...
Udawalawe National Park
Udawalawe National Park is a 119-square-mile sanctuary for wildlife situated on the Walawe River. Established in 1972, the park is an important environment for the conservation of rare birds such as the White Wagtail and the Black Capped Kingfishe...
Wadduwa
Wadduwa is located on the Southwest coast of Sri Lanka. Within a close distance of Colombo, Beruwela and Bentota, Wadduwa is the...
Yala National Park
Yala (or Ruhunu) National Park (1,570-square-kilometres) is mostly open parkland, making the wildlife easier to see, particularly in the December-March dry season. The landscape is varied, with rock outcrops, scrub jungle, lagoons, lakes, rivers and ...
