Sri Lanka: Pearl of the Indian Ocean

Expand all days

1. Day1 Athens → Colombo: the long flightAthens → Colombo

   We meet at Athens airport with your Greek coordinator and fly to Colombo on a scheduled flight with one connection. A long journey across several time zones, with a night in the air: rest as much as you can, because the island that awaits you has a great deal to show.

   • Flight
2. Day2 Arrival and the Dambulla cave templesColombo → Dambulla

   Arrival at Colombo airport, near the fishing town of Negombo, and a drive north into the island's dry heartland. Then the Dambulla cave temples: five caves cut into the rock, with Buddha statues and ceilings covered in frescoes. Dinner and the first night near Sigiriya.

   • Coach
   • Dinner
3. Day3 Lion Rock and PolonnaruwaSigiriya · Polonnaruwa

   At first light we climb Sigiriya, the Lion Rock: a fifth-century fortress on a rock that rises from the jungle, with water gardens, frescoes and a final stretch of steps to the summit. In the afternoon, Polonnaruwa, the medieval capital, with its ruined palaces and the Buddhas carved in the rock of Gal Vihara.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
4. Day4 To Kandy: spice garden and Temple of the ToothKandy

   We drive south to Kandy, stopping at a spice garden near Matale to smell cinnamon, cardamom and pepper still on the plant. In Kandy, beside the quiet lake, we visit the Temple of the Tooth, a Buddhist shrine where drums and offerings of lotus flowers mark the daily rites. Dinner in town.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Dinner
5. Day5 Tea estates and Nuwara EliyaNuwara Eliya

   We climb into the hill country, among waterfalls and slopes carpeted with tea bushes. At a tea factory we follow the leaf from picking to the cup, with a tasting. We reach Nuwara Eliya, at over 1,800 metres, where the air is cool, the colonial-style houses have hedges of roses and the evening calls for a sweater.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
6. Day6 By train to Ella and the Nine Arch BridgeElla

   A short drive takes us to Nanu Oya station, where we board the hill-country train: a slow journey with the windows down over tea estates, misty ridges and tiny stations. In Ella we walk to the Nine Arch Bridge, a stone viaduct over the jungle, and with a little luck we see a train cross it.

   • Train
   • Breakfast · Dinner
7. Day7 Udawalawe: a safari among elephantsUdawalawe

   A morning at leisure in Ella, with the option of an easy walk to Little Adam's Peak and its view over the valley, then the road south to Udawalawe. In the late afternoon, a jeep safari in the national park: elephants in family herds, water buffalo, peacocks and eagles under a softening sky.

   • 4x4 vehicle
   • Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
8. Day8 Galle: the Dutch FortGalle

   We head to the south coast. At Galle we enter the Dutch Fort, built by the Portuguese and enlarged by the Dutch in the 17th century: cobbled lanes, whitewashed houses, small cafés and old ramparts to walk as the sun goes down, with the lighthouse and the Indian Ocean waves below. Dinner near the fort.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Dinner
9. Day9 Galle → Colombo → AthensGalle → Colombo → Athens

   After breakfast, a last walk along the ramparts of Galle, then the southern expressway to Colombo for a short city tour: the Galle Face seafront promenade and the bazaars of Pettah. Transfer to the airport and flight home on a scheduled service with one connection, with tea and cinnamon in your suitcase.

   • Flight
   • Breakfast · Lunch