EXOTIC ESCAPES

Sri Lanka, the Hill Country and the Coast

Kandy, the tea country, Yala, and the coast where Sri Lanka's Muslim community began.

8 Days / 7 NightsKandy, Nuwara Eliya, Ella, Yala, Galle, Beruwala, Colombo

FROM$665per person

The trip

Kandy, the tea country, Yala, and the coast where Sri Lanka's Muslim community began.

Sri Lanka is small enough to cross in a week and varied enough that you will not notice you have. This one starts in the hills at Kandy, climbs into the tea country at Nuwara Eliya, where the air turns cool and the estates run to the horizon, and drops down through Ella to Yala for a morning among the elephants and leopards. Then the coast at Beruwala, which is where the island's Muslim story begins: the Moors landed here, and Masjid Al Abrar, the oldest mosque in Sri Lanka, still stands in front of its pond. The last day is Colombo, the Red Mosque, and the markets of Pettah. Dinner is halal throughout, breakfast and dinner are included every day, and the driving is done for you in a private air-conditioned vehicle with an English-speaking guide.

Day by day

Every day, already considered.

Prayer, dining, and where you rest, planned into each day, so you are never caught out.

01
DESTINATION
Into the hills, and a tuk-tuk through Kandy
You are met at the airport and driven up to Kandy, the last capital of the island's kings, set on a plateau among tea plantations. On the way you stop at a spice garden to learn what Sri Lanka grows and what it does with it, in the kitchen and in medicine. In Kandy there is a tuk-tuk ride through the streets, then the lake viewpoint as the light goes. Overnight in Kandy.
02
DESTINATION
Gems, tea, and a waterfall on the climb
You climb to Nuwara Eliya, high enough that the British called it Little England and cool enough that you will want a jacket. The day takes in a gem museum, then a working tea factory where you follow the leaf from picking to the cup and drink it at the source. Ramboda Falls comes next, and the evening is spent at Gregory Lake. Overnight in Nuwara Eliya.
03
DESTINATION
A dairy farm, a strawberry field, and a botanical garden
A slower day in the hills. The Ambewala dairy farm first, then a strawberry farm where you pick your own, then Hakgala Botanical Garden, laid out on a hillside and planted with things that only grow at this altitude. Victoria Park in the middle of town closes the day. Overnight in Nuwara Eliya.
04
DESTINATION
The train to Ella, then down to Yala
The famous hill-country train run to Ella, through tea estates and cloud forest at a thousand metres. It is offered as an option rather than a promise, because the seats are sold on availability and nobody can hold them for you. Then the road south to Yala, stopping at Ravana Falls. Overnight at Yala.
05
DESTINATION
Yala at first light, then Galle Fort and the sea
An early start for the safari through Yala National Park, which has elephants, exotic birds and the highest density of leopards anywhere. Afterwards you cross to the coast and stop at Galle Fort, a UNESCO site and an old trading port, still full of Dutch colonial buildings, mosques and mansions. You end at Beruwala, on the beach. Overnight at Beruwala.
06
DESTINATION
The river, the first mosque, and the turtles
A boat safari on the Madhu Ganga through mangrove islands, with water monitors, cormorants and fruit bats overhead, and a stop at Cinnamon Island to see how the bark is cut and dried. Then Masjid Al Abrar, the oldest mosque on the island, in the settlement where Sri Lanka's Moor community began. Late in the day, a turtle hatchery, and the chance to release hatchlings into the sea. Overnight at Beruwala.
07
DESTINATION
The coastal train, the Red Mosque, and Pettah
The coastal railway into Colombo, which runs close enough to the water to feel it. In the city you climb the Red Mosque, its minarets banded red and white, for the view across the rooftops, then walk Pettah, where the streets are sorted by trade and the air smells of spice. Galle Face Green in the evening for street food, and a seafood dinner. Overnight in Colombo.
08
DESTINATION
The Lotus Tower, and the road to the airport
After breakfast, the Lotus Tower, one of the tallest structures in South Asia, then the transfer to the airport for your flight home.