Duration : 8 Days / 7 Nights
Dates :
Tour Itinerary
Day 01 - Airport / Pinnawala / Kandalama
Arrival and transfer to Pinnawala.
Visit the Elephant Orphanage at Pinnawala which has been established in 1975 and Visit the Elephant Orphanage at Pinnawala established in 1975 and commenced with seven orphans. Today, some of these orphans enjoy the fortune of seeing their grandchildren born in the same location. The original objective of establishing the orphanage inclined more towards tourism, but soon it became a conservation and an educational centre. With the help of local and foreign elephant experts, Pinnawala started a scientific captive-breeding programme for elephants. The free movement of the herd enhanced the chances for individuals of both sexes to get together and mate. The nearby river played a dominant role in this regard and in 1984, the first baby of Pinnawala was born.
The success story of Pinnawala has drawn the attention of scientists from all over the world. A considerable number of books and research articles on Pinnawala have been published in several languages. The members of the Pinnawala herd have been filmed, videoed and photographed thousands of times by professionals.
Lunch at Pinnalanda Restaurant, Pinnawala.
Thereafter transfer to Kandalama.
Dinner and overnight stay at Heritance Kandalama, Kandalama.
Web Site : www.aitkenspencehotels.com
Address : Dambulla, Sri Lanka
E-mail : kandala@sltnet.lk
Tel : 066 5555 000
Fax : 066 2284109
Day 02 - Kandalama / Anuradhapura / Mihintale / Aukana / Kandalama
After breakfast transfer to Anuradhapura.
Do a city tour of Anuradhapura. It was the first capital and undoubtedly the grandest city of the ancient Ceylon. Two of the World Heritage Sites are situated here and many places of historical and archaeological interest could be visited. Sri Maha Bodhi (Sacred Bo-Tree) was brought as a sapling of the tree under which Prince Siddhartha attained to enlightenment. It is over 2200 years old and is the oldest historically documented tree in the world. The Brazen Palace (2nd century B.C), the 1600 stone columns you see are all that is left of a magnificent multi-storied residence for monks. Ruwanweliseya (2nd century B.C) is the most famous of all the Dagobas. It originally depicted the perfect \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bubble shape\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" that modern restoration has not been able to accurately reproduce. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'Samadhi\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' Buddha statue (4th century AD) is one of the most famous statues, depicting the Buddha in a state of \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'Samadhi\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' or deep meditation and Isurumuniya rock temple (3rd century B.C) which is well known for its rock carvings.
Lunch at Palm Garden Village Hotel, Anuradhapura.
Thereafter, transfer to Mihintale.
Mihintale is where Buddhism was first introduced to Sri Lanka. Mihintale is regarded as the cradle of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. The rock is riddled with shrines and rock dwellings. A grand stairway of 1,840 steps made out of granite slabs 15\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' wide leads to the summit from where one could get a splendid view of the surrounding countryside.
Also, visit the Aukana Buddha statue which is beyond doubt is the most magnificent, undamaged statue in Sri Lanka. It was built in the reign of King Dhatusena in the 5th century and is 39 ft (12 meters) high. The Name \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Aukana\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" means \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Sun-eating\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\".
On completion transfer to Kandalama.
Dinner and overnight stay at Heritance Kandalama, Kandalama.
Day 03 - Kandalama / Polonnaruwa / Sigiriya / Kandalama
Breakfast at Heritance Kandalama.
Thereafter, transfer to Polonnaruwa.
Do a city tour of Polonnaruwa which is a world heritage site and the 2nd capital city of Sri Lanka built in the 11th and 12th centuries AD. See the ruins of the Royal Palace, the Gal Viharaya where 4 splendid statues of the Buddha in \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'Upright\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\', \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'Sedentary\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' and \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'Recumbent\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' postures carved out of rock, the Audience Hall, the Lotus Bath, the statue of king Parakramabahu, and the Parakrama Samudraya - a lake built by King Parakramabahu the great. There are also monuments of famous places of worship such as the Shiva Temple, the Lankathilake, the Watadage, the Galpotha, the Kiri Vehera and the remains of a former Temple of the Tooth Relic.
Lunch at Hotel Sudu Araliya, Polonnaruwa.
Then transfer to Sigiriya.
Climb the 5th century Sigiriya Rock Fortress which is a world heritage site, built by King Kashyapa (477-495 AD). The \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'Lion Rock\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' is a citadel of unusual beauty rising 200 metres from the scrub jungle. The rock was the innermost stronghold of the 70 hectare fortified town. A moat, rampart, and extensive gardens including the renowned water gardens ring the base of the rock. Visit the world-renowned frescoes of the \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'Heavenly Maidens\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' of Sigiriya, which are in a sheltered pocket of the rock approached by a spiral stairway. These frescoes are painted on plaster using earth pigments.
On completion transfer to Kandalama.
Dinner and overnight stay at Heritance Kandalama, Kandalama.
Day 04 - Kandalama / Dambulla / Matale / Kandy
Breakfast at Heritance Kandalama.
Then transfer to Dambulla.
Visit Dambulla rock temple which has been built by king Walagambahu in the 1st century B.C. It is a World Heritage Site. It is the most impressive of Sri Lanka\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s cave temples. The complex of five caves with over 2000 sq. metres of painted walls and ceilings, is the largest area of paintings found in the world. It contains over 150 images of the Buddha of which the largest is the colossal figure of the Buddha carved out of rock and spanning 14 metres.
Thereafter transfer to Matale.
In Matale, visit a spice garden to see different spices for which Sri Lanka is famous for. Here, clients could see different spices and how some of these spices are grown and processed. Also, witness a Cookery demonstration.
On completion, continue to Kandy.
Lunch at Hilltop Hotel, Kandy.
Kandy was the last capital of the Sri Lankan kings and is a World Heritage Site. The name \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Kandy\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" conjures visions of splendour and magnificence. Many of the legends, traditions and folklore are still lovingly kept alive. In the evening visit the Kandy town and bazaar, the arts and crafts centre, a gem museum and a lapidary. Also, visit the Temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy.
Thereafter witness a cultural show.
Dinner and overnight stay at Earl’s Regency Hotel, Kandy.
Web Site : www.aitkenspencehotels.com
Address : Kandy, Sri Lanka.
E-mail : erhotel@sltnet.lk
Tel : 081 2422122
Fax : 081 2422133
Day 05 - Kandy / Peradeniya / Nuwara Eliya / Kandapola
Breakfast at the hotel.
Then transfer to Peradeniya.
Visit Peradeniya botanical gardens which was first built as a pleasure garden by a Sinhala king and has been expanded by the British. It is 147 acres in extent and provides an amazing variety of trees, plants and flowers.
Thereafter, transfer to Nuwara Eliya.
Enroute visit a tea plantation and a tea factory where the best tea in the world is produced. Here you could observe the process of manufacturing tea. You can also see how tea is graded. Taste a cup of pure Ceylon tea in the factory.
Lunch at Ramboda Falls Hotel, Ramboda.
Continue to Nuwara Eliya.
On completion, transfer to Kandy.
Do a city tour of Nuwara Eliya. Nuwara Eliya, because of its invigorating mountain climate and scenery, is Sri Lanka’s most popular hill resort. Nuwara Eliya is also the heart of Sri Lanka’s tea country producing a significant share of the world’s best tea. Sri Lanka’s highest mountain, Pidurutalagala (8282 feet) is located here. One of the finest 18 hole golf courses in South Asia is also situated in Nuwara Eliya.
On completion, transfer to Kandapola.
Dinner and overnight stay at Tea Factory Hotel, Kandapola.
Web Site : www.aitkenspencehotels.com
Address : Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka
E-mail : tfactory@slt.lk
Tel : 052 2229605
Fax : 052 2229606
Day 06 - Kandapola / Udawalawe / Kataragama
Breakfast at the hotel.
Then transfer to Udawalawe.
Lunch at Walawe Rest.
Thereafter, do a safari of The Udawalawe National Park by jeep. The area of this park is 30,821 hectares and is a dry zone park which was declared as a National Park in 1972. This park falls within the Sabaragamuwa and Uva provinces and between the Udawalawe reservoir and the Walawe River. It is surrounded by the scenic beauty of the mountain range that keep on winding endlessly on the Balangoda, Kalthota and Haputale escarpments. It has an annual rainfall of 1,524 mm. and an average year-round temperature of 29.4 C. This park is famous for elephants seen in their playfulness, whole herds of them, adults and babies bathing and playing in the water or feeding. In addition to elephants, deer species such as spotted deer, sambhur, barking deer and langur, water buffalos and jackals are some of the prominent wild animals found in this park.
Thereafter, transfer to Kataragama.
Dinner and overnight stay at Mandara Rosen Hotel, Kataragama.
Web Site : www.rosenhotelsrilanka.com
Address : No. 57, Detagamuwa, Kataragama, Sri Lanka.
E-mail : rosenr@sltnet.lk
Tel : 047 2236030-3
Fax : 047 2236030-3
Day 07 - Kataragama / Galle / Ambalangoda / Kosgoda / Colombo
Breakfast at the hotel.
Thereafter transfer to Galle.
Galle was once the chief port of Ceylon. It is still well known for hand-made lace. Visit the Galle Fort (spanning 90 acres) which was originally built by the Portuguese and later extended by the Dutch in 1663. This is a World Heritage Site.
Lunch at Closenberg Hotel, Galle.
Thereafter, transfer to Ambalangoda.
Ambalangoda is a charming seaside town on the south-western coast. It is the home of the mask carvers. These colourful masks are used by dancers performing exotic rituals and folk dances. There is also an Old Dutch Church.
Then, transfer to Kosgoda.
In Kosgoda, visit the Turtle hatchery which is being operated by the Wild Life Protection Society of Sri Lanka. Several species of turtles, especially the endangered
hawksbill are protected here. Most vulnerable of all are their eggs, which are left uncovered on beaches all around the coast. The goodwill of Kosgoda area fishermen who bring these eggs gratis to the hatchery has lead to the hatching and has released around 100,000 young turtles within a period of two years since the hatchery has been opened.
On completion, transfer to Colombo.
In Colombo, do a city tour. Colombo, like many capital cities in developing countries is fast changing its face. Almost overnight, skyscrapers arise from where old buildings once stood. Yet in some parts, the old world charm is retained. For example, there is a 100-year-old clock tower and several British built colonial buildings. Other places of interest are the Pettah bazaar - where one can shop for bargain, a Hindu and a Buddhist temple, residential areas where you find the stately homes of the affluent, the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) - an outright gift to Sri Lanka from the People\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s Republic of China.
Dinner and overnight stay at Ceylon Continental hotel, Colombo or similar.
Web Site : www.ceyloncontinental.com
Address : 48, Janadhipathi Mawatha, Colombo 1.
E-mail : sales@ceyloncontinental.com
Tel : 011 2421221
Fax : 011 2433251
Day 08 - Colombo / Airport
After breakfast transfer to the Airport for departure.
Cost : (In U.S. Dollars)
Important points to note :
- It is not possible to cancel any booking after making the payment. Therefore, payment once made will not be refunded.
- Optional excursions and additional services could be provided for which an additional charge will be applicable.
- The official check-in time at all hotels will be 12:00 hrs.
- The official check-out time at all hotels will be 11:00 hrs.
- Visits to wild life parks will be at client’s own risk. Jeeps available are non air-conditioned and very basic with basic insurance covers (not comprehensive as in the case of vehicles that will be used for tours).
