Sri Lanka Highlights in Summer – 14 Days – May to October (Private Tour)

Welcome to Sri Lanka! Your first destination – Negombo. This will take about 25 minutes and depending on your arrival time, you can decide how you want to spend the rest of the day.
This coastal city is a bustling place, with historical buildings and churches reflecting colonial influences. Negombo has a canal system that weaves an interesting route around the city and a lively fisherfolk community with a daily bustling fish market that attracts people from near and far. And of course it’s an enchanting beach that will always beckon you.

You will drive to Kitulgala, one of the adventure destinations in the region and the location for the iconic film ‘Bridge on the river Kwai’. Enjoy paddling down pristine waters. Professionally trained guides are there to supervise and will make sure you have a safe and fun day on the river!
Kitulgala’s climate is humid throughout the year making it an ideal destination for whitewater rafting. You will love the thrilling adventure on the whitewater sections of the Kelani River – great for both beginners and professionals. It’s an adrenaline-rush adventure, paddling down the waters, in class 2 to 3+ rapids.
After that activity, you will carry on driving to lush green tea plantations of the tea capital: Nuwara Eliya.

After breakfast at the hotel, sightseeing this quaint town will be peaked by your visit to a tea factory. With incredible dexterity and speed, versatile women pluck tea leaves filling up their tea sacks every day. At the tea factory, you will see the entire process of how tea is made from scratch, from tea bush to teapot. After that you will visit Gregory Lake and Victoria Park which is located in the town.
Or Optional – A pre-dawn start will see you heading up to Horton Plains with packed breakfast. The easy circular trek should take you a couple of hours and you will head back to your hotel. Then proceed to see the other sites in Nuwara Eliya.

Get ready in the morning for your next unforgettable experience, a scenic train ride from Nanu Oya to Kandy – one of the best train rides to make in Sri Lanka. Experience the remains of the bygone era in these “time machines” witnessing breath-taking views and historical locations. It will feel like time travel, as the trains chug on. It is a nicely paced ride that everyone enjoys – away from roads and traffic. You will pass tea plantations, mountains, misty forests, winding your way through local villages, waving at smiley locals standing in their backyards, or working in the fields, disappearing into smoky mountain tunnels and emerging into the cool rush of pristine mountainous air – a photo fest for you!

Royal Botanical Gardens is a stunning, 60-hectare garden with its fine collection of orchids and spice gardens. There is also the extraordinary cannonball fruit tree and 40m-high Burma bamboo.
After a delicious lunch you will resume your journey to visit the Temple of the Tooth (the Sri Dalada Maligawa, where the sacred relic of a tooth belonging to Lord Buddha is kept) and also witness a daily sacred ritual known as Thewawa.

Time to meet the traditional arts and crafts community. You will get a chance to be an artisan yourself, an activity you will surely enjoy engaging in and taking their craft home as a souvenir!
Then, we will drive you to Dambulla, known for its Cave Temple, the impressive mural paintings and 157 statues, including a 47 foot long statue of the recumbent Buddha. A World Heritage site surrounded by great views.

Today you will be visiting the Monkey project, which filmed the famous documentary “Monkey Kingdom”. Next, the 13th century mediaeval capital of Sri Lanka; Polonnaruwa. Polonnaruwa, with its ruins in a resplendent state of preservation, was the Capital of Sri Lanka from 11th to 13th century. The ancient city defended by enclosing walls, is dotted with palaces, shrines, monasteries, pavilions, parks, ponds and irrigation lakes. The Gal Vihara temple complex, cut from a single granite wall, consists of statues of the recumbent, standing and seated Buddha and ranks among the masterpieces of Sri Lankan Art.
Then, we’ll head for the Minneriya National Park. Annually, in August/ September during the dry season, wild elephants migrate from Wasgamuwa National Park to Minneriya National Park in search of food and shelter. It’s a wanderlust dream to see over 350 majestic mammals, migrate across the expansive parks.

Morning you’ll get to climb the Sigiriya rock. At the Fortress, you can take your time leisurely exploring the vast boulder gardens and water gardens before heading up. The climb up the rock is quite easy, as it is made up of walkways and steps with guide rails. Halfway up the rock, you will encounter the famous Sigiriya frescoes and you will reach the summit just in time to catch a gorgeous sunset highlighting the panoramic view all around you.
Then you will drive to Trincomalee, one of the finest natural deep-water harbours in the world. Home to beautiful white beaches, clear waters around the Pigeon Island, it’s a wanderlust for families with long stretches of beach and warm blue waters to revel in!

Whether you want to book some water sports activities, go diving and snorkeling to several key sights at Trincomalee, make it a fun-filled 2 days for you. The pool is always a treat to laze by with cool drinks, but the inviting beach is amazing to soak up the sun or play with your children. Pigeon Island is not far to take a boat ride to and explore. It is surrounded by coral reefs and turtles and reef fish can be sighted here. Building sandcastles, tap rugby, football… Taking photographs of the landscape or selfies with your loved ones are a few things you can enjoy here.

Rest of the day is free for you to explore on your own or if you would like to see whales, remember, March to September is the best time and means spending about half a day out in the ocean. You will leave early by 6-6:30am to go whale watching from the Trinco harbour. This is an exciting adventure when you may sight Blue whales and Bottle-nosed dolphins.

After breakfast, you will drive to Wilpattu via Anuradhapura. If you are up to it, you can stop at Anuradhapura and it’s the first ancient capital of Sri Lanka with ruins.
Then you will be heading to WIlpattu. You can anticipate a different accommodation experience for you, a delicious BBQ dinner under the stars awaits you at the campsite. After dinner, you will set off on an exciting night walk where you will get to know the nocturnal wildlife and even possibly catch sight of the elusive Slender Loris!
It is an overnight stay at an eco-friendly campsite in jungle settings!

An early morning start on your summer tour of Sri Lanka will see you set off on a full-day safari with packed breakfasts, lunches, and refreshments. This excursion is focused on visiting the numerous lakes in this Park, as they afford the best sightings of Leopards, Sloth Bears and other inhabitants of the jungle. At the end of the safari, a delicious BBQ dinner under the stars awaits you at the campsite. After dinner, you will set off on an exciting night walk where you will get to know the nocturnal wildlife and even possibly catch sight of the elusive Slender Loris!

After an impressive spread of a Sri Lankan breakfast, it is time to travel south again to Negombo. Enroute, you will have a completely ‘nutty’ experience: enjoy the water of the king coconut and eat the flesh of the fruit, which is a delicious and natural drink that is great for your health. An organic fruit, fresh from the tree, its health benefits are globally recognised and promoted.
The coconut is a staple essential in the life of any Sri Lankan. From being a key feature of Sri Lankan cuisine to its use in day to day life, cultural and several religious rituals, the coconut tree – locally also known as ‘kapruka’ – is a versatile and wonderful tree the island is truly blessed with.

We’ve reached the end of your 13-night holiday to Sri Lanka and it is time to depart. Your chauffeur will take you to Colombo Airport in time to catch your departure flight.