8 days · 7 nights
Rock temples, royal cities, tea hills and leopard country, ending on the south coast.
Choose your dates when you enquire
Ask about datesA full private circuit of Sri Lanka in eight days with your own chauffeur-guide. After a Colombo city tour, head north to the cave temples of Dambulla, Sigiriya and the ruins of Polonnaruwa, then through the spice gardens of Matale to Kandy and the tea country. A safari in Yala and a coastal drive past the stilt fishermen to Galle Fort finish at a beach hotel.
The same person from your first question to the flight home, with a wedding or vow renewal planned alongside if you like.
How the days unfold. Your advisor tailors the pace, the hotels and the extras to you.
Colombo
Day 1 · Colombo
You are met at the airport and taken to your hotel. Then tour the capital, where towers rise above colonial districts: the busy port area of Pettah, Cinnamon Gardens, Galle Face Green and Viharamahadevi Park.
Dambulla and Sigiriya
Day 2 · Dambulla and Sigiriya
Drive to Ridi Vihara, the Silver Temple, a rock-cut sanctuary with a nine metre reclining Buddha, and walk in the surrounding countryside. Continue to the five painted caves of Dambulla, decorated over two thousand years and holding more than 150 Buddha images. The rest of the day is free at your hotel near Sigiriya.
Sigiriya and Polonnaruwa
Day 3 · Sigiriya and Polonnaruwa
Climb Sigiriya, the Lion Rock, through the great carved paws to the ruins of a fifth-century citadel, passing the painted heavenly maidens on the way. In the afternoon, explore the ancient city of Polonnaruwa: the Royal Palace, the Audience Hall, the Lotus Bath and the three great Buddhas of the Gal Vihara.
Matale and Kandy
Day 4 · Matale and Kandy
Visit a spice garden in Matale to learn how cinnamon, nutmeg and turmeric are grown and used, over a cup of herbal tea. Continue to Kandy for an evening of Sinhalese dance.
Kandy and Nuwara Eliya
Day 5 · Kandy and Nuwara Eliya
Tour Kandy, the last royal capital, with the Temple of the Tooth, the palace complex and the lake at the heart of the town. Then drive up to a tea plantation and factory for a tasting, and on through rolling tea hills to Nuwara Eliya, known for its colonial air.
Ella and Yala
Day 6 · Ella and Yala
Cross the Central Highlands past the Ravana Falls to Ella, then descend to Yala National Park. A two to three hour jeep safari looks for elephants, leopards, buffalo, sloth bears, crocodiles and a great many birds.
Weligama, Galle and the south coast
Day 7 · Weligama, Galle and the south coast
Follow the coast to Weligama to watch fishermen working from stilts set in the sea. Continue to Galle and walk the fort that fills its peninsula, with its Dutch church, old hospital and governor's residence, before reaching your beach hotel.
Colombo
Day 8 · Colombo
Breakfast by the sea, then a transfer to Colombo airport.
The hotels for each stop. Your advisor confirms them, or something just as good, for your dates.
Colombo · 1 night
Or similar
Sigiriya or Habarana · 2 nights
Or similar
Kandy · 1 night
Or similar
Nuwara Eliya · 1 night
Or similar
Tissamaharama or Yala · 1 night
Or similar
Koggala or Beruwala · 1 night
Or similar
Tell us when you would like to travel. Your advisor confirms dates and hotels, tailors the trip to the two of you, and stays with you until you are home.
Sri Lanka
10 days · 9 nights
Colombo → Habarana → Kandy → Ella → Tissamaharama → Galle → Bentota → Colombo
A private loop of the island with your own driver-guide. Head north to the cave temples of Dambulla and the ruined royal city of Polonnaruwa, climb Sigiriya and see Kandy, then take two nights in the hills at Ella. Safaris in Yala and an afternoon in Galle Fort lead to two free days on the beach near Bentota.
Sri Lanka
7 days · 6 nights
Colombo → Kandy → Nuwara Eliya → Tissamaharama → Bentota → Colombo
Go straight from the airport into the hills for two nights in Kandy, with the botanical gardens at Peradeniya and the Temple of the Tooth. Then climb through the tea estates to Nuwara Eliya, drop south for a safari in Yala, walk Galle Fort on the way to a beach night, and finish with a tour of Colombo.
Sri Lanka
11 days · 10 nights
Negombo → Habarana → Trincomalee → Kandy → Nuwara Eliya → Bentota → Colombo
Begin in the Cultural Triangle with the cave temples of Dambulla, the climb up Sigiriya and an evening elephant safari at Minneriya. Two nights on the east coast at Trincomalee come next, then Kandy, the tea hills of Nuwara Eliya and a rafting stop at Kitulgala on the way to two quiet nights at Bentota before Colombo.
A full private circuit of Sri Lanka in eight days with your own chauffeur-guide. After a Colombo city tour, head north to the cave temples of Dambulla, Sigiriya and the ruins of Polonnaruwa, then through the spice gardens of Matale to Kandy and the tea country. A safari in Yala and a coastal drive past the stilt fishermen to Galle Fort finish at a beach hotel.
Every trip can be shaped around you before you book.
Arrive early or stay on at the end, in the same hotel or somewhere new.
Your travel expert books flights that fit the first and last day.
Choose a better room or a hotel with a view for the nights that count.
A honeymoon, an anniversary or a birthday, planned into the trip.
Other ways to see Sri Lanka, closest in length first.
Private tour | 7 days | Colombo · Kandy · Ella
Private tour | 7 days | Colombo · Kandy · Bentota
Private tour | 9 days | Negombo · Kandy · Colombo
Private tour | 10 days | Colombo · Kandy · Galle
