Sri Lankan Highlights

The group flight usually departs in the evening from London Heathrow.
**

Day 2

The group flight arrives at Colombo's Bandaranaike Airport and transfer to
our hotel at Wattala on the coast. The rest of the day is free to relax at
the hotel and recover from the flight. Those not flying with the group will
meet us at the hotel.
*Pegasus Reef Hotel or similar*

Day 3

Today we travel to Giritale, where we will stop in one of three parks, either
the Kaudulla or Minneriya National Park or the Hurulu Eco Park for a game
drive. We will take to jeeps to explore the park and observe elephants in
their natural habitat.
We then continue onto Giritale where we stay overnight. Our hotel overlooks
the Giritale Tanks – the island’s early inhabitants solved the dual
problem of heat and lack of water in this dry area by constructing these
large tanks to act as reservoirs and to help cool the air. Nowadays these
provide an important habitat for birdlife, particularly between April and
August.
*Giritale Hotel or similar*

Day 4

Today we cycle at a leisurely pace through a series of small villages to
Dambalawewa Lake. We should see plenty of birdlife including Egrets, Brahmany
Kites, Kingfishers, Bulbuls. We stop for lunch in a traditional village which
will break up the journey. In the late afternoon we return to our hotel in
Giritale. If you do not wish to participate you can hire a tuk tuk locally
for approximately £10 and follow the group but not cycle.

*Giritale Hotel or similar*

Day 5

After breakfast we take a short drive to Polonnaruwa, the ancient capital of
the Sinhalese. There are many Buddhist relics and ruins dating from a
thousand years ago when Sinhalese culture reached its zenith. Polonnaruwa
flourished in the 12th century after the decision was made to move the
capital from Anuradhapura so it was further away from the incursions from
southern India. We visit many of the temples, palaces, huges dagobas and
remarkable Buddhist sculptures. After lunch we drive to Sigiriya about an
hour away. This impressive 5th century rock fortress rises 180m from the
plains overlooking the surrounding countryside giving far-reaching views.
Used as a safe haven from invaders, the route to the top is up a series of
steep steps and gangways. From the base, where a moat surrounds impressive
water gardens, we ascend 200m, passing an overhanging rock under which superb
portraits of native maidens holding flowers and temple offerings still adorn
the rock wall. Crowning the flat-topped summit of the rock are remains of the
King's Summer Palace from where there are breathtaking views of the
surrounding countryside. The descent is much easier and you can cool off in
the hotel pool at dusk.
*Hotel Sigiriya or similar*

Day 6

Today we head into the hills to the picturesque town of Kandy. On the way we
stop at Dambulla, famous for its cave temple, one of Sri Lanka’s most
impressive sights. There are colourful, well preserved paintings and statues
of the Buddha inside, some of which date back as far as the 1st century BC.
Kandy is located on a small lake and we spend time in and around the town.
Visiting the Temple of the Tooth, which houses Sri Lanka's most important
Buddhist relic. The Tooth of Buddha which was taken from the funeral pyre in
543 BC and only found its way to Sri Lanka in the 4th century AD. There are
literally hundreds of worshippers who visit the temple each day and in
July/August the most spectacular ceremony takes place. Some of our trips in
July/August should coincide with the Kandy festival, but the exact dates,
decided by priests (depending on the auspicious time), are not known until 5
months prior to the event. We drive to a beautiful viewpoint to get a great
view of Kandy and its environs that are overlooked by a huge Buddha and visit
a gem museum where you can see the products of the traditional methods of gem
extraction. In the evening we may have the chance to attend a performance of
the athletic Kandian Dancing and fire walking.
*Hotel Topaz or similar* 

Day 7

Today you are free to explore Kandy at your leisure or take an optional
excursion to Knuckles Mountain Range (including Lunch). This mountain range
is named due to its formation that resembles the knuckles of a clenched fist.
They loom 1860m above the Dumbara Valley. The surrounding areas have been
declared as a strict natural reserve. A large variety of indigenous plants
are found in this area. We return to Kandy in the evening.
*Hotel Topaz or similar* 

Please note: If there has been a lot of rain it is generally not advisable to
do the optional excursion in the Knuckles mountain range as it can be very
slippery underfoot. If this is the case a visit to Nuwara Eliya is generally
offered as an alternative.

Day 8

An early departure to Colombo as the drive is  approximately 3 ½ - 4 hours
(115km). En route we’ll stop  at Peradeniya Botanical Gardens with its
vast array of orchid species endemic to Sri Lanka.  The lunch stop will also
be a traditional  Sri Lankan rice and curry . On arriving in Colombo our
guided walking tour commences in the Galle Face Green area focussing on
Colombo’s colonial architecture . It includes the old Parliament, Old Fort
City area and the Old Dutch Hospital. We will walk through Chatham Street to
a famous colonial hotel close to the harbour and finally end the tour near
Pettah bazaar. Here, there will be some free time to explore the market
before transferring to the hotel to freshen up. In the evening there will be
farewell dinner at a seafood restaurant in the Mt Lavinia area.

*Ramada Hotel or Similar*

Day 9

After breakfast those on the group flights will be taken to the airport in
time for their flight home.