Sri Lank safaris and holiday tours … a fabulous travel location that we will focus in this article. Both Yala and Udawalawe have stunning landscapes, so whichever park you decide to visit for your safari, you will find the landscapes very enjoyable and unique. Yala National Park: has a huge variety of landscapes from forests, grasslands, lagoons to sandy beaches. Block 1 which is the most visited part at Yala is mainly covered by forest and grasslands. You will also see loads of waterholes where wild water buffaloes like to bath. There are also a large number of metamorphic rocks scattered around Yala with Elephant Rock one of the most popular and Instagrammable.
Mirissa, in the south and close to the Dutch fort and port city of Galle, is studded with luxury villas and great food. It’s probably the most developed for whale watching tourism, following a media blitz in May 2008 that it was the best for blue whale. The encounter rate is on average over 80% in the months from December to March. Kalpitiya, a peninsula in the north-west, is famous for its dolphins and periodic visits by super-pods of sperm whales, the largest gatherings in the world accessible to tourists. The peninsula is also close to Wilpattu National Park, and the Bar Reef Marine Sanctuary is great for snorkelling. Trincomalee, in the north-east has a submarine canyon cutting in close to shore. Blue whales are sometimes seen from the pool-side of resorts and Swami Rock is the best shore-based location for views of blue whales. Find extra info Sri Lanka safari tours.
At the heart of Sri Lanka’s tea industry, this charming throwback to the country’s colonial years is rich with the heritage of home-county England. Tour neatly-terraced tea estates, watch pickers at work, and buy your own samples to take home. Tea lovers will want to visit the Hill Country’s Haputale Mountains, where Sir Thomas Lipton launched his tea empire. To see where it all began, organise transport to Lipton’s Seat – Mr Lipton’s favourite spot to sit and watch over his enormous estate. It is possible (and maybe a bit more comfortable) to take a car up, but an open air tuk-tuk ride is much more fun. Head out early before the afternoon fog cloaks the surrounding mountains, clouding the awe-inspiring views.
It is easy to get lost in the cobblestoned alleyways and streets within Galle Fort. Today the area is full of modern restaurants, hotels, clothing, and souvenir shops. Meanwhile, snake charmers and buskers line the seawall. However, the fort was not always such a cosmopolitan spot. A basic fort was constructed by the Portuguese when they made their first landing to the island in 1505. When the Dutch eventually seized control of Galle, they made a number of improvements; including the enormous sea wall that still lines the fort. Galle Fort is an excellent example of what the synthesis between European and Asian architecture looks like. Yala National Park is made up of spellbinding vistas and a true abundance of Sri Lankan wildlife. It has the highest density of leopards in the world, so chances of seeing them are very high. Although leopards are the main attraction here, they are followed closely by elephants, sloth bears and crocodiles. The park is divided into five blocks; some of which were zoned to hunters until Yala became a national park in 1938. Ensure you make time to visit the very informative visitor center at the entrance of the park for insightful displays about the area.