Sri Lanka Holidays - Guesthouse Explorer – 14 nights
About this holiday:
The ‘Sri Lanka Guesthouse Explorer’ includes the
best that Sri Lanka can offer – ancient cities, tea-growing
hills, wildlife parks, Indian ocean beaches, and the best
guesthouses in the island. We have carefully selected our
favourite properties for you to experience – charming
guesthouses in scenic locations, with friendly and helpful
staff. In some sections of the trip, we have also used the
train for added adventure and to help you trim the costs of
your holiday. As it happens, rail travel is great fun in Sri
Lanka, allowing you to mix with interesting local personalities
and experience breathtaking views of the countryside.
Holiday highlights
• Palm-fringed sandy beaches
• Spectacular tea country
• Once-in-a-lifetime train journey
• Abundant wildlife
• A proud cultural heritage
• Turtle conservation in Tangalle
• Body surfing in Mirissa
• Bentota bongos
Itinerary:
Day 1 & 2: Upon arriving in Sri Lanka, transfer to the Ice Bear,
a popular and youthful beach resort located in Negombo, just
a few minutes drive from the airport. Throughout much of the
1990s it had a tatty and sometimes inglorious reputation, but
a new millennium has brought with it new investment and it is
now the most interesting beachfront guesthouses in Negombo.
The beach is clean and the bars are buzzing. Relax and unwind
after your flight, preparing yourself for the adventure ahead.
Stay two nights.
Accommodation profile: The Ice
Bear has laid claim to be the best guesthouse in town: welcoming,
artistic, ever so eccentric and with a prized beachfront location.
Time Magazine, no less, suggested that Ice Bear was "a
hotel where time stands still" and called it "a Merchant
Ivory confection of tea and linen." Well, "hotel"
might be stretching the point, because stock hotel facilities
are irrelevant when considering Ice Bear’s success. But
the imaginative budget traveler will love Ice Bear’s simple
sense of difference, its little antique flourishes, and its
legendary breakfasts on the patio – influenced by its
Swiss owner – which should guard against any outbreak
of lunchtime peckishness.
Day 3 & 4: Sri Lanka's famous cultural triangle offers plenty
to fire both mind and body over the next two days. The ruined
capital of Polonnaruwa, the lion rock of Mount Sigiriya and
Dambulla’s Buddhist Cave Temples are all UNESCO world
heritage sites are included in your package. En route, you’ll
stop-off at the Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage, an institution
that cares for orphaned and injured working elephants. After
seeing calves being fed and the whole herd cooling-off in the
river, drive on for lunch and then a climb up Sigiriya Rock,
a remarkable fortress built by a playboy king upon a tabletop-like
mountain. Travel on Windsor Park after a long day for dinner.
The next day, explore Polonnaruwa on bicycle.
Accommodation profile:Dubbed an agro-tourism
retreat, Windsor Park is set on a 1500-acre countryside estate
it one of the most beautiful parts of the island. It offers
good value, simple accommodation in a peaceful rural setting.
There are paddy fields that stretch endlessly and cattle graze
contentedly in the morning sun. Peacocks roam around majestically.
The estate produces a variety of products, including rice, fruit,
lake fish and dairy. In all, there are seven comfortable cottages
with en suite bathrooms. A restaurant serves up fine Sri Lankan
food made with the freshest local ingredients.
Day 5: The journey from the cultural triangle to Sri Lanka's
hill capital - the small lakeside city of Kandy - will occupy
most of the morning with a stop-off to visit the serene Buddhist
cave temples in Dambulla. Spend the afternoon wandering around
Kandy’s lake and visiting the Temple of the Tooth, in
which a sacred tooth relic of the Lord Buddha is enshrined.
If time permits, visit the Peradeniya Botanical Gardens With
its Orchid collection and numerous varieties of fauna and flora.
We have recommended staying in a guesthouse called Sharon Inn.
Accommodation profile: Sharon
Inn is a delightful guesthouse on the hillside overlooking Sri
Lanka’s hill country capital, Kandy. This property is
spotlessly clean, comfortable and well run by the Sri Lankan
and German owners. Good food and a relaxed atmosphere make this
a great guesthouse option in the town.
Day 6 & 7:
You head for the highlands, a stirring land of lush tea plantations,
majestic peaks and rushing waterfalls. Instead of heading straight
for Nuwara Eliya, a Mecca for package tourists and well-to-do
Sri Lankans, we recommend you jump aboard the train –
one of the great rail journeys in the world – and head
for Ella, a small village that sits high on a ridge with magnificent
views. Spend two nights at Ambiente, an excellent guesthouse.
Accommodation profile: If location is everything,
then Ambiente is one of the most blessed guesthouses in the
world. Ask its admirers why they value this simple place so
highly, and they will tell you that it has one of the most enchanting
vistas in the world. All but the most hyperactive will want
to do little else but sit on the balcony in a comfortable wicker
chair and stare. Ambiente is a simple but clean and welcoming
guesthouse, with nine perfectly acceptable rooms. All rooms,
and the restaurant, have balconies overlooking the hills.
Day 8 & 9:
Leave first thing in the morning for Yala, the national park
at Sri Lanka's southeast tip. En-route visit Buduruvagala to
see Sri Lanka's tallest rock-cut Buddha statue, 51 ft. in height,
and other Mahayana Buddhist statues dating back to the 8th-century
AD. Close to Buduruvagala, you could visit the Handapangala
Tank, a watering hole for Yala elephants in the summer months.
In the afternoon check into Galapita.
To gain the full benefit of Yala National Park, we recommend
you to rouse yourself for a departure by jeep around 5.45am
the next day. Yala, nearly 400 sq. miles, was declared as a
game park in 1938. Look for herds of elephants, sloth bear,
crocodiles, wild boar, wild buffalo, peacocks, jackals, monkeys,
porcupines, leopards and varieties of deer, as well as numerous
bird species.
By lunchtime settle into the Galapita eco retreat. We recommend
a visit to Kataragama, a sacred pilgrimage site where all religions
are worshipped. Galapita staff will provide information on exact
timings of the special Poojas, fire walking rituals and festivals
that takes place at this holy site.
Accommodation profile:Close to
the Yala game park, near the pilgrimage site of Kataragama,
lies Galapita Eco Retreat on the banks of the Menik (gem) river.
It is an idealistic rural retreat where life can hardly be more
natural. After crossing the Galapita Bridge, a world of natural
beauty unfolds. Your bedroom on stilts will be one of four huts
with a coconut leaf thatched roof, perched on the rocks, by
the river with a futon bed, mosquito net, and a little driftwood
for furniture. Galapita is one of the islands best hideaways.
Day 10 & 11:
After breakfast, travel along the beautiful southern coast to
the small fishing village of Rekawa located 10 km east of the
South coast town of Tangalle. Visit the Turtle Conservation
project where visitors can watch the ancient ritual of sea turtles
coming ashore and laying eggs – or, if you prefer, Red
Dot will arrange an evening turtle safari with a local conservation
officer. Not far from Rekawa, located on a fine stretch of beach,
is Pastissade where you will stay two nights. Accommodation profile: Down the ragged
roads of Rekawa rests the peaceful paradise of Pastissade, an
understated (and undiscovered) two-bedroom beach house that
is located on a breathtaking stretch of beach. It has two bedrooms
and a living area upstairs which is equipped with a simple kitchen,
barbecue and area for the housekeeper-cum chef who will prepare
your meals. Pastissade has immediate access to the sea where
you can relax and soak up the sun.
Day 12 & 13:
Next destination is Thalpe, one of the most idyllic beaches
on the south coast. We’ve recommended staying at Rockside,
a cabana-style property right on the beach. This beach is popular
for swimming and surfing. Spend two nights here. You may like
to explore the local area too. The UNESCO-protected Galle Fort
is in the midst of a cultural and architectural revival. Several
hours can be spent wandering through the narrow streets and
along the ramparts, browsing through art galleries and sipping
lime sodas on the verandah of Galle Fort hotel. There are also
lovely beaches just south of Galle, including Unawatuna and
Mirissa that are also worth visiting.
Accommodation profile: Rockside
Cabanas is situated on a beautiful stretch of coastline not
far from Thalpe, a small town that is a few kilometers to the
east of Galle. The set up here is simple: good-sized wooden
cabins nicely spaced apart and perched on the sand, equipped
with beds, balconies, and bathrooms. With the feel of fine sand,
the smell of sea-air and the sound of lapping waves, this is
a very natural way to relax, let go of the western world, and
get stuck into Sri Lanka.
Day 14: After breakfast, travel north along the west coast.
But first stop in Galle Fort, enjoying a coffee or lime juice
on the veranda of Amangalla, the old New Oriental. Wander the
fort’s narrow lanes and atop the sturdy ramparts. Explore
some of the new shops selling chic clothes and impressive local
art. Then travel onto to Colombo for a final night at Colombo
House. A We recommend dinner at the Gallery Café, a wonderfully
atmospheric alfresco restaurant just a short stroll away from
the guesthouse.
Accommodation profile: The Colombo
House is a stylish 1930’s mansion set in a quiet street
in Colombo 3. A clean and well maintained property with four
large bedrooms with attached toilets, period furniture, ceiling
fans and mosquito nets. It is conveniently located close to
bars, restaurants and shops in the heart of Colombo.
Day 15: Depart in good time for your flight
home.
Cost: TBC - From
£470 (excluding international flights)
Package price includes:
•
14 night’s BB accommodation on
twin-sharing basis • Airconditioned car and
English-speaking driver for tour and transfers • Train travel between
Kandy and Ella (subject to availability) • Entrance fees: Dambulla
caves, Sigiriya Rock, Polonnaruwa • Entrance and jeep hire
for Yala (one drive only)
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The ‘Sri Lanka Guesthouse Explorer’ includes the
best that Sri Lanka can offer – ancient cities, tea-growing
hills, wildlife parks, Indian ocean beaches, and the best
guesthouses in the island. We have carefully selected our
favourite properties for you to experience – charming
guesthouses in scenic locations, with friendly and helpful
staff. In some sections of the trip, we have also used the
train for added adventure and to help you trim the costs of
your holiday. As it happens, rail travel is great fun in Sri
Lanka, allowing you to mix with interesting local personalities
and experience breathtaking views of the countryside.
