Jungle, Rocks and Cinnamon | Bucket List of Sri Lanka

Whatever fantastic tales you’ve heard of Sri Lanka is surely correct! Gigantic jungle chunks, every square meter infused with thousands of plants, blended with tea plantations, roaming elephants, and monkeys swinging from tree to tree. Picture perfect country-wide, central Sri Lanka draws our attention with rock fortresses among rolling hills and lush green plains.

Set on plateaus of tea plantations and tropical rainforests surrounded by mountain-scapes sits the city of Kandy, famed for its sacred Buddhist sites and temples and the last capital of the ancient kings of Sri Lanka.

The Temple of the Tooth within the royal palace complex of the former Kingdom of Kandy houses the relic tooth of the Buddha, it is believed that whoever holds the tooth, holds the governance of the country. For many reasons, this temple is considered one of the most sacred places of worship in the Buddhist world!

The surrounding city of Kandy, with its architectural gems of shrines and temples of Indian and Sinhalese designs set among the grand structures of the British colonial period make for picture perfect strolls along the lake and city streets.

Situated in the Central Province of Sri Lanka close to Dambulla lays Sigiriya, or “Lion Rock”, a fortress complex of ruined palace atop a massive 200-meter rock among the jungle plains. A UNESCO World Heritage Site and the most treasured historical monument in Sri Lanka, this spectacular fortress features ancient frescoes painted high above the ground along the famous mirror wall, with legends of drama and fate of the ruler who built it awaiting you at the top!

Let’s go!!!

Day 1 // Elephants + Sigiriya

Meeting at Terminal 2 at midnight for direct flight to Colombo 02:15am. Arrival, immigration formalities, short refreshment after flight and hit the road to elephant orphanage on our way. Further on, as we're nearing Sigiriya, we’ll stop for a walk along village paths and dry zone lakes before we jump on a bullock cart to village house where we’ll start picking vegetables for our lunch with the head man’s wife. We’ll take a quick sail on catamaran while lunch is getting ready. From here we’ll take tuk-tuk to our hotel, surrounded by the chirping of the Jungle Fowl. You may spot some wild elephants here while sipping sundowners at the lake side.

If time allows, we can wander across the cultivation lands to help the villagers work on a small tractor.

Day 2 // Ballooning, Ambuluwawa, Kandy

Early morning optional ballooning above Sigiriya plains. Back to hotel for breakfast and start short trek through the scrub jungle to the world-famous Lion Rock fortress. As the trek unfolds, we’ll take in views of this ancient fortress from every angle, every step from the entrance to the top is a marvel of constantly changing surroundings. Climb to the top takes less than an hour.

It time to hit the road to Kandy but first we stop at spiral tower of Ambuluwawa for yet another set of 1 hour leg stretch, awarded quickly with breathtaking views from the top.

When in Kandy, we will start with Tooth Temple and glimpse on the colonial quarter before heading to hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 3 // Train Ride, Hatton waterfalls, Colombo

Our Sri Lanka experience would not be completed without the train ride across jungle, villages and tea plantations, so we start with hop on a train first, but then we will switch back to the van so we don't miss out Hatton waterfalls on the way to Colombo.

Time for souvenir shopping and a dinner before heading to airport for return flight, with pockets full of memories! Back home 05:10am for eventful start of the week...

Level of Difficulty: Easy

Activities:
Hiking, sightseeing, boating, swimming, tuk-tuking, train riding, optional ballooning (approx. 260 USD – early booking required).

Duration: Long weekend

Room & Meals: 5 star hotels - double sharing, lunches excluded.

Cost: 2450 AED excl. flights until DEC 3.
Flights approx. 1650 AED.
Optional ballooning: 960 AED.

Visa: Western countries visa free, most of others visa on arrival or e-visa.

Clip:
https://vimeo.com/230556292

See yah at Sigiriya x

Trekkup Crew
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