Ancient Kingdoms of Sri Lanka

Ramada Hotel
The Ramada Hotel is a comfortable city resort situated close to Galle Face Beach. Perfect for a first or last night stay in Colombo, it offers comfortable rooms with all the expected amenities. All rooms feature internet access. Hotel facilities include a gym, sauna and pool.

Palm Garden Village
The Palm Garden Village is a comfortable garden hotel situated in Anuradhapura. Set in a beautiful natural setting, it’s a relaxed resort, as well as a great base from which to plan excursions into the surrounding area.

Palm Garden occupies a huge area of parkland in what was formerly a Sri Lankan chena plantation. Guests are accommodated in garden cottages, which are scattered widely around the grounds. All rooms are en-suite and comfortably furnished. Guest facilities include a swimming pool, restaurant & bar.

Now a picturesque ruin, the ancient city of Anuradhapura was once the centre of Sri Lankan civilization, and provides a fascinating insight into early Sinhalese culture.

Though little-known today, few ancient capitals were as long lasting or as influential as Anuradhapura. Founded in the 4th-century BC, Anuradhapura served as the political and religious capital of Sri Lanka for over 1,300 years, before succumbing to invaders from southern India in the late tenth-century AD. During this period, the city saw the rise and fall of no fewer than 113 Sinhalese kings.

At its height, Anuradhapura was a major spiritual centre, containing hundreds of Buddhist monasteries and temples. While exploring the ruins, you’ll stumble upon bell-shaped stupas constructed of red brick, crumbling temples and magnificent sculptures, foremost among them the beautifully-preserved Thuparamaya, said to contain the clavicle of the Buddha. Moving away from the temples, you’ll discover the foundations of what were once palaces and homes, while the early Sri Lankans’ talent for urban planning is reflected in Anuradhapura’s sophisticated system of canals and reservoirs.

Aliya Resort & Spa
This boutique resort is named after Sri Lanka’s most iconic animal, the elephant – or “Aliya”, in Sinhalese. Nestled in verdant forest, where wild elephant dwell, the Aliya is stylish yet simple, designed so as to blend in easily with its natural surroundings. Guests are accommodated in en-suite chalets or tents, which have been attractively-furnished and which enjoy marvellous views.

Late this afternoon, after lunch and some time to rest at Aliya Resort, embark on an exciting journey into Minneriya National Park for a 4x4 safari. Declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1931, Minneriya is one of Sri Lanka’s most beautiful parks. Almost 90sq km in size, it encompasses a diverse eco-system of wetland, forest and scrub, centred on the ancient Minneriya Tank, a 3rd-century reservoir. Most famous for its wild elephant, which congregate on Minneriya’s open plains in vast herds, the park is also notable for its rarer mammals, including sambar deer, leopard (very rarely sighted) and the endemic to Sri Lanka toque macaque monkey.

Allow 3-4 hours to get to the summit of Sigiriya and down. It’s a steep climb but worth the effort for the marvellous views from the top. Close to the summit, you pass through the “Lion Paws”, which overlook the former royal gardens below, presenting a splendid spectacle.

Take the time to examine the Lion Rock’s intricate frescoes, which recall the Gupta style of paintings found in India, and the equally stunning “mirror wall”, with its ancient graffiti.

Before departing Sigiriya, be sure to pay a visit to the museum at its entrance, which explains how the citadel’s sophisticated irrigation system was once used to pump water to its summit. After exploring the citadel, travel back to your lodge for lunch.

In the afternoon, explore the ancient ruins at Polonnaruwa.

Polonnaruwa rose to prominence following the fall of Anuradhapura. The crown jewel of King Parakramabahu I, it served as Sri Lanka’s capital during the 11th and 12th centuries, and remains one of the country’s most impressive repositories of tradition and culture.

Allow 2-3 hours to explore within Polonnaruwa’s old stone walls, where you’ll encounter crumbling stupas, reclining Buddha statues, and intricately-carved Hindu sculptures.  Exploring the ancient city’s numerous monuments, you’ll be able to continue the journey through Sri Lanka’s history that you begun in Anuradhapura.

Return to your lodge late afternoon, with the evening at leisure.

The Royal Rock Temple complex in Dambulla consists of five separate caves, housing between them well over one hundred Buddha statues and paintings. Dating back to the 1st-century BC, they constitute Sri Lanka's largest and best-preserved cave temple complex, and contain some of the country's most iconic and evocative examples of religious art.

Adjoining the Dambulla Rock Temples is the Golden Temple, said to date back to the 5th-century BC.

After exploring Dambulla, take a tour of the Ranweli Spice Garden, where you’ll be able to learn about the great variety of spices grown in Sri Lanka, followed by a lunch served in the paddy fields.

After lunch, continue to Kandy. On arriving into the city, check-in at the Hotel Suisse for two nights (inc. breakfast).

Hotel Suisse
Situated close to the heart of Kandy, this 90 room colonial-era hotel occupies nearly four acres of landscaped gardens overlooking the famous Kandy Lake. The building dates back to the 17th-century, when it was used as a ministerial residence, before being aquired by British colonists in the 19th-century. It was only in the 20th-century that it was converted, first into a private guesthouse, and later into the present Hotel Suisse (the name derived from the Swiss family that bought the building prior to its conversion).

Hotel Suisse stands to this day as the city’s oldest hotel. It offers immaculately furnished rooms and facilities, including a lounge bar, traditional Sri Lankan restaurant, outdoors pool, and spa & sauna.

The last royal capital of the Sinhalese kings, succeeding both Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura, Kandy is among Sri Lanka’s best-preserved “sacred cities”. However, unlike the former ancient capitals you’ve visited thus far (old Anuradhapura being very much distinct from the modern city of Anuradhapura), Kandy is also a vibrant, living city, with a thriving economy and lively market centre.

Take the time to explore the city with your guide, visiting its most famous colonial-era and royal monuments, including Sri Dalada Maligawa (the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic).

Early afternoon, stop for lunch at a local resident's home, where you’ll be able to learn more about the city’s people and their history. Late afternoon, we recommend tea at the iconic Queen's Hotel or the Empire Cafe.

Dinner is to your own account. You might like to sample hoppers, a traditional Sri Lankan dish, at Avanhala, followed by drinks at the kitsch Helga's Folly, Kandy’s most eccentric bar and hotel which has played host to everyone from Laurence Olivier to Gandhi!

The first, Embekke Devalaya (late 14th-century), is situated south of Kandy, in semi-rural surrounds near the village of Daulagala. Dedicated to the Hindu god Kataragama, Embekke is most famous for its intricate wood carvings and ornate drummer’s hall.

Built in 1344, Lankathilaka predates Embekke Devalaya by several years, and conforms to a more traditional Sinhalese design style. The interior of the temple has been beautifully preserved, its painted wooden doors still bright with their original paint work from the later Kandyan era.

Gadaladeniya, the most significant of the three temples, enjoys impressive views of the surrounding countryside from its hilltop position. Among its most notable features are its 638-year-old teak wood doors, which still exhibit their original paintings.

Late morning, transfer to Peradeniya Station and board the 12:30pm train to Nanu Oya (approx. 3½ hours; first class observation carriage).

On arrival in Nanu Oya, you will be met by your guide and transferred to the Windsor Hotel in Nuwara Eliya, where you stay two nights (inc. breakfast).

Windsor Hotel
The Windsor is a comfortable, family-run hotel situated close to the centre of Nuwara Eliya, where it enjoys easy access to the Queen Victoria Park.

The Windsor’s 49 rooms are attractively furnished and feature en-suite bathrooms and polished wooden floors, and have views over the town or onto the surrounding countryside.

In the afternoon, enjoy a guided tour of Nuwara Eliya, one of Sri Lanka’s most typical colonial-era hill stations. Stop at the tea factory to learn the story of Ceylon Tea, and enjoy the cool and pleasant climate, a refreshing change from the tropical heat of the lowlands!

Sinharaja Rainforest Eco Lodge
This small, intimate eco-lodge features just 20 comfortable forest chalets, each of which has been built from recycled materials. The rooms are raised on stilts and enjoy marvellous views of the Sinharaja forest canopy and surrounding tea plantation from their private verandahs.

Inside, the chalets are spacious and generously furnished. Each has an en-suite bathroom, bedroom and separate living area, and opens onto a private deck overlooking the tea plantation or forest.

Sri Lanka’s only natural UNESCO World Heritage Site, Sinharaja Rainforest is host to a spectacular diversity of fauna and flora, including over 100 endemic species (most of them amphibian!)

There are a number of trekking routes through the rainforest of varying altitude and length. Each offers a different perspective on the forest and its wildlife, so let your guide know what your main interests are, whether you want to discover Sinharaja’s many amphibians or its equally rich birdlife, and they’ll plan a route to accommodate your interests.

Return to your lodge late afternoon.