Sri Lanka: 50 Shades of Green

On arrival at Colombo International Airport you will be met by your driver who will escort you to your private vehicle and on to your hotel in Kandy. Transfer time is around 4 hours. Take your time for check-in, visit the house, the gardens... refresh by the pool. The rest of the day is yours.

Spend the day exploring Kandy, the last capital of the ancient king’s era of Sri Lanka. Visit the Temple of the Tooth, one of the most sacred sites for the Buddhist population and one of the most iconic buildings on the island. Experience holy Buddhist ceremonies where offerings are made to Buddha's tooth. Take a walk around Kandy lake and explore the nooks and crannies of the city by foot. Visit Peradeniya Botanical Gardens, renowned for its fine collection of orchids, a stately avenue of royal palms and the extraordinary, aptly named cannonball fruit tree. This is a much acclaimed botanical garden, which is also good for birds. It is bounded on three sides by the Mahaveli River, which snakes around the 60-hectare gardens. Before its use as a botanical gardens it had served as a royal pleasure garden. Peradeniya is the second largest botanical garden in Asia. It has an orchid house, which botanists should visit. In 1905 an avenue of palms were planted and now is one of the most photographed places in the gardens. The oldest tree here is a 150 year old double coconut tree. The Giant Fig tree on the Great Lawn is another notable tree. During World War II, it served as a base for Lord Mountebatten. Today it is a haunt for day trippers, botanists and birdwatchers. Our guide will make recommendation for the restaurants. Evening at the hotel.

Today you will be transferred to Gal Oya Lodge, a stunning, quasi-African-style safari lodge set in Sri Lanka’s beautifully untouched Gal Oya National Park, towards the east of the island. Established in 1954, serving as the main catchment area for the Senanayake Samudraya, the park is Sri Lanka’s largest reservoir in the island. This wildlife park is comprised of four separate protected areas scattered around the reservoir, which covers 63,000 hectares of land, and houses a vast range of Sri Lankan wildlife including axis deer, sambar, muntjac, water buffalo, wild boar, toque macaque, mugger crocodile and the rare star tortoise, as well as the elusive Sri Lankan leopard. The park is also home to over 150 species of bird, rare Ayurvedic plants used in traditional Sinhalese medicine, and a large elephant population. The driving time is 3 hours. Dinner will be served at the lodge.

Away from the more trodden routes, the Gal Oya National Park is a hot-bed of the country’s eclectic wildlife and at certain times of year there can be herds of up to 40 elephant. Its bird-life is the envy of any other park on the island and leopard, though perhaps more easily spotted in the crowded parks, are sometimes seen. Start the morning with a boat safari across the Senanayake Samudraya and sail between the small islands that are dotted across the water. This serene experience is made more magical by the sight of lone elephants swimming between the islands at sunset, one of the most enchanting things you will witness in Sri Lanka. In the late morning head out on a jeep safari and trek through the Nilgara territory of the park followed by a picnic lunch. Quiet evening and dinner at the lodge.

Today you will take the long drive to the south-west coast of the island. Transfer time is about 6 hours. You will settle down in the heart of Old Galle, at the Fort Bazaar. In later afternoon, walk round the town and enjoy the sun set from the Fort - a UNESCO world heritage sites. Visit the Bastians including the Sun, Moon, Star, Zwart (with the old water-gate and hidden entrance identified as the Santa Cruz Bastion of the Portuguese), Akesloot (where the first Breadfruit tree was planted by the Dutch), Old Gunpowder Magazine, Aeloes, Triton, Neptune and other Bastians. Walk in the narrow streets, including the Lighthouse Street (Zeeburg Street), Leyn-Baan Street (Lijnberg meaning rope walk), and Modarabaay Street (Modder-baai meaning Mud bay) see the Old Dutch Houses, private Museum where Dutch period antiques could be seen and part of the Old sewage system that emptied to the sea with the high/low tide.

Spend the day discovering the historic Galle Fort, a delight to explore on foot, an endlessly exotic old trading port blessed with imposing Dutch-colonial buildings, ancient mosques and churches, grand mansions and museums. Wandering its rambling lanes you'll pass stylish cafes, quirky boutiques and impeccably restored hotels owned by local and foreign artists, writers, photographers and designers.

After breakfast and check out, your trip in Sri Lanka comes to an end, or we can plan some extensions. We hope you have experienced some unforgettable memories. You will be collected in good time and taken to the airport for your flight.