12-Day Sri Lanka Highlights Tour with Safaris, Temples and Beaches

• You will be welcomed at the airport arrival lounge and driven to Negombo, which is around a 30-minute drive away.

Overnight stay in Negombo.

• After a late breakfast, you will drive to Wilpattu National Park for an afternoon safari. Wilpattu is the largest national park in the country, and thirty-one species of mammals have been identified within the park. Mammals identified as threatened species living within Wilpattu National Park include elephants, sloth bears, and leopards.

Overnight stay in Anuradhapura.

• After breakfast, start the day with a visit to the cradle of the Sinhalese Buddhist civilization, where you will see the main attractions, including Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi, Ruwanweliseya Dagoba, Mirisavetiya Dagoba, Jetavanarama Stupa, Tuparama Stupa, Abhayagiri Dagoba, Twin Ponds, and Isurumuniya Vihara.

• Take a break for lunch.

• Then drive to Trincomalee for your beach stay.

Overnight stay in Trincomalee.

• The bay of Trincomalee Harbour is renowned for its size and security. Unlike all others in the Indian Sea, it is easily reached by all types of craft in all weather conditions. The beaches are used for surfing, scuba diving, fishing, and blue whale and dolphin watching. You can enjoy the beach at your leisure.

Overnight stay in Trincomalee.

• You have the option to enjoy activities such as snorkelling at Red Rock and then having lunch in a village house, which will be seafood, or going on a blue whale and dolphin watching excursion.

Overnight stay in Trincomalee.

• After a late breakfast, you will drive to Sigiriya and check in to your hotel. Then, in the afternoon at around 2:30 pm, go on a safari to Kaudulla National Park or Minneriya National Park, which is home to hundreds of wild elephants.

Overnight stay in Sigiriya.

• After breakfast, proceed to yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site in Sri Lanka - Sigiriya. It is a wonderful ancient palace built atop a 660-foot-tall rock column. This wonderful rock castle is a creation of King Kassapa (AD 477-495). Sigiriya is one of the most attractive historical sites in Sri Lanka and is most famous for its stunning frescoes.

• Once you are back, you will drive to Kandy, and on the way, you will have the opportunity to visit the Dambulla Cave Temple. While in Kandy, you will visit the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic and take a city tour.

Overnight stay in Kandy.

• After breakfast, you will have the opportunity to visit the Royal Botanical Gardens and then head towards Nuwara Eliya, a city of leisure and pleasure. Nuwara Eliya is the old colonial outpost still referred to as "Little England".

• En route, visit a tea factory.

• Visit Ramboda Waterfalls and drive through the tea plantation.

Overnight stay in Nuwara Eliya.

• After breakfast, you will have time until noon to explore Nuwara Eliya and then drive to the station to catch the most beautiful train journey in Sri Lanka, from Nuwara Eliya to Ella.

Overnight stay in Ella.

• After breakfast, you will have the opportunity to visit the Nine Arch Bridge, Little Adam's Peak, and Ravana Waterfall, and then drive to the south of the country, to Weligama, yet another tourist hotspot in the south. Weligama is a unique bay beach and is popular for surfing. It is a fantastic experience to see stilt fishing just a few meters offshore.

Overnight stay in Weligama.

• After breakfast, drive to Galle for a visit to Galle Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage Site built in 1588 by the Portuguese in a 52-hectare area in the Bay of Galle on the southwest coast of Sri Lanka, and then extensively fortified by the Dutch during the 17th century. The Fort of Galle is a monument of great historical, archaeological, and architectural value. This is the largest and most secure fortress in Sri Lanka, which was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1988. It had been declared an archaeological reserve by the United Nations in 1969.

Overnight in Galle.

• After breakfast, you will have the opportunity to drive through Colombo on a city tour and then continue to the airport for your departure flight back home.

End of tour.