Sri Lanka Colombo Kandy Highlights Tour

Colombo

Colombo city had been a well-known city in the region among the Arabian, Chinese, Indian, Persian, and Roman traders as early as a pre-Christian era. Sri Lanka is located in the East-West sea route and visited by traders in order to exchange their goods with the local traders. Even though Colombo was well-known city among the ancient traders 2,000 years ago, the capital city of the country had been Anuradhapura. There was an Arabian settlement in the city of Colombo at the mouth of Kelani River. Arab traders were exporting the goods from the port of Colombo. Goods such as Cinnamon, ivory, gems, elephants were exported by the king of Kotte with the help of Arabs. With the beginning of British colonial period, Colombo city received the prominent place as the capital of Ceylon. Colombo was the capital of the island from 1815 to 1978 until the administrative capital was moved to Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte.

GALLE FACE

This had been a well-known Racecourse during the British colonial period in the country. This race course which located bordering the Indian Ocean had to be abandoned later on due to the Sea crabs, which are making holes in the track. Afterwards, it was developed as a promenade for the city dwellers and named as Galle face green. Today Galle face green contains an open theatre, spacious open space for a picnic, sports and walking.

BUDDHIST TEMPLE KELANIYA

It is considered to be one of the most sacred places in the country. Temple is one of the three places where Buddha visited in the 6th century B.C. well known Kelaniya dagoba is located on the border of the temple. Kalyani River, which flows next to the temple, adds more value to the scenic beauty of the temple. This temple holds a reputation for its attractive wall, which considered being the best painting of the Modern Era.

VIHARAMAHADEVI PARK

Viharamahadevi is located in the Colombo 7 or Cinnamon gardens. It is the largest and most popular park in the city. It is believed that there had been a twenty square kilometre cinnamon plantation in the area. Today most of the palaces of wealthy people can be seen in the area and Colombo 7 is the most picturesque part of the city.

WOLFENDAAL CHURCH

The Wolvendaal church is located In Fort and walking distance from the centre of the city. It has a large collection of tombstones of important Dutch personalities. The church is built at the highest point of the city and dates back to 1813. The church is built in the Doric style of the period. In the form of Greek cross, with five feet thick walls and the gables raised over. The transepts are roofed with brick barrel arches and a centre dome.

AUKANA BUDDHA STATUE / INDEPENDENCE HALL / PETTAH AND BMICH

Facing the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall stands a beautifully executed statue of the Buddha in the standing posture. The statue is 36 feet tall and is the largest Buddha statue in the city of Colombo. It is a replica of the Avukana Statue on the banks of the Kalawewa Anuradhapura.

CITY & SHOPPING

The City Tour will also include places of Tourist interest such as

Old parliament

Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall

Buddhist Hindu Temple and Town Hall

Devatagaha mosque

Pettah area

Galle face green

Cinnamon garden

Colombo Museum

Beira Lake

Shopping at

Odel

House of fashion

Handicraft center

Gem museum

Overnight stay in Colombo

KANDY

A ruled in Kandy up to 1815 although the rest of the island was under the British regime. Finally, it was ceded to them by the Chieftains of Kandy who were disappointed over the king’s cruel deeds. Today Kandy is one of the most important cities owing to the presence of the Temple of the Sacred tooth of the Buddha.

Visit Temple of Tooth Relic in Kandy enjoy a typical Sri Lankan Cultural Show of Drumming Dancing music and fire walking

PINNAWALA ELEPHANT ORPHANAGE

Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, the foster – home of elephants of different age and size feeding, bathing, playing together and even mating. These have been found injured or left abandoned in the wilderness. There are even little baby calves born in captivity.

OPTIONAL - ELEPHANT SAFARI / RIDE

The Elephant that was the limousine, Bulldozer, War Tank, Status Symbol, Wealth Asset and Domestic pet in the past is today an element that adds colour to pageants or the Gentle Giant that gives pleasure rides.

The Elephant Safari (At Village) has become a highlight event to tourist for its excitement and adventure or even for the "Chance of a Life Time" of riding an Elephant. The Elephant Safari is a ride on an Elephant with a safely secured seat that takes around one hour. The ride takes you through the jungle, village and even crosses a part of the paddy field. This is fun never to be missed when in Sri Lanka.

TEMPLE OF THE TOOTH RELIC

Sri Dalada Maligawa (Sinhala) or The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is a Buddhist temple in the city of Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is located in the royal palace complex which houses the Relic of the tooth of Buddha. Since ancient times, the relic has played an important role in local politics because it is believed that whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country. Kandy was the last capital of the Sinhalese kings and is a world heritage site partly due to the temple.

ROYAL BOTANICAL GARDEN

The Botanical Garden of Peradeniya was a pleasure garden of a Kandyan King of the 16th Century and later made into a Botanical Garden during the British regime. This gardens; one of the best in Asia is a place of beauty and site for bird watchers.

CITY & SHOPPING

Kandy and Nuwara Eliya tour will also include places of Tourist interest such as

Kitulgala

White water rafting

Kataragama devala

Hindu temple

Gem museum

Kandyan cultural show

Shopping at

Odel

Batik Factory

Handicraft centre

Gem Museum

Overnight stay in Kandy

SRI BHAKTHI HANUMAK TEMPLE

According to the ancient stories, Ramboda is an area, where the forces of Rama's gather to fight against King Ravana. This temple was built by the Chinmaya mission of Sri Lanka and dedicated to Hanuman. This temple houses for 16 feel height statue of Hanuman.

SITA AMMAN KOVIL

Nuwara Eliya also was known as little England for its cool climes, British architecture and natural beauty is also promoted as a sacred city because of its link to the “Rama Seetha” love story. Seetha Amman kovil is dedicated to Seetha, wife of Rama who is believed to be one of the avatars of Lord Vishnu. There are many temples dedicated to Rama and Hanuman, especially in North India, but the Seetha Amman Kovil in Sri Lanka is unique in that it is the only one in the world dedicated to Seetha alone. According to legend King Ravana who ruled the country from Badulla kidnapped Queen Seetha. Queen Seetha was married to King Rama of India. Finally, king Ravana went to India and brought queen seethe to Badulla.

NUWARA ELIYA

As the largest city in the mountains, Nuwara Eliya plays an important role in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry. Undoubtedly Nuwara Eliya is the most popular health resort in the island and features a blend of colonial charm, modern development and slum areas, inherited from the colonial plantation culture. Nuwara Eliya was an important seat of British colonial administration. It was first developed as a holiday destination in Sri Lanka under the British administration, due to the cool, healing climate.

HAGGALA BOTANICAL GARDEN / ASHOK VATIKA

Hakgala Botanical Garden is situated on the Nuwara Eliya-Badulla main road, 16 km from Nuwara Eliya. The garden has a cool temperate climate because of altitude is 5,400 feet above the sea level. The mean annual temperature ranges between 16°C to 30°C during the course of a year. From December to February it has a cold climate, while the warm climate persists from April to August.

In the folklore, it says Sri Lankan demon King Ravana after abducting Sita, kept her hidden in this area and area was offered to Sita as a pleasure garden, the place finds mention in the Ramayana as Ashok Vatika. The area was named as "Sita Eliya" and "Sita Amman Temple" was built on the site.

TEA FACTORY

Visit a Tea Plantation and a Tea Factory en route. Sri Lanka is famous for its “Ceylon Tea” has added cheers to many the world over for more than a century.

Overnight stay in Nuwara Eliya

KITULGALA

Kitulgala is a small town in the west of Sri Lanka. It is in the wet zone rainforest, which gets two monsoons each year, and is one of the wettest places in the country. Nevertheless, it comes alive in the first three months of the year, especially in February, the driest month. The Academy Award-winning The Bridge on the River Kwai was filmed on the Kelani River near Kitulgala, although nothing remains now except the concrete foundations for the bridge (and, supposedly, the submerged train cars that plunged into the river in the climactic scene). Kitulgala is also a base for white-water rafting, which starts a few kilometres upstream.

SEA TURTLE HATCHERY

Projects have been launched to conserve the population of turtles that are reaching extinction and such projects are found along the southern coast of Sri Lanka where turtles come ashore to lay their eggs. The turtle digs a hole on the Beach, Lays her eggs and covers it with sand where it is supposed to, incubated by the heat of the sun. What often happens is, the eggs are dug out by fisherman and sold to people who consume them.

But now the eggs are bought up by the conservation projects and are hatched the Natural way in enclosed areas where the Birds don’t have a chance of picking them up and the babies are let into the sea after two days at night time which offers them a better chance of survival.

MADU GANGA BOAT TOUR

A cruise on a modern motorboat is the best way to exploring the natural wealth of Madu Ganga, the islands in the wetland are largely inaccessible by road. The inhabitants are also using the boats and more often paddle boats as the means of transport. Seerendipity tours offer particularly appealing boat trips around Madu Ganga. This Ramsar Wetland is one of the most visited natural attractions of Sri Lanka’s west coast, with riverscapes to quiet thick grown islands and mangrove forests with sites of immense natural interest. There is plenty of opportunities to spot fascinating wildlife based on aquatic environment, throughout the tour.

Overnight stay in Bentota

End of the Tour