Buddhist Tour of Sri Lanka - 7 Nights / 8 Days
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Buddhist Tour of Sri Lanka - 7 Nights / 8 Days
(Destination covered: Colombo – Pinnawala –Dambulla- Sigiriya – Bentota )
Day 01 – Arrival in Colombo
Welcome on arrival at Colombo airport arrival by Yesme Travels representative and transfer to Colombo, rest of the day at Leisure.
Overnight stay at the Hotel - Colombo.
Colombo – the trade and commercial capital has long been the traditional gateway to the Orient. Sri Lanka’s largest city, it is located on the west coast and draws together all the cultures, religions and influences of foreign lands into a pot-pourri of sounds, smells and a kaleidoscope of colour. The original traders and settlers - the Arabs, Portuguese, Dutch and the British have left in their wake churches and monuments, names and religions, costumes and food and smatterings of their languages which have been absorbed into the speech of the Sri Lankan. Today, Colombo is a fascinating city - a happy blend of east & west, past & present, with a charm of its own. A less known but amazingly true fact is that Colombo has a superb range of high quality restaurants serving food from all over the world and some of the best shopping opportunities in Asia. The main seaport of Sri Lanka is in Colombo & adjoining it, is Pettah, a local bazaar & trading area. Other places of interest are the beautiful Buddhist temples, Hindu temples, mosques, the historic Wolfendhal church, (1749) residential areas where you find the stately homes of the affluent, , the Ceramic Corporation famous for its well-known brand “Noritake” and ODEL the renowned shopping centre.
Day 02-Colombo-Pinnawala-Dambulla/Sigiriya (190 Kms / 5 hrs drive)
Breakfast at the hotel, Transfer to Sigiriya, enroute visit pinnawala elephant orphanage (optional visit Dambulla cave temple)
Overnight stay at the hotel – Dambulla/Sigiriya
Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage – set amongst the verdant hills of Kegalle is a unique orphanage, where the tiny tots weigh 60 kg or more. This is the Pinnewela Elephant Orphanage, the world's first and only elephant orphanage established to feed, nurse and house young elephants lost or abandoned by their mothers. Other occupants are elephants displaced from their natural environs by development projects or those found wounded. Visitors could see the baby elephants being fed milk from gigantic feeding bottles or bathed in the river which flows nearby – an unforgettable sight! Established in 1975, by the Wildlife Department and National Zoological gardens which subsequently led to a breeding programme through which more than twenty five elephants have been born since 1984.
Dambulla Cave Temple - was built by king Walagambahu in the 1st century B.C. Dambulla is a world heritage site and is the most impressive of Sri Lanka’s cave temples. The complex of five caves with over 2000 sq. meters of painted walls and ceilings is the largest area of paintings found in the world. The caves contain over 150 images of the Buddha of which the largest is the colossal figure of the Buddha carved out of rock and spanning 14 meters.
Day 03-Dambulla – Kandy (85Kms / 2hrs drive)
Breakfast at the hotel, Transfer to Kandy, enroute visit Sigiriya fortress and Spice garden in matale.Overnight stay at the hotel-Kandy
Sigiriya Rock Fortress - which is a world heritage site, built by king Kashyapa (473 – 491 A.D). The “lion rock” is a citadel of unusual beauty rising 200 meters from the scrub jungle. The rock was the innermost stronghold of the 70 hectare fortified town. The base of the rock is ringed by a moat, rampart, and extensive gardens including the renowned water gardens. The world-renowned frescoes of the “heavenly maidens’ of Sigiriya which are in a sheltered pocket of the rock approached by a spiral stairway is one of the main attractions. The frescoes are painted in earth pigments on plaster.
Kandy – a lovely exotic city, the Hill Capital and last stronghold of the Sinhala Kings is a UNESCO World Heritage Site which retains an aura of grandeur, time has not affected. Encircled by hills, with a tranquil lake in its centre, it is the site of the renowned temple that enshrines the Tooth Relic of the Buddha and the Royal Botanical gardens – home to one of the world’s best collections of Orchids. A cultural sanctuary where many legends, traditions and folklore are still lovingly kept alive, Kandy and its satellite villages are the centre of the islands handicraft industry (items of wood, brass & silver) exquisite silver or gold jewellery and precious gems of many varieties including the world’s best blue and star sapphires. The highlight of the city’s calendar is the Esala Perahera, when a replica of the casket enclosing the Tooth is taken in procession for ten glittering nights in July/August by exotically costumed dancers, drummers and approximately 100 Elephants.
Day 04 – At Kandy
Breakfast at the hotel, Proceed to do a city tour of Kandy including Temple of tooth relic, Royal Botanical garden, Kandy lake, wood carving, gem shop and Gem museum Late evening witness of the cultural show. Overnight stay at the hotel – Kandy
Day 05-Kandy-Nuwara Eliya (90 Kms / 3 hrs drive)
Breakfast at the hotel, Transfer to Nuwara Eliya, enroute visit Tea plantation, tea factory, Ramboda water fall, evening do a city tour of Nuwara Eliya including Gregory lake and the strawberry farm. Overnight stay at the hotel – Nuwara Eliya
Tea Plantation - visit a tea plantation and a tea factory where one the best teas in the world is produced. You will be told all about the process of manufacturing tea and also see how tea is graded. Taste a cup of pure Ceylon tea in the factory.
Nuwara Eliya – Sri Lanka's premier hill resort with a fine bracing mountain climate, Nuwara Eliya is also the heart of Sri Lanka's tea country, producing some of the world’s best tea. The mountain slopes and valleys are a carpet of velvety green tea plantations, interspersed with gushing streams and tumbling waterfalls. Red or green roofed plantation bungalows, English country style homes and hotels with lovely flower gardens, a fine 18 hole golf course and a racecourse gives Nuwara Eliya a decidedly British character.
Day 06-Nuwara Eliya-Bentota (220Kms / 5hrs drive)
Breakfast at the hotel, transfer to Bentota, Full day leisure at the hotelOvernight stay at the hotel – Bentota
Bentota – situated on the south west coast, at the confluence of the sea and the Bentota river, the sun drenched location and its golden, palm-fringed beaches which border the warm, sparkling waters of the Indian Ocean made it a natural choice for development as the first tourist resort. Today it is known in Sri Lanka’s global tourist markets as a highly attractive holiday resort with a wide and varied choice of distinctive hotels to suit every taste and purse. Bentota has a complete range of tourist facilities, great seafood and very popular water sports centres which provide boating, water skiing, jet skiing, snorkelling and wind surfing.
Day 07 – At Bentota
Breakfast at the hotel, do a city tour in Bentota includin gmadhu river boat safari and visit Turtle hatchery.
Overnight stay at the Hotel – Bentota
Day 08 – Bentota –Colombo Airport+ Departure(160Kms / 3 hrs drive)
Breakfast at the hotel, Proceed to Colombo Airport to catch flight for onwards destination along with Sweet Memories.
