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Himgiri Holidays

Sri Lanka Circuit

4.5 (2)6 days · 5 nightsEasySri Lanka, Central & Southern Province

Sigiriya → Kandy → Ella → Galle Fort

Land-only price — international flights are not included

Sri Lanka Circuit — Sri Lanka, Central & Southern Province
Sri Lanka Circuit — Sri Lanka, Central & Southern Province
Sri Lanka Circuit — Sri Lanka, Central & Southern Province
Sri Lanka Circuit — Sri Lanka, Central & Southern Province
Sri Lanka Circuit — Sri Lanka, Central & Southern Province

Overview

The classic Sri Lankan arc, driven in the order the geography wants: the dry-zone Cultural Triangle first, then up into the tea country, then down to the south coast. Six days is tight for this island and we have cut the itinerary to four bases rather than trying to sleep somewhere new every night.

Sigiriya is the set piece — a granite plug some 180 m out of the plain, with a fifth-century citadel on the summit, the mirror wall and the frescoes on the way up. It is about 1,200 steps and it is done at seven in the morning, not at eleven. Pidurangala, the neighbouring rock, is the alternative for anyone who would rather look at Sigiriya than climb it, and we can arrange either.

The train from Nanu Oya to Ella is the other thing people come for: two and a half to three hours through tea estates at around 1,800 m, reserved seats booked well ahead, windows down. And Udawalawe rather than Yala for the safari — smaller, drier, far less crowded, and the elephant sightings are close to certain rather than a lottery.

Price is land-only. International flights to and from Colombo are excluded, as is the Sri Lankan ETA, which is applied for online before you travel.

Runs in: December, January, February, March. Outside that window we do not sell the trip rather than run it badly.

Day by day

6 days, in the order you will walk or drive them.

  1. 1Colombo to SigiriyaDay 1
    Met at Bandaranaike international and driven north-east to the Cultural Triangle, about four hours on the expressway and trunk road, with a stop at the Dambulla cave temples — five caves under an overhang holding some 150 Buddha images and painted ceilings. Check in near Sigiriya. Evening free.
  2. 2Sigiriya at dawn, Polonnaruwa by bicycleDay 2
    At the Sigiriya gate for opening: the water gardens, the mirror wall, the frescoes and the lion's paws, then the last stairways to the summit citadel. Around 1,200 steps and done before the heat. Back for breakfast, then Polonnaruwa in the afternoon — the twelfth-century capital, ridden between the ruins on bicycles, ending at the Gal Vihara rock-cut Buddhas.
  3. 3Sigiriya to Kandy — the Tooth Relic and a spice gardenDay 3
    South to Kandy, about three hours, with a working spice garden at Matale on the way. The Royal Botanical Gardens at Peradeniya in the afternoon, then the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic for the evening puja, when the reliquary chamber is opened. A Kandyan dance performance after, then dinner by the lake.
  4. 4The hill-country train to EllaDay 4
    Driven up to Nanu Oya through the tea estates, with a stop at a working factory above Nuwara Eliya for the plucking-to-packing process. Board the Nanu Oya–Ella train in reserved seats — two and a half to three hours, the best rail journey in South Asia, crossing the Nine Arches Bridge on the approach. Night in Ella.
  5. 5Little Adam's Peak, Udawalawe safari, on to the coastDay 5
    An early hour up Little Adam's Peak for the Ella Gap, then down out of the hills to Udawalawe National Park for an afternoon jeep safari — elephants in numbers, water buffalo, crocodile and a long bird list. Continue to the south coast at Mirissa or Unawatuna for the night.
  6. 6Galle Fort, then Colombo and departureDay 6
    A walking morning inside the Galle ramparts — the Dutch fort of 1663, the lighthouse, the Anglican and Dutch Reformed churches, and the gem and lace shops in the grid behind them. Then two hours up the southern expressway to Bandaranaike. Trip ends at the airport; evening flights are the safe choice.

Dates and prices

Seat counts are live. A date leaves sale the moment it fills — we do not overbook and sort it out later.

  • 12–17 Dec 2026

    Sat start · 6 days

    5 seats left· filling up
    ₹52,500
    Book now

Talk it through first

A planner calls you back, no obligation.

What is included

What the price covers

  • Five nights twin-share — Sigiriya, Kandy, Ella and one on the south coast
  • Daily breakfast, plus dinner in Kandy and on the south coast
  • Private air-conditioned vehicle with an English-speaking Sri Lankan chauffeur-guide throughout
  • Site entries: Dambulla caves, Sigiriya, Polonnaruwa, Peradeniya gardens, Temple of the Tooth, Galle Fort
  • Bicycle hire at Polonnaruwa
  • Reserved second-class seats on the Nanu Oya–Ella train, booked ahead
  • Kandyan dance performance
  • Udawalawe National Park afternoon jeep safari including park fees and tracker
  • Tea factory visit above Nuwara Eliya
  • Airport transfers both ways

What it does not

  • INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS to and from the start point — every price shown is land-only
  • Visa fees, e-visa charges and any visa-processing costs, unless explicitly listed in the inclusions
  • Travel insurance — mandatory on all international departures, and we can arrange it
  • Lunches and any meal not listed in the inclusions
  • Personal expenses, tips, laundry, minibar and anything of a personal nature
  • Optional activities and excursions marked as optional in the day plan
  • Costs arising from flight delays, weather, port or border closures and events beyond our control
  • Sri Lankan Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) — applied online before travel; fee waivers for Indian nationals come and go, so check the current position
  • Whale watching from Mirissa, seasonal and weather-dependent
  • Sigiriya summit alternative at Pidurangala, if you swap — the entry is cheaper and we refund the difference

Questions about this trip

Answered from this departure's own numbers. Anything not here, the desk will tell you straight.

How hard is this trip, and who is it for?
We grade it Easy, on a four-step scale of Easy, Moderate, Challenging and Strenuous. That single word is a summary, not the answer — the answer is the 6-day plan above, which says what each day actually asks of you. Read it before you book, and if you are unsure whether it suits you, call the desk and describe your last comparable trip rather than guessing.
How many people will be on it?
Between 2 and 14. 2 is the minimum for a departure to run and 14 is the hard cap — we do not add seats to a date that is selling well. The seat counts on the dates table are live and come straight from the booking system.
When does it run, and why not the rest of the year?
December, January, February and March, and the next date open for booking is 12 Dec 2026. Outside that window we do not sell the trip rather than run it badly — passes under snow, a monsoon crossing or a shut ferry are reasons to move your dates, not to take your money.
Are flights included in the price?
No. Every international price on this site is land-only: ₹49,500 per person covers the ground arrangements listed above, from the start point onward. Your international flights, visa or entry fees and travel insurance are yours to book, and they are itemised in the "Not included" column so there is no ambiguity. Book the flight after your seats are confirmed, not before.
What does an Indian passport need for Sri Lanka?
Indian nationals need an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA), applied online before departure and usually approved within a day; it can also be issued on arrival at Colombo. Sri Lanka has run fee-waiver and free-visa schemes covering Indian nationals in recent years — check the current position when you book rather than assuming either way. Entry rules change without much notice, so treat this as the position at the time of writing and confirm it close to your departure — the destination page carries the full note, and the desk will tell you what the current requirement is when you book.
Can I hold seats before I pay?
Yes. Pick a date, enter who is travelling, and the seats come off the live count for 15 minutes while you decide. Nothing is charged during the hold, and if you walk away it releases itself and the seats go back on sale.
How do I pay, and what happens after?
Online at the end of the booking flow, or over the phone with the trips desk during working hours if you would rather not pay on the web. Either way you get a booking reference, and the joining pack for your departure follows from the desk.
What if I have to cancel?
There is no blanket policy printed here, because permits, mountain lodges and internal flights are paid forward at different points on different departures — and quoting a single number would be a promise we could not keep on every date. The terms that apply to your departure are in your joining pack, and the desk will put them in writing before you pay if you ask.

2 reviews

Each one is linked to a booking on one of the departures above.

  • Sri Lanka is small on the map and slow on the ground. Day one is four hours from the airport and day five covers the hills to the coast. All of it is stated in the itinerary and the chauffeur-guide was superb, but go in knowing you will spend real time in a vehicle. Galle Fort on the last morning was the perfect wind-down.
    IKImtiaz KhanVerified booking
  • Sigiriya at seven in the morning with maybe thirty other people on the rock, and the same climb at eleven would have been unbearable. The Nanu Oya to Ella train in reserved seats with the doors open is genuinely as good as the photographs. Udawalawe rather than Yala was the right call — we had elephants to ourselves.
    DRDivya RamanathanVerified booking

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