On arrival at the Colombo International Airport, you will be met by a professional English speaking driver at the Arrival Lounge.

After completion of formalities at the airport, you will be accompanied to an air conditioned vehicle. Thereafter, you will travel to Kandy, Sri Lanka’s cultural capital situated in the mountainous center. It has a cooler climate than most other cities in the country. It is situated at an elevation of 1629 feet (488 meters) above sea level in the center of the island, amidst verdant hills and forests. It is the hill capital and the gateway to the central highlands of Sri Lanka. Kandy was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1988 and it is the spiritual home of Buddhists in Sri Lanka.

Kandy was the last capital of Sri Lankan Kings. Sri Dalada Maligawa or the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic which houses the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha is located in the former Royal Palace Complex. Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is venerated by Buddhists in Sri Lanka as well as those living overseas. This Temple is an important shrine to Buddhists, the world over. It is visited by pilgrims as well as by local and foreign tourists daily.

Kandy has a blend of ancient Sinhala architecture as well as contemporary architecture. Buildings in Kandy including temples such as Gadaladeniya, Embekke and Lankatillake are symbols of ancient architecture.

The entrance porch of Embekke Devale (place of worship) has been intricately carved. The craftsmanship of 16 wooden pillars and the rafters of this devale is a fine example of medieval carpentry carved with traditional designs. This devale is the finest example of wooden architecture in Sri Lanka.

Lankatillake Viharaya has a development of Sinhalese architecture of the Polonnaruwa Period along with some Dravidian and Indo-Chinese features.

Kandy City has a compact downtown area with a lush green tropical rainforest above the city and a beautiful lake in the middle of the city. Kandy is a major shopping destination where many goods including handicrafts of Sri Lanka can be purchased. Kandy is a great place to experience Sri Lankan culture.

Once you arrive in Kandy, you can check into the hotel and spend the rest of the day relaxing.

Kandy is “must-visit destination” in Sri Lanka.

Stay overnight at your selected hotel in Kandy

After breakfast on the following morning, you can depart to Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage.  This elephant orphanage is situated in Kegalle between Kandy and Colombo on a 25 acre property bordered by a river. This orphanage has the largest herd of captive elephants in the world. This orphanage was founded to care and protect orphaned elephants found in the jungles of Sri Lanka. The Orphanage provides a natural habitat to orphaned elephants. Elephants are taken twice a day to the river for a bath. Baby jumbos less than three years old are bottle fed by mahouts and volunteers. Visitors to the orphanage can see baby jumbos being bottle fed. The main attraction of the orphanage is elephants bathing at the river which is a beautiful spectacle.

The majority of jumbos are accustomed to their human visitors and these jumbos can be seen at close quarters at this orphanage. The orphanage is a day trip from Kandy.

After lunch, you can do a city tour of Kandy. You can visit the Kandy Market and Kandy Upper Lake drive. You can walk on the lake round enjoying the beautiful spectacle around it or simply relax seated on a bench on the bank of the lake enjoying the soft breeze admiring its environs. ,

In the late afternoon you can explore the city of Kandy and visit the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic along with devotees, foreign and local visitors. You can also visit the Royal Palace Complex, the Audience Hall and the Raja Museum (the taxidermy of the great tusker which carried the Sacred Tooth Relic in the Kandy Perahera (procession) for more than half a century along with his costume and ornaments are in this museum) adjoining the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.  You can also visit the International Buddhist Museum, world’s first Buddhist Museum located next to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.

After visiting the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, the Royal Palace Complex and the International Buddhist Museum you can visit the Kandy Lake Club to see a Cultural Dance Show which is a must see for any visitor to the historic city of Kandy.

This cultural show has many dance performances from different regions of Sri Lanka with costumes, drums and musical instruments unique to each area. Traditional dance forms of Sri Lanka date back to the fourth century BC. Most dance forms were performed to expel misfortune, sicknesses and to seek blessings of gods. There are three main dance forms in Sri Lanka – Kandyan, Sabaragamuwa and Ruhunu (low country). Each dance form differs in costumes, drums, drum rhythms, songs and dance forms.

There are dancers, drummers and acrobats in this show. It is a display of the rich cultural heritage of Sri Lanka. This show has been performed continuously during the last 35 years. The show is concluded with a fire walk, another tourist attraction. The duration of the show is one hour.

Gem Museum

Before watching the Cultural Show, visit the Gem Museum in Kandy. It is free for tourists and the tour lasts about 30 minutes. The visit to the Museum starts with a video presentation given by the guides and then you will be taken on a tour around the Gem Showroom where you can see gemologists and their work. The staff is very knowledgeable and will explain about gems to you. Thereafter, you will be taken to their showroom where you can see a huge array of beautiful gems of Sri Lanka. Although, you are given a guided tour there is no obligation to buy gems. The tour is a must visit for any tourist in Kandy.

Art and Craft Center

Sri Lanka has an array of arts and crafts with their unique styles created by skilled craftsmen and women. Most of these industries are cottage industries. These arts and crafts have been crafted for centuries and handed from one generation to the next generation. Brassware, silverware, lacquer ware, batiks, handloom, coir products, rush and reed ware, wood carvings and masks are the main crafts. Of these, the majority of crafts are crafted in Kandy and its environs. There are many shops in Kandy where handicrafts are sold. There are also villages in Kandy where visitors can see traditional crafts being done as cottage industries.

Arts and Craft Center in Kandy is a place where visitors can see and buy local crafts.

Stay overnight at the selected hotel in Kandy.

After breakfast visit Peradeniya Botanical Gardens.  (Approximate Distance – 6 kilometers / transfer time: 20 minutes)

Peradeniya Botanical Gardens is one of the most beautiful gardens in Asia. It is visited by a large number of local and foreign visitors daily. The orchid collection, medicinal plants, a stately avenue of palms, cannonball fruit tree, the giant Javan fig tree on the lawn with its colossal central trunk and its umbrella-type canopy of branches as well as spice trees are the attractions of this garden where there are over 4000 species of plants.

Peradeniya Botanic Gardens were reserved exclusively as a pleasure park for Kandyan royalty during the Kandyan Kingdom. Today it is open to any visitor local or foreign.

The Botanic Gardens was established in 1843 with plants brought from Kew Gardens in Slave Island, Colombo.

During the Second World War, Peradeniya Botanic Gardens were used by Lord Louis Mountbatten (the supreme commander of Allied Forces in South Asia) as the headquarters of the Southeast Asia Command.

On completion of the Gardens tour proceed to Nuwara Eliya, popularly known as “Little England” with English-style cottages set against beautiful backdrops of misty mountains, valleys, cascading waterfalls and carpets of green tea. English styled cottages from Georgian to Tudor to Victorian to Ann, well-kept lawns, strawberry fields, beautiful flower beds, a famous golf course, a race course with pony rides give this town an atmosphere of a town in England. The peaceful town with its cool climate is a haven from the hustle bustle of city life. British who ruled Sri Lanka created a replica of England in Nuwara Eliya.

As Nuwara Eliya is situated in the heart of the tea-country of Sri Lanka, you can visit a tea plantation and a tea factory where you can get a good knowledge of tea plucking and processing explained well by a guide from the tea factory.

After lunch around 4.00 p.m., commence a sightseeing tour of Nuwara Eliya, situated 6,200 feet above sea level. The salubrious climate is ideal for exploring the town and its environs.

Nuwara Eliya town is situated on the foothill of Pidurutalagala, the highest mountain in Sri Lanka situated at a height of 8,282 feet.

Horse and pony riding is available at the Turf Club of Nuwara Eliya to facilitate you with some sports and adventure. There is a golf course in the town.  Visitors can sit on the banks of Lake Gregory and admire the scenic attractions around it or go on a boat ride on the lake. This lake was used for water sports during the British Colonial Period in Sri Lanka.

You can see visit Victoria Park in Nuwara Eliya named in honour of Queen Victoria to commemorate her 60^th Jubilee Coronation in 1897. The park has many trees and beautiful flower beds. Nuwara Eliya Post Office housed in a Tudor Manor style building is the only such building in Sri Lanka similar to a Post Office in England.

You can also visit Hakgala Botanic Gardens which is believed to be the highest altitude Botanic Gardens in the world and has well-manicured gardens full of roses, flowers and plant species.

On completion of the tour, check in to your selected hotel.

Overnight at the selected hotel in Nuwara Eliya

After Breakfast, check out of the hotel and proceed to Kitulgala for a quick stop. Here you may have an optional lunch before heading off to the Airport for departure or to your chosen Beach destination.