Sri Lanka and the Maldives: Sigiriya, the Hill Train, Galle and a Local Island

Arrive in Colombo

Bandaranaike International Airport to Colombo via Kelaniya, about 35 km

• Welcome dinner
• Nuit : Colombo
• Environ 1 h de route

Après-midi

If you land by early afternoon, we stop on the way into the city at the Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara, a working Buddhist temple on the Kelani River whose image house is painted with 20th-century murals of the Buddha's life and Sri Lankan history; it is about 20 minutes short of the centre and an easy first look at temple etiquette. Then check in and rest. Late in the afternoon your See Sight Tours guide meets the group for a short briefing on the two weeks ahead: what to wear at temples, how the train and the Maldives crossing work, and the local-island rules.

Soir

We walk the seafront promenade at Galle Face Green as the sun drops into the Indian Ocean and families come out for street food, then sit down together to a welcome dinner.

Compris

• Pick-up at Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB)
• Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara on the way in, for arrivals by early afternoon
• Welcome briefing with your guide
• Sunset walk on Galle Face Green
• Welcome dinner

Dambulla's caves and sunset on Pidurangala

Colombo to the Dambulla cave temple, then Sigiriya, about 170 km

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
• Nuit : Sigiriya
• Environ 4 h de route

Après-midi

Just before lunch we climb the short path to the Dambulla cave temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1991: five caves under one granite overhang, worshipped in since the 1st century BC, holding more than 150 Buddha images and ceilings painted edge to edge. Lunch is a sit-down rice and curry in Dambulla, then a short drive to our hotel near Sigiriya and a rest through the heat. At about 4:30 pm we walk up Pidurangala, the rock just north of Sigiriya: steps past a reclining Buddha, then a short scramble over boulders to a flat summit. From the top Lion Rock stands in front of you with the forest all around, and the sun sets in the sky beyond it.

Soir

We come down by torchlight; the evening is free.

Compris

• Dambulla cave temple with your guide
• Sit-down lunch in Dambulla
• Pidurangala Rock at sunset

Sigiriya at opening, elephants in the afternoon

Sigiriya Lion Rock, then a jeep safari near Minneriya

• Petit-déjeuner
• Nuit : Sigiriya
• Environ 30 min de route

Matin

Back at the hotel for a late breakfast, the middle of the day is yours. At about 2:30 pm we head out by jeep into Minneriya, Kaudulla or Hurulu Eco Park, chosen that week by where the elephants are, and stay out until the gates close.

Compris

• Sigiriya Lion Rock from opening with a local site guide
• Afternoon jeep safari with park fees in Minneriya, Kaudulla or Hurulu Eco Park

Aluvihare and the Temple of the Tooth

Sigiriya to Aluvihare, then Kandy, about 95 km

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
• Nuit : Kandy
• Environ 3 h de route

Matin

A slower morning, then we drive south about 95 km and three hours to Kandy, the hill capital of the last Sinhalese kingdom. On the way we stop at Aluvihare, a rock temple near Matale where monks first wrote down the Buddhist scriptures, the Pali Canon, on palm leaves in the 1st century BC; caves and shrines are tucked between boulders on the hillside.

Après-midi

Lunch is a sit-down meal on the road into Kandy. We check in early, and the afternoon is free: walk around Kandy Lake, rest, or browse the central market on your own. There is no gem, spice or batik showroom on our plan.

Soir

In the early evening your guide takes you into the Temple of the Tooth, part of the Sacred City of Kandy World Heritage Site, which holds the relic of the Buddha's tooth. We time it for the evening ceremony, usually around 6:30 pm, when drummers play and pilgrims bring flowers to the upper shrine.

Compris

• Aluvihare rock temple
• Sit-down lunch on the way to Kandy
• The Temple of the Tooth at the evening ceremony, with your guide

Activités en option

• Kandyan dance performance in the early evening

Tea country and the train to Ella

Kandy to Nanu Oya by road via Ramboda, about 80 km, then the train to Ella

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
• Nuit : Ella
• Environ 3 h de route

Matin

We leave Kandy after breakfast and climb by road into tea country, about 80 km and three hours, past Ramboda Falls and estates where pickers work the steep slopes.

Après-midi

We stop at a working tea factory to see leaf become black tea, with a tasting, and have a sit-down lunch near Nuwara Eliya. At Nanu Oya, the station for Nuwara Eliya, we board the train with reserved seats. For about three hours it climbs to Pattipola, the highest station on the line at about 1,900 metres, then runs down through Haputale and Bandarawela with tea and cloud forest on both sides, before pulling into Ella in the late afternoon. Keep a camera handy on both sides of the carriage. The rail section from Kandy was reported closed after the 2025 cyclone, which is why we drive the first half; if the train itself is cancelled, the vehicle takes you on to Ella by road.

Compris

• Tea factory visit with a tasting
• Sit-down lunch near Nuwara Eliya
• Reserved seats on the train from Nanu Oya to Ella, with the vehicle as backup

Nine Arch Bridge at dawn and a cooking class

Ella to the Nine Arch Bridge and Little Adam's Peak on foot, then dinner with a local family

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du soir
• Nuit : Ella
• Environ 30 min de route

Matin

Completed in 1921, the bridge curves across a ravine on stone and brick arches about 24 metres high, and your guide knows the morning train times so you can see one cross. From there it is on to Little Adam's Peak, about 45 minutes up a path through tea bushes to a ridge with views down the Ella Gap to the lowlands. You are back in town for a late breakfast, and the middle of the day is free: a massage, a cafe, or a nap.

Après-midi

In the late afternoon a local family teaches you to cook rice and curry, with dhal, a vegetable curry and coconut sambol, and we eat what we made together at their table.

Compris

• Guided early walk to the Nine Arch Bridge
• Little Adam's Peak
• Cooking class and dinner with a local family

Down from the hills to Yala

Ella to Ravana Falls and Buduruwagala, then Tissamaharama and Yala National Park, about 95 km

• Petit-déjeuner, repas du midi et repas du soir
• Nuit : Tissamaharama
• Environ 2.5 h de route

Matin

We drop out of the hills after breakfast, about 95 km and two and a half hours in all. The first stop is Ravana Falls, right beside the road, then a detour near Wellawaya to Buduruwagala, where a standing Buddha about 15 metres tall and six smaller figures were carved into a rock face, probably around the 10th century; it is a quiet place, usually with more monkeys than visitors.

Après-midi

By late morning we are in the dry lowlands near Tissamaharama, at a hotel close to the Yala gate, where lunch is included.

Soir

At about 2:30 pm we go into Yala by jeep with a park tracker and stay until the gates close at dusk. Yala is known for its leopards, though they are never a sure thing; elephants, crocodiles, water buffalo, spotted deer, peacocks and wading birds at the waterholes are much likelier. Dinner is at the hotel, as there is little else nearby.

Compris

• Ravana Falls
• Buduruwagala rock carvings
• Lunch and dinner at the hotel
• Afternoon jeep safari in Yala National Park with park fees and a tracker

The south coast and Galle Fort at golden hour

Tissamaharama to Koggala on the Southern Expressway, then Galle, about 160 km

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
• Nuit : Galle
• Environ 3 h de route

Matin

A free morning, or an early second game drive into Yala for anyone who wants another chance at a leopard. After a late breakfast we drive west, about 160 km and three hours, mostly on the Southern Expressway, then down to the coast at Koggala, where a few families still fish from stilts planted in the surf. Many of the men on the poles now pose for photos and ask for a tip; your guide will tell you who is fishing and who is posing.

Après-midi

Lunch is a sit-down meal by the sea. We reach Galle in the afternoon and check in, then walk the ramparts of Galle Fort as the day cools. The Portuguese first fortified this headland in the 16th century, and the Dutch, who took it in 1640, rebuilt the walls in the 17th century; inside the walls are churches, warehouses and narrow streets of old houses, now a World Heritage Site.

Soir

We finish at the lighthouse bastion for sunset.

Compris

• Stilt fishermen at Koggala
• Sit-down lunch on the coast
• Guided walk on the ramparts of Galle Fort at golden hour

Activités en option

• Dawn game drive in Yala before breakfast

A free day on the coast

Galle and Unawatuna at your pace

• Petit-déjeuner
• Nuit : Galle

Matin

In Galle you can go back inside the fort on your own in the morning light, look into the Dutch Reformed Church and the old warehouses, and sit in a cafe while the town is still quiet.

Après-midi

From December to April boats go out from Mirissa, about 35 km east, to look for blue whales and dolphins; if you want to go, we book a smaller boat that keeps its distance from the animals, leaving very early and back by lunch. Or simply have an Ayurvedic massage and rest before the second half of the trip.

Soir

Your guide suggests places for dinner.

Compris

• Second night at the hotel in Galle
• Your guide on hand for advice and bookings

Activités en option

• Whale and dolphin watching from Mirissa
• Ayurvedic massage
• Surf lesson in Unawatuna

Fly to the Maldives and cross to Dhigurah

Galle to Bandaranaike International Airport, about 150 km, flight to Male, then speedboat to Dhigurah

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du soir
• Nuit : Dhigurah
• Environ 3 h de route

Soir

We book a flight that lands early enough for the crossing, and arrive in the late afternoon, in time for a swim and sunset. Dinner is at the guesthouse, and from tonight there is no alcohol until you leave the Maldives.

Compris

• Drive to Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB)
• Flight from Colombo to Male (MLE)
• Speedboat transfer to Dhigurah, South Ari Atoll
• Dinner at the guesthouse

Whale sharks in South Ari

A boat day in the South Ari Atoll Marine Protected Area

• Petit-déjeuner, repas du midi et repas du soir
• Nuit : Dhigurah
• En bateau

Matin

This morning we go out by boat into the South Ari Atoll Marine Protected Area, the stretch of outer reef along the atoll's southern edge where whale sharks, the largest fish in the sea, are seen through the year. The crew and spotters scan the surface while the boat runs along the reef. When a shark is found, small groups slip into the water with masks and fins to swim alongside it, following the area's rules: keep about three metres away, never touch, no flash, and let the shark choose its path. Sightings are frequent here but never guaranteed, and the boat moves on if the sea is rough.

Après-midi

Between searches we snorkel a reef with turtles and reef fish, and lunch is on board or back on the island.

Soir

The afternoon is free on the bikini beach, and dinner is at the guesthouse.

Compris

• Whale-shark snorkel trip in the South Ari Atoll Marine Protected Area
• Reef snorkel stop
• Snorkel gear and life jackets
• Lunch and dinner

Activités en option

• Scuba dive with a local dive centre, for certified divers

Turtle reef and the sandbank

Dhigurah's reefs, village and sandbank

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du soir
• Nuit : Dhigurah
• En bateau

Matin

In the morning a boat takes us to a nearby reef where green and hawksbill turtles feed on the coral, a short ride from the island, for an hour or more in the water. Back on Dhigurah, the middle of the day is free: the bikini beach, a hammock, or a cold coconut.

Après-midi

Late in the afternoon your guide walks you through the village, past the harbour where the dhonis come in, the mosque and the neat coral-stone houses, and explains how island life works, from fishing to Friday prayers.

Soir

Then we head out to the sandbank at the island's tip, a long tongue of white sand that shifts with the seasons, for a swim and sunset with the lagoon on both sides. Remember to cover up again when you walk back through the village. Dinner is at the guesthouse.

Compris

• Morning snorkel trip to a turtle reef
• Village walk with your guide
• Sunset on the Dhigurah sandbank
• Dinner at the guesthouse

Activités en option

• Kayak or paddleboard on the lagoon

A free day on Dhigurah

Dhigurah at your pace

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du soir
• Nuit : Dhigurah

Matin

If the whale sharks did not show on day 11, this morning is the included second try.

Soir

Otherwise spend it as you like: snorkel the house reef from the beach, walk the length of the island along its sandy lanes, read under a palm, or book a dive, a sunset fishing trip in the traditional Maldivian way with hand lines, or a picnic on an uninhabited sandbank with a local operator. Your guide is on the island all day to help arrange things and to suggest where to find the best afternoon shade. In the evening the group gathers for a farewell dinner at the guesthouse, often a beach table with grilled reef fish, Maldivian fish curry and roshi flatbread, and coconut drinks in place of wine. It is an early night, because the boat leaves after breakfast.

Compris

• Second whale-shark trip if the first sees none
• Farewell dinner

Activités en option

• Sunset line fishing
• Sandbank picnic trip
• Scuba diving, for certified divers

Back to Male and home

Speedboat from Dhigurah to Velana International Airport, Male

• Petit-déjeuner
• En bateau

Matin

A last swim before breakfast, while the lagoon is flat and the beach is empty. After breakfast we take the speedboat back across to Velana International Airport, about two hours, sometimes up to three depending on the sea, arriving around the middle of the day. Your guide comes with you and checks you in for your flight before saying goodbye.

Soir

If you have time before an evening flight, Male itself is just across the bridge from the airport island: a dense little capital with a fish market, the Old Friday Mosque built from carved coral stone, and a waterfront where ferries come and go. If you want to stay on in the Maldives at a resort, or spend extra nights in Sri Lanka before the trip, we can book them for you. Plan an international flight leaving after 4 pm at the earliest, since the crossing time depends on the sea.

Compris

• Speedboat transfer to Velana International Airport (MLE)