Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
5/5
Sri Lanka for families: elephants, the hill train and the beach
10 days from Negombo for families with children 6 and up: Sigiriya at opening, bikes and a bullock cart, elephants by jeep twice, the hill train to Ella, a tea-picking morning and two nights on the beach at Bentota.
10 days · Negombo to Colombo · up to 12 guests
The palace terraces on top of Sigiriya, about 200 metres above the plain Photo: Daibo Taku, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sigiriya,_Sri_Lanka_-_panoramio_(100).jpg)
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 10 days, 9 nights
- Start and end
- Negombo to Colombo
- Group size
- 7 to 12 guests
- Activity level
Moderate
Mostly short walks of an hour or two, with rests through midday. Sigiriya is about 1,200 steps over two to three hours, with an option to stay at the base. The village bike ride is about 6 km on flat lanes, with a bullock cart or the vehicle for anyone who stops. The jeep safaris are about three hours each on dirt tracks.
- Meals included
- 9 breakfasts, 7 lunches, 2 dinners
- Room of your own
- + CAD 475 (estimated price)
- Season
- December to April
Highlights
Why this trip
- A bike ride through the paddy fields near Sigiriya, then home on a bullock cart
- Sigiriya at opening, past the lion's paws to the palace ruins on top
- An open jeep into Kaudulla or Minneriya to look for elephants by the reservoir
- Drummers at the Temple of the Tooth and a Kandyan dance show
- The hill train from Nanu Oya to Ella through the tea
- Picking tea with the pickers, then a train crossing the Nine Arch Bridge
- Orphaned calves running in for milk at the Elephant Transit Home
- A boat through the mangroves of the Bentota River and two nights on the beach
What makes this trip different
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + CAD 475 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Arrive in Negombo
Bandaranaike International Airport to Negombo, about 10 km
- Dinner
- Stay in Negombo
- Drive about 30 min
Your holiday starts at Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) at Katunayake, about 35 km north of Colombo. A driver meets your family in the arrivals hall for the drive of about 20 to 30 minutes to a hotel in Negombo, a fishing town where a lagoon meets the Indian Ocean. Starting here rather than in Colombo keeps city traffic out of the first day and puts you on the road inland tomorrow.
Evening
Long-haul flights land at all hours, so nothing is planned before the evening: children can sleep off the flight, swim in the pool or dig on the beach, which faces west for the sunset. In the early evening your See Sight Tours guide gathers everyone, children included, to walk through the plan: which mornings start early, how long each drive is, and what to wear at temples. Dinner together follows, with mild curries, rice, fried fish and hoppers for children who want something plainer.
Included
- Pick-up at Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB)
- Early-evening family get-together with your guide
- Welcome dinner
Free time: Free until the early evening
Inland to Sigiriya: bikes and a bullock cart
Negombo to Sigiriya, about 165 km, then a village afternoon
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Sigiriya
- Drive about 4 h
We leave Negombo at about 8 am and head inland, about 165 km and four hours on the road, partly on the Central Expressway, with a stop every hour or so so younger children can stretch. Coconut country gives way to paddy fields, reservoirs and the granite outcrops of the dry zone.
Afternoon
We reach the Sigiriya area around midday and sit down to lunch with a farming family in a village nearby: rice and several curries cooked over a wood fire, served on lotus leaves, with something mild for children. After a rest through the heat, at about 3:30 pm we set off by bicycle on quiet lanes between the paddies and the village tank, the reservoir that waters the fields. Children who would rather not ride sit in the support vehicle or on the bullock cart, which then carries everyone, slowly and noisily, along a farm track.
Evening
We are back at the hotel before dark, and the evening is free by the pool.
Included
- Village lunch with a farming family near Sigiriya
- Bicycle ride through the paddy fields, with children's bikes and helmets
- Bullock cart ride
Easier option: Ride the bullock cart and walk the lanes instead of cycling. If it rains hard, the ride moves to the next morning or becomes a cart ride and a longer village lunch.
Free time: Evening free at the hotel
Activity: The bike ride is about 6 km on flat lanes and farm tracks, at children's pace, with the vehicle following.
Sigiriya at opening, elephants by jeep
Sigiriya Lion Rock, then a jeep safari in Kaudulla or Minneriya National Park
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Sigiriya
- Drive about 1.5 h
Morning
We are at the Sigiriya gate when it opens, about 7 am, before the heat and before the queues build on the upper stairs from mid-morning. King Kashyapa built his palace on top of this rock in the late fifth century, and children tend to love it: the water gardens with their old fountains, the painted women of the frescoes reached by a spiral stair, the polished Mirror Wall and the giant stone paws of the lion gate, before the brick ruins of the summit, nearly 200 metres above the plain. The climb is about 1,200 steps and we take it slowly.
Afternoon
We are down by about 10:30 am, back at the hotel for a swim and lunch, and rest through the hottest hours. At about 3 pm we head out by open jeep to Kaudulla or Minneriya National Park, chosen by current herd reports, and look for elephants grazing by the reservoir until the park closes. Herds are smaller than in the July to October Gathering.
Included
- Sigiriya Lion Rock at opening, with a local site guide and entry
- Lunch at the hotel or nearby
- Jeep safari in Kaudulla or Minneriya National Park, with park fees, two jeeps for the group
Easier option: Stay at the base of Sigiriya: walk the water and boulder gardens and see the lion paws from below while the others climb.
Free time: Late morning and early afternoon free at the hotel
Activity: About 1,200 steps on Sigiriya, some on narrow metal stairways against the rock face; children hold an adult's hand on the exposed sections. About three hours in an open jeep on dirt tracks.
Dambulla's caves and Kandy
Sigiriya to the Dambulla cave temple, then Kandy, about 95 km
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Kandy
- Drive about 3 h
Morning
A slower morning after yesterday's early start: breakfast at 8, then about 20 km to Dambulla, where five caves under a granite overhang are filled with painted ceilings and more than 150 Buddha statues, the largest a reclining Buddha about 14 metres long. Children like the walk up the rock, past monkeys, and the cool of the caves after the heat outside. Shoes come off at the entrance, so bring socks for the hot stone.
Afternoon
Then we drive south into the hills, about 75 km and two and a half hours, with a sit-down lunch on the way.
Evening
In Kandy, the last royal capital until 1815, we first see an hour-long show of Kandyan dancing and drumming that ends, at most venues, with fire walking, then walk to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic for the evening ritual, about 6:30 pm, when the drummers play and the shrine doors open. Dinner is free by Kandy Lake.
Included
- Dambulla cave temple, with entry
- Sit-down lunch on the way to Kandy
- Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, with entry
- Kandyan dance and drumming show
Easier option: Skip the climb to the Dambulla caves and wait in the shade at the foot of the rock with the driver.
Free time: Evening free after the temple
Activity: About 15 minutes of steps up to the Dambulla caves. Shoulders and knees covered for both temples; light-coloured clothing is best at the Temple of the Tooth.
Tea country and the hill train to Ella
Kandy to Nanu Oya by road via Nuwara Eliya, then the train to Ella
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Ella
- Drive about 3 h
We leave Kandy at about 7:30 am and climb by road into tea country, about 80 km and three hours with stops. The road winds up past Ramboda Falls and estates where pickers work the slopes, and we stop at a working tea factory to watch green leaf withered, rolled and dried into black tea, with a tasting and something cold for children.
Afternoon
An early sit-down lunch follows in Nuwara Eliya, the old hill station at about 1,870 metres, cool enough for a jumper. At Nanu Oya we board an early-afternoon train, about 1 pm, with reserved seats.
Evening
It climbs past Pattipola, the highest station on the line, then runs down through Haputale and Bandarawela with tea on both sides and tunnels to count, reaching Ella around 4 pm, before dusk. This is about six hours of travel, over our four-hour cap, because the train is the point: children can stand, look out and move about, and the road part is broken by the falls, the factory and lunch. We confirm each season whether the Kandy line runs; if the train is cancelled, our vehicle drives you.
Included
- Ramboda Falls viewpoint
- Working tea factory visit with a tasting
- Sit-down lunch in Nuwara Eliya
- Reserved seats on the train from Nanu Oya to Ella
Free time: Evening free in Ella from about 4 pm
Activity: About six hours of travel in all, half by train. The train time is confirmed with your final itinerary, as timetables on this line changed after the cyclone. Bring a warm layer for Nuwara Eliya.
A tea-picking morning and the Nine Arch Bridge
Ella: a tea estate, the Nine Arch Bridge and a free afternoon
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Ella
Morning
This morning we join tea pickers on an estate near Ella. They show children how to pick two leaves and a bud, the only part used for good tea, and let them fill a small basket before we weigh the morning's harvest together, the way the pickers' own leaf is weighed each day. It is a gentle hour on terraced slopes, done before the sun gets strong. Then we walk to the Nine Arch Bridge, completed in 1921, which curves across a ravine on stone and brick arches about 24 metres high. Your guide knows the train times, so we can watch a blue train cross from the hillside rather than wait on the track.
Afternoon
After a sit-down lunch in Ella, the afternoon is free: a swim, a nap, or a cafe on the main street. Families with energy left can climb Little Adam's Peak with the guide in the late afternoon, about an hour up on a good path through tea, for the view down the Ella Gap.
Included
- Tea-picking morning on an estate near Ella, with the pickers
- Walk to the Nine Arch Bridge
- Sit-down lunch in Ella
Optional experiences
- A cooking class in Ella, paid locally
Easier option: Ride a tuk-tuk to the Nine Arch Bridge viewpoint instead of walking the track.
More active option: Little Adam's Peak with the guide in the late afternoon, about 4.5 km return and 1.5 to 2 hours.
Free time: Afternoon free in Ella
Activity: About 3 km of walking on estate paths and tracks, some uneven; closed shoes and sun hats.
Down to Udawalawe: orphaned elephants and a jeep safari
Ella to Ravana Falls and Udawalawe, about 110 km
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Udawalawe
- Drive about 3 h
We leave Ella at about 8 am and drop through the Ella Gap, stopping at Ravana Falls by the roadside, to the dry lowlands at Wellawaya, and on to Udawalawe: about 110 km and three hours of driving in all. The Elephant Transit Home, run by the Department of Wildlife Conservation, feeds its calves several times a day, and we time our arrival to one. It raises orphaned elephant calves and returns them to the national park when they are old enough to live wild, and visitors watch from a viewing platform as the young elephants run in for their milk; there is no touching or riding, which is the point.
Afternoon
After a sit-down lunch and a rest through the heat, at about 3 pm we head into Udawalawe National Park by open jeep, two jeeps for the group so every child has a window. Wild elephants feed here year round in the grassland around the reservoir, with water buffalo, crocodiles, peafowl and eagles.
Evening
We stay out until the park closes near sunset.
Included
- Ravana Falls
- Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home at a feeding, with entry
- Sit-down lunch in Udawalawe
- Jeep safari in Udawalawe National Park, with park fees
Free time: Early afternoon free at the hotel
Activity: Feedings at the Elephant Transit Home run several times a day; the one we aim for is confirmed with your final itinerary. About three hours in an open jeep on dirt tracks; hats, sunscreen and binoculars if you have them.
The south coast: stilt fishermen and Galle Fort
Udawalawe to Koggala and Galle Fort, then Bentota, about 220 km
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Bentota
- Drive about 4.5 h
Today is the one long road day, about 220 km and four and a half hours of driving, over our four-hour cap because there is no short road from Udawalawe to the west coast. We break it into three parts. First about two and a half hours south to the coast at Matara, then the coast road west past Weligama Bay to Koggala, where a few fishermen still sit on stilts in the surf; most now pose for photos in return for a tip, and your guide explains how it works.
Afternoon
Galle Fort is half an hour on: the Dutch walled town begun in the 1660s, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where we eat a sit-down lunch and walk the ramparts to the lighthouse while children look for the old cannons and the monitor lizards in the moat. Then about an hour north on the Southern Expressway to Bentota, a beach town where the Bentota River meets the sea. We arrive in the late afternoon, in time for a swim before dark.
Included
- The stilt fishermen at Koggala
- Galle Fort, a walk on the ramparts with your guide
- Sit-down lunch in Galle Fort
Free time: Evening free in Bentota
Activity: Driving times are approximate; the route between Udawalawe and the coast is chosen on the day for traffic.
A river boat and a beach day in Bentota
Bentota: the Bentota River by boat, then a free afternoon
- Breakfast and dinner
- Stay in Bentota
- By boat
After eight busy days, today is mostly for the beach. We start early, at about 8 am, while the river is calm and the birds are busy, with a boat trip of about two hours on the Bentota River. The boat goes upriver past fishing villages, through mangrove channels narrow enough for the roots to brush the sides, and children look for monitor lizards on the banks, kingfishers, herons and, with luck, a crocodile sunning itself. The boatman stops at a small island where you can see how cinnamon is peeled from the bark.
Morning
We are back by late morning, and the rest of the day is free: swim, build sandcastles, or try the water sports on the river mouth.
Afternoon
Lunch is your own, at the hotel or a beach cafe.
Evening
In the evening we meet for a farewell dinner by the sea, the last evening together.
Included
- Bentota River boat trip through the mangroves, with a boatman and life jackets for children
- Farewell dinner
Optional experiences
- Water sports on the river mouth, booked locally
- Lunuganga, the garden estate of the architect Geoffrey Bawa, a short drive from Bentota, on a guided visit paid locally
Free time: Afternoon free on the beach
Activity: Swim only where the hotel or the lifeguards say the sea is safe; currents change through the season.
Back to the airport
Bentota to Bandaranaike International Airport or Colombo, about 110 km
- Breakfast
- Drive about 2 h
Morning
A last swim before breakfast if you want one, then we drive you back to Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), about 110 km and two hours, longer in Colombo traffic, on the Southern Expressway, the Outer Circular Highway around Colombo and the airport expressway to Katunayake. We time the departure from Bentota to your flight and plan to reach the airport about three hours before it leaves, so book a flight leaving after about 2 pm.
Evening
Many long-haul flights to Canada and the United States go via the Gulf or East Asia and leave in the evening, which leaves time for a slower morning on the beach. If you are staying on in Sri Lanka, we drop you at a hotel in Colombo instead, about two hours from Bentota, or your guide can help arrange a few more beach nights. Your guide says goodbye at the hotel, with a short written note of the places your family went, for the children to keep.
Included
- Drop-off at Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) or a Colombo hotel
Free time: Morning free until departure
Activity: Book a flight leaving after about 2 pm; exact timings come with your final itinerary.
- Negombo1 night
- Sigiriya2 nights
- Kandy1 night
- Ella2 nights
- Udawalawe1 night
- Bentota2 nights
- Colomboend
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: December to April is the dry season on the west and south coasts and in the hill country: hot days on the coast and in the Cultural Triangle, cool mornings around Nuwara Eliya and Ella. The Cultural Triangle can still see north-east monsoon showers in December and early January. Wild elephants are seen in Udawalawe year round, and that is the reliable sighting. In the Cultural Triangle we choose Kaudulla or Minneriya by current herd reports; numbers there are smaller than during the July to October Gathering, and rain in December and January can scatter the herds. Around 13 to 15 April, the Sinhala and Tamil New Year, much of the country closes, and we do not run then.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- Families with children aged 6 and up
- Parents who want temples, tea and wildlife without long days in the car
- Children who like elephants, trains, bikes and boats
- Families who want the safaris and entries included rather than paid on the day
- A single parent travelling with a child
Not for you if you want
- Children under 6; ask about a private trip
- Adults without children; see our Sri Lanka Highlights or Sigiriya, Kandy and Ella trips
- Families who want a week on the beach; this trip has two nights by the sea
- Step-free access: Sigiriya and Dambulla mean many steps
- Summer school holidays; we do not run in the south-west monsoon
Minimum age: 6
Most guests are Families with children 6 to 16
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
9 nights
Where you'll stay
Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.
- Negombo1 night
- Sigiriya2 nights
- Kandy1 night
- Ella2 nights
- Udawalawe1 night
- Bentota2 nights
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 9 nights in hotels with pools: 1 in Negombo, 2 near Sigiriya, 1 in Kandy, 2 in Ella, 1 near Udawalawe, 2 on the beach at Bentota
- Rooms shared; family, triple or connecting rooms on request
Transport
- Pick-up and drop-off at Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), or a Colombo hotel at the end
- Our own air-conditioned vehicle and driver for the whole trip
- Reserved seats on the train from Nanu Oya to Ella
- Open jeeps for both safaris, two for the group
- Bentota River boat
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours guide for the whole trip, with a local site guide at Sigiriya and park trackers on safari
Activities
- Village lunch, bicycle ride and bullock cart near Sigiriya, with children's bikes and helmets
- Sigiriya Lion Rock
- Jeep safari in Kaudulla or Minneriya National Park
- Dambulla cave temple
- Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, Kandy
- Kandyan dance and drumming show, Kandy
- Working tea factory visit and tasting, near Nuwara Eliya
- Tea-picking morning near Ella
- Nine Arch Bridge, Ella
- Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home
- Jeep safari in Udawalawe National Park
- Stilt fishermen at Koggala and Galle Fort with your guide
- Bentota River boat trip
Meals
- 9 breakfasts
- 7 sit-down lunches (days 2 to 8, one with a village family)
- 2 dinners: welcome dinner in Negombo and farewell dinner in Bentota
Not included
- International flights to and from Colombo
- Sri Lanka Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) or visa
- Travel insurance
- Meals not listed, including most dinners and lunch on day 9
- Drinks
- Tips for your guide, driver, trackers and boatman
- Optional activities, such as water sports at Bentota or a cooking class in Ella
- Personal expenses
Extras
- Room of your own
- CAD 475 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
Jane
October 06, 2026
5/5
Susan
October 06, 2026
5/5
Tom L
October 05, 2026
5/5
MandL83
October 05, 2026
5/5
Darren O
October 05, 2026
5/5
Good to know
Questions
Prices in these answers apply from Jan 1, 2027. Black Friday offer: 15% off the small-group price for requests received by Dec 1, 2026. From CAD 2,375 per person. Dec 2 to Dec 31: from CAD 2,570. From Jan 1, 2027: from CAD 2,795.
What does the price include?
Nine nights in hotels with pools, breakfast daily, seven sit-down lunches, welcome and farewell dinners, airport transfers both ways, our own vehicle and driver, reserved train seats, a See Sight Tours guide throughout, and every visit in the day plan: Sigiriya, Dambulla, the Temple of the Tooth, two jeep safaris, the Elephant Transit Home, tea picking, the dance show and the river boat.
What age do children need to be?
Children must be 6 or older on the first day. The Sigiriya climb, the bike ride and three-hour jeep safaris suit children from about six. For younger children, a private trip at your own pace is the better fit, and we can quote one.
How big is the group, and will we be with other families?
The small-group trip runs with 7 to 12 guests, counting children, and every departure is for families with children 6 and up. On safari the group splits into two jeeps so every child gets a window.
Who leads the trip?
A See Sight Tours guide travels with the group from the welcome dinner in Negombo to the last morning in Bentota, with local site guides at Sigiriya and jeep trackers in the national parks. Our own vehicle and driver stay with the group throughout.
How much walking and how long are the drives?
Most days have short walks. Sigiriya is about 1,200 steps, taken slowly, with an option to stay at the base. Drives are under four hours except day 8, about four and a half hours to the coast with stops. Day 5 is about six hours of travel, but half of it is the hill train.
Will we see wild elephants?
Almost certainly in Udawalawe, where elephants feed year round, though nothing in the wild is guaranteed. In the Cultural Triangle we choose Kaudulla or Minneriya by current herd reports; numbers there are smaller than the July to October Gathering. The Elephant Transit Home feeds its calves several times a day, and we time our arrival to one.
Are there elephant rides or animal shows?
No. We do not include elephant rides or places where elephants are handled for tourists. Children see wild elephants from jeeps and orphaned calves at the Elephant Transit Home, which returns them to the wild, from a viewing platform.
How are children, single parents and solo travellers priced?
Child prices are quoted at booking. A solo adult who wants their own room pays a single supplement from CAD 475. For a single parent sharing a room with a child, ask us when you request your dates and we confirm the price in writing.
When is the best time to go with children?
December to April, which covers Christmas, February break, spring break and Easter. It is the dry season on the west coast and in the hill country, with a calm sea at Bentota. We do not run from May to September, when the south-west monsoon brings rain and rough seas.
Do we need visas, and how does booking work?
Most visitors, children included, need a Sri Lankan Electronic Travel Authorisation before flying; check the official site for each passport. Send your preferred dates as an enquiry. We check availability and provide the final quote, itinerary and booking terms before you accept. No payment is taken when you send the request.
Can we travel privately or on our own dates?
Yes. The private version is your family only, on a date you choose, with your own guide and vehicle, from CAD 5,030 per person. If you want to travel independently, without a guide, we can quote that as a separate inquiry.
See Sight Tours has been providing travel services across North America since 2006. Operating in 20 cities across Canada and the USA, the company specializes in small group tours that offer personalized, high-quality experiences for travelers.
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