Day 1 London Heathrow to Colombo
Fly with SriLankan Airlines on their non-stop flight to Colombo.

Day 2 Colombo
Arrive this morning and proceed by car to the Taj Samudra Hotel. Later today enjoy a brief tour of the city.

Day 3 Colombo to Kandalama – 160kms
Leave this morning by car to rural Kandalama in the heart of the Cultural Triangle, stopping en route to see the elephant orphanage at Pinnawela. Continue on to Kandalama to stay for three nights at the Kandalama Hotel, which offers superb views of the lake and surrounding countryside.

Day 4 to Day 5 Kandalama
Over the next two days explore the area with your driver. Visit Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka’s first capital and its most sacred town. Anuradhapura is littered with ruined temples and palaces, and the site contains a sapling from the tree under which Buddha achieved enlightenment. Also visit Polonnaruwa, the capital of Sri Lanka during the 11th and 12th centuries. See the ruins of the Royal Palace and three splendid statues of the Buddha in upright, sedentary and recumbent postures. Climb the Sigiriya Rock Fortress, to see the famous frescoes of ‘heavenly maidens’ and climb through the ‘Lion’s Throat’ to the dramatic viewpoint towering 200m above the surrounding forest.

Day 6 Kandalama to Kandy – 72kms
After breakfast leave for Kandy, visiting en route the Dambulla Rock Temple, whose paintings and sculptures of the Buddha are among the most impressive in Sri Lanka. Drive on through spice gardens to Kandy, the capital of Sri Lanka’s hill country and the last capital of the Sinhala kings. In the evening visit the Temple of the Tooth, which houses Sri Lanka’s most sacred Buddhist relic. Stay for two nights at the Earl’s Regency or Mahaweli
Reach Hotel.

Day 7 Kandy
The name Kandy conjures visions of splendour and magnificence and surrounded by verdant green hills it is considered to be the most beautiful and romantic city in the island. Drive around Kandy Lake and see the bazaar, arts and crafts centre, a gem museum and a lapidary. Also visit the vast Peradeniya Botanical Gardens which include an amazing variety of trees, plants and flowers.

Day 8 Kandy to Nuwara Eliya – 77kms
Today leave for the beautiful drive up to Nuwara Eliya in the heart of Sri Lanka’s tea country, stopping on the way to visit a tea plantation. In the afternoon take a walking tour of the town. A favourite retreat for the British during colonial times, Nuwara Eliya is dotted with English country style houses and sprawling gardens. Stay for two nights at the historic Tea Factory Hotel.

Day 9 Nuwara Eliya
Travel out by jeep to Horton Plains, located on a high windswept saddle at 2134m above sea level. Visit Baker’s Falls and the dramatic cliffs at World’s End, considered to afford the finest views in Sri Lanka. This afternoon visit the Hakgala Botanical Gardens and make time for an evening stroll on the numerous walking paths leading from the Tea Factory.

Day 10 Nuwara Eliya to Colombo – 180kms
After breakfast return to Colombo where a room would be reserved up to departure at the Taj Samudra Hotel.

Day 11 Colombo to London Heathrow
Depart on SriLankan Airlines non-stop flight to London.