How to holiday in Sri Lanka

Small island. Big adventures. Sri Lanka goes beyond the fly, flop and forget the daily grind break.

When there are multiple pieces to the holiday pie, we can step in and make the process a breeze. To start, we need to know what floats your boat. Crazy for culture or more wild world coded? Bit of both perhaps? Are bougie hotels your vibe or are you just looking for a comfy bed for the night as you’ll be out all day exploring? 

A journey like no other
Adventurers listen up: Sri Lanka is the textbook touring destination. It has a buzzing capital, a heritage-packed Cultural Triangle and an eye-poppingly gorgeous Hill Country, and its chock full of wildlife-rich national parks too. And then there’s the coastline (insert heart-eyed emoji here). And you’ll want to see it all. As a starter for 10, you should ponder on what kind of holiday you’re planning and peep our themed trips.

Go your own way
To make it easy, we’ve got a suggested honeymoon trip for the newlyweds, family adventures (for teens or younger kids) and a break that’s all about wellness. There’s also a holiday packed with boutique stays, an all-out luxury journey featuring only the best addresses in Sri Lanka, and a trip that’s made for wild things. They’ve all been shaped by our experience but none of them are set in stone. We can tweak how long you stop at each spot for, the places you stay and how you get around. No holiday will ever the same and you’ll be back for second- and third-in-a-lifetime trips in no time.

One stop’s enough
If doing your own thing (or very little) in one spot is more your bag, we can set up simple transfers between the airports and hotels. Then it’s all up to you – pull up poolside for a couple of weeks or more, challenge yourself to make your way through the spa menu, or head into town to conduct your own extensive research on the best local places to eat. And if you fancy a day trip or two, we can arrange for a guide to pick you up, show you the highlights and bring you back once you’ve had your fill.

Sweet dreams 

Whether you’re after grand resorts with all the bells and whistles, boutique gems full of character, or a bit of both, we’ll find you the perfect places to stay. We’ve built strong, long-standing relationships with hotel partners across Sri Lanka – like Jetwing, Cinnamon, and Uga Escapes – so we work closely with them to make sure you get the best offers and that our guests are always looked after.

Some of our favourite stays include Maniumpathy in Colombo’s Cinnamon Gardens district for its old-world elegance, and Water Garden Sigiriya, which gives you front-row views of the ancient rock fortress in the Cultural Triangle. In Kandy, Kings Pavilion serves up sweeping valley views with the Temple of the Tooth close by, while Ceylon Tea Trails in the Hill Country is perfect for slow mornings with a cuppa straight from the source.

Uga Chena Huts

Down south, Cinnamon Bentota Beach claims one of the island’s best stretches of sand, and Haritha Villas + Spa and Tabula Rasa Resort & Spa bring intimate, design-led vibes. If a wildlife fix is on the cards, Uga Chena Huts or Cinnamon Wild Yala put you right at the edge of Yala National Park. Over on the east coast, Jetwing Surf and Karpaha Sands are made for barefoot days by the sea.

Our travel experts have road-tested many of these stays themselves – they’ve dipped into infinity pools overlooking rice paddies, watched mist roll across hilltop gardens and sipped tea on leafy verandas – and know exactly how to plan a journey that delivers from your first night to your last.

Ceylon Tea Trails

The headline acts

Sri Lanka knows how to pack a punch when it comes to holiday experiences. Tackle the 1,200 steps of Sigiriya Rock Fortress for spellbinding sunrise views. Roll through the Hill Country on the famous Ella train, windows flung open as tea fields blur past. Go on safari in Wilpattu or Yala, eyes peeled for leopards, elephants and the occasional monkey cameo. Wander through ancient ruins in Polonnaruwa, roll up your sleeves for a spicy cooking class or get happily lost along the walls of Galle Fort, king coconut in hand. However you like to explore, we’ll help you weave in the wow moments that stick long after you’re home.

Double up the fun

Who says that you need to stick to one country on one holiday? It would never be us. Look at a map and see how close the atolls of the Maldives are; it would be shame to come all this way and not pop over (aka fly just an hour and a half) to yet another paradise. Or you could break up the journey in one of the United Arab Emirates where you’ll find gold-gilded masterpieces of architecture, balmy temps and shopping malls that seem to never end.