India's neighbour is much more than a sunny beach destination (although both can be found in a country which boasts 833 miles of coastline). It pays to step away from the sand to find other highlights: the Portuguese and Dutch colonial heritage which shapes the south-westerly city of Galle; the serenity of Kandy, with its vast Buddhist temple; the swirl of the capital Colombo; the British yesterday of Nuwara Eliya, a hill station framed by tea plantations. Despite a difficult recent past, Sri Lanka’s future beckons.
Must see: I climbed Sigiriya – a 660ft (200m) stand-alone monolith almost at the heart of Sri Lanka – on a blazing day. It was tough going, but the route up, sometimes along rusty stairs hammered into the rock, took me past frescoes which date back to the fifth century – and delivered me to a flat-top summit which once hosted a royal palace. Truly amazing.
Whale watching season starts in November and ends in April when the oceans are warm and calm. Mirissa is the best place to start your whale and dolphin watching tour in Sri Lanka while the sea off Kalpitiya teams with an abundance of dolphins.
An ideal tour for nature lovers featuring dramatic views and superb mountain scenery of the Hill country and Southern Coast. Visit tea estates, historic temples, and shrines and see leopards on a safari at the premier game reserve of Yala National Park.
Enjoy a tour through misty mountain peaks, picturesque waterfalls, and sprawling tea estates in Sri Lanka’s Hill Country. Visit National Parks and Nature Reserves and go on scenic train journeys through spectacular scenery.