A romantic week-long escape across the island’s hills and coast: elephants at Pinnawala, the sacred city of Kandy and its botanical garden, then two relaxed nights by the sea at Bentota before a final evening in Colombo. Honeymooners are welcomed with bed decoration and a cake or fruit platter.
Meeting and greeting at the airport by the My Holiday representative. Transfer to your hotel in Kandy.
En route, visit Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage lies in Rabukkana, north-west of Kegalle town, halfway between Colombo and the royal hill capital of Kandy. Established in 1975 by the Sri Lanka Wildlife Department on 24 acres, it is also a breeding centre and has one of the largest herds of elephants in captivity in the world. The first calf was born here in 1984, and 67 animals were born between 1975 and 2012.
Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel in Kandy.
Breakfast at the hotel.
Visit the Temple of the Tooth Relic. The 17th-century Temple of the Tooth (Sri Dalada Maligawa) in Kandy, long a centre of the Buddhist faith, is believed to house the left upper canine tooth of the Lord Buddha. White-clad pilgrims bring lotus blossoms and frangipani every day. Legend says the relic was smuggled to Sri Lanka in 313 AD, hidden in the hair of Princess Hemamali, and it was moved to Kandy with the capital. The present temple was built under the Kandyan kings between 1687 and 1707.
City tour of Kandy: lake drive, Gem Museum, silk shop, batik and more.
Royal Botanical Garden, Peradeniya, lies about 5.5 km west of Kandy and draws some 1.2 million visitors a year. Spread over 147 acres, it is renowned for more than 300 varieties of orchids, along with spices, medicinal plants and palms. It was formally established in 1843.
Cultural show at Kandy. Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel in Kandy.
Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer from Kandy to Bentota.
En route, visit the spice garden. Sri Lanka is world renowned for its spices and healing herbs. At the Spice Garden in Mawanella, see how cloves, pepper, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon and more grow in their natural surroundings, and learn about their medicinal properties and uses in Ayurveda.
Leisure time at the beach. Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel in Bentota.
Breakfast at the hotel.
Madu River safari. Madu River flows through Balapitiya, about 80 km south of Colombo, and is one of the unspoiled attractions of Sri Lanka. Its path is dotted with 64 small islands, most covered in mangroves and uninhabited. The largest, Ma Doowa, is home to about 300 families, and the smallest, Satha Paha Doowa, holds a tiny shrine to the gods of Kataragama.
Visit the turtle hatchery. Kosgoda Sea Turtle Conservation Project, running since 1988, monitors turtle activity and protects local nesting sites. Its hatchery lets rescued and collected eggs hatch safely away from predators before the young are released into the sea at night, and it raises awareness of how endangered sea turtles are.
Water sports at Bentota.
Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel in Bentota.
Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer from Bentota to Colombo.
Panchamuga Anjaneyar Temple in Colombo is considered the first Anjaneyar temple in Sri Lanka and is dedicated to Lord Hanuman in his five-faced (Panchamuga) form.
Colombo city tour and shopping: visit the Fort and Pettah areas, drive past the 100-year-old clock tower, the old parliament and British-built colonial buildings, see a Hindu and a Buddhist temple, the Colombo Museum, the BMICH, and shop at the ceramics showrooms, ODEL and the Majestic City complex.
Visit Gangarama Temple and the Colombo Museum. Colombo Museum was founded on 1 January 1877 by Sir William Henry Gregory, the British Governor of Ceylon, and is housed in an Italian-style building that opened in 1877 to display the cultural and natural heritage of the country.
Evening at leisure at Galle Face Green. Guests may enjoy the nightlife (casino, night clubs, pubs, spas) using their own transport. Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel in Colombo.
Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer from Colombo to the airport for your departure flight. End of tour.
Indicative rates for Indian nationals, in USD per person. Rates can change without prior notice.
Note: All information in this itinerary is accurate to the best of our knowledge, but changes can occur due to flight schedules, traffic, weather or government policies. Journey DMC will keep you informed of any changes but cannot be held liable for alterations to the published itinerary.