Sri Lanka community
| country: | Sri Lanka |
| departures: | This trip can be tailormade at a time to suit you and can be adapted to suit your interests, budget and requirements as necessary |
| price: | From £875 - £902 (15 days) excluding flights. Price includes 14 night’s BB accommodation on twin-sharing basis, private airconditioned car and English-speaking driver, entrance fees and jeep hire |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Sri Lanka is an island nation with a cultural heritage that dates back over 2,500 years.
Its people are as diverse as the varied landscapes and natural beauty that the island is blessed with. Experience the traditional and colourful lifestyle of its rural villages, where life is unhurried and different religious and ethnic communities live harmoniously with the greatest respect to the land that nurtures their lives. Experience the simple lifestyle of the coastal fisherman, the rural paddy farmers, tea pluckers of the central hills and Sri Lanka’s indigenous inhabitants: the Veddas or Wanniya-laeto (forest-dwellers).
The Veddas preserve a direct line of descent from the islands’ original Neolithic community dating from at least 16,000 BC. Learn of their age-old rituals, share meals with the villagers, dance to their rhythms and learn of their livelihoods including crafts that have been passed down through the generations. This is a memorable and unique journey providing deep and inspiring insights into Sri Lanka’s rich culture.
HighlightsCatamarans and Negombo’s fishing villages Ancient kingdom of Anuradhapura Camping in the knuckles Dambana’s forest dwellers Traditional rice and curry meals with the villagers Train journey to the hill country Misty mountains and gushing waterfalls Yala’s untouched wilderness Mesmerizing pooja at Kataragama Mirissa’s beautiful beaches Galle’s 17th century Dutch Fort Kosgoda’s endangered Marine turtles Vibrant kandyan dance and the devil dances of the south
Its people are as diverse as the varied landscapes and natural beauty that the island is blessed with. Experience the traditional and colourful lifestyle of its rural villages, where life is unhurried and different religious and ethnic communities live harmoniously with the greatest respect to the land that nurtures their lives. Experience the simple lifestyle of the coastal fisherman, the rural paddy farmers, tea pluckers of the central hills and Sri Lanka’s indigenous inhabitants: the Veddas or Wanniya-laeto (forest-dwellers).
The Veddas preserve a direct line of descent from the islands’ original Neolithic community dating from at least 16,000 BC. Learn of their age-old rituals, share meals with the villagers, dance to their rhythms and learn of their livelihoods including crafts that have been passed down through the generations. This is a memorable and unique journey providing deep and inspiring insights into Sri Lanka’s rich culture.
Highlights
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1-2: | Upon arriving in Sri Lanka, transfer to the Ice Bear, the most interesting beachfront guesthouse in Negombo. This is an ideal location from which to explore Negombo’s vibrant cultural heritage. After a restful day, visit a nearby fishing village or join a fisherman on his catamaran as it sets sail into the sunset or take a boat ride along the old Dutch canals that run along the north-west coast. Visit the harbour early morning to see the catamarans come ashore, filled with the night's catch of numerous varieties of fish, prawns, crab and lobster. For those interested in nature and the wilderness, take a boat ride into the Muthurajawela marshes and the Negombo Lagoon, home to numerous species of birds and fish, dragon flies and monitor lizards.. |
| Day 3-4: | Travel on to The Mudhouse, an eco-retreat located in the North West district of Puttalam. Amidst a jungle thicket shaded by Tamarind trees, is the Mudhouse – a village-style escape where guests stay in wattle and daub huts, eat traditional Sri Lankan rice and curry cooked over a hearth and share the surrounding wilderness with birds, butterflies, and buffalo. Located minutes away is the ancient Parmakanda Rock temple. Explore the surrounding villages on foot or on a bike and experience rural village life. Explore the ancient ruins of Anuradhapura – Sri Lanka’s first capital. This UNESCO World Heritage Site consists of a large number of sacred Buddhist sites including dagobas (gigantic dome-like structures), monasteries, palaces and the ancient Bo Tree, grown from the original tree in Budda Gaya under which Lord Buddha attained enlightenment. |
| Day 5: | Leave early morning and travel onto Kandy for an adventurous trekking experience in the Knuckles mountains. Here you will spend the night at the Eco Team campsite at Pitawella. Eco Team is an experienced wildlife and adventure outfit providing unique outdoor experiences within Sri Lanka’s untouched wilderness. Trek through dense forests, along rivers and waterfalls, past tea plantation and terraced paddy fields. En route, share lunch with villagers in the remote traditional village of Pitawala and experience the life of rural paddy farmers. Share a home cooked meal in a village house prepared using fresh vegetables and fruit from their home gardens. |
| Day 6: | Travel to Dambana in Mahiyangana and visit Sri Lanka’s indigenous inhabitants, the Veddas or Wanniya-laeto (forest-dwellers). The Veddas preserve a direct line of descent from the islands’ original Neolithic community dating from at least 16,000 BC. The Veddas have repeatedly been forced to choose between assimilating into the surrounding mainstream cultures or to retreat into a shrinking forest habitat. The few remaining Vedda communities are determined that their way of life and still retains much of their own distinctive cultural identity, indigenous language, a traditional lifestyle and occupations including hunting, honey gathering, and chena cultivation. A visit to Dambana will give an opportunity for visitors to meet and interact with this community of indigenous people and learn about their lifestyle. Stay overnight at the Eco Team campsite located next to the Delikadeliwewa Tank in close proximity to the Dambana village. |
| Day 7-8: | Today you head to Haputale in the highlands, a stirring land of lush tea plantations, majestic peaks and rushing waterfalls. Haputale is one of the favourite haunts of the tea millionaire Sir Thomas Lipton. Check into Kelburne Cottages and spend your time here savouring the magnificent views. |
| Day 9-10: | Today you travel to the southeast of Sri Lanka, an undeveloped and wonderfully rustic corner of the island famous for its huge game reserves, vast sugar cane and paddy fields, as well as a rich cultural heritage. En route, visit Buduruvagala to see Sri Lanka's tallest rock-cut Buddha statue, 51 ft. in height, and other Mahayana Buddhist statues. In the afternoon check into the Galapita Eco Retreat. Located a short distance from Galapita is the Yala National Park with a total protected area of 126,768 hectares. Yala offers the broadest cross-section of the country’s flora and fauna and, in terms of game-viewing, this is probably the best place to see all of the ‘big three’ – elephant, leopard and water buffalo. Also visit the sacred jungle shrine of Kataragama located nearby. This holy shrine was built by the warrior King Dutugemunu in the 2nd century B.C. to pay homage to God Kataragama. |
| Day 11-13: | Leaving Galapita, head along the south coast of Sri Lanka to Mirissa where you will stay for three nights at The Palace, an up market guesthouse located high up on a headland with sweeping views of Mirissa’s golden beaches. Based at Mirissa Harbour, Mirissa Water Sports offers exciting water sports activities such as sailing, fishing, coastal cruises, river trips, sea kayaking, snorkeling and boating activities for visitors to the South coast. Mirissa Water Sports is a charitable organization helping to generate employment for the youth from the tsunami affected coastal areas. We also recommend a visit to the historic city of Galle and its 17th century Dutch Fort – a UNESCO World Heritage Site. |
| Day 14: | Travel along the southern coast to Kosgoda, a small fishing village where you will stay at the Kosgoda Beach Hotel. This is a treat for those interested in marine conservation as the endangered marine turtles regularly come ashore to lay their eggs. The hotel is surrounded on three sides by the sea and lagoon, giving it one of the most secluded aspects on the west coast. Visit the nearby Kosgoda Marine Turtle Conservation programme which enables its guests to make responsible, eco-friendly night-time treks, only a short distance up the beach, to see the turtles at work. Many temples, kovils, churches and mosques are situated along the coast. Cottage industries such as basket-weaving, mask-carving and antique restoration provide for interesting shopping. Experience the vibrant music and dances of the south including Devil Dance at the local dance school. |
| Day 15: | Depart to the Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo in good time for your flight back home. |
how this holiday makes a difference
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While visiting villagers across the island, you will also be able to learn of their handicrafts such as mask making, basket weaving, pottery, and handloom cloth weaving; cottage industries – such as growing of herbs and spices including cinnamon; agricultural livelihoods – including cultivating paddy, vegetables, and tea. Purchasing gift items and souvenirs from the villages itself, will have a direct benefit on the communities and assist in uplifting their standards of living. On the south coast, projects like the Mirissa Water sports trains Tsunami-affected youth as guides. Using this services and facilities itself is an invaluable contribution towards uplifting their standard of living.
Globally, all seven species of marine turtles existing are endangered. Out of these seven, five species of sea turtles come ashore to nest in Sri Lanka. The process of marine turtles nesting, hatchlings being born, and swimming back to sea is an ancient and phenomenal ritual that is fascinating to observe. You have an opportunity to contribute the Marine Turtle Conservation efforts through the project in Kosgoda where you will observe this endangered species without interfering with its natural breeding habits. We have selected guest houses and eco retreats that are committed to the preservation of the surrounding environment and the rural lifestyle. For example, the Mud House and Galapita Eco Lodge, surrounded by wilderness are set in typical Sri Lankan villages where you will experience rural life and traditional Sri Lankan hospitality. These hotel properties provide employment to the villagers as well contribute towards the development of the village temple, schools, etc. The tour operator uses only experienced local drivers and guides who are ever willing to share their knowledge with you. All drivers are employed on fair terms, ensuring they receive a proper wage for their services and have access to acceptable facilities, including good, clean, comfortable accommodation. In addition local staff is employed for sales, IT and technical development, web production, writing, and handling holiday enquiries. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |