Sri Lanka sketching and painting holiday
Highlights
Stay in rural bliss with boundless inspiration on your doorstep | Experienced, accomplished painter acting as tutor / guide | Supportive and welcoming atmosphere | An exotic painting destination full of scenic beauty | Bentota | Galle | Beruwela lighthouse |Description of Sri Lanka sketching and painting holiday
Inspiration will come free and easy with this magical sketching and painting holiday in Sri Lanka, Led by an accomplished watercolour painter, you’ll stay in a lovely little hotel just outside of Bentota on the teardrop-shaped island’s idyllic east coast, in an atmosphere of rural calm.Every day will bring fresh imagery to interest and challenge you – from temple lakes full of floating waterlillies, to a train ride over to the charming, historic streets of Galle. There may be boat trips with local fishermen, putting a little extra money into this welcoming community at the same time as providing you with superb views. There may be lazy lunches beneath the palms on white-sand beaches. There will definitely be a bulging sketchpad in your bag when you return home tanned, refreshed and content.
Small group trips, which are sociable and supportive, and suitable for all levels of ability, take place in November and February. At this time of year the weather is typically lovely and sunny, bringing out the many wonderful colours in the vegetation and making the occasional dip in the sea a must.
Guidance is provided as much as you wish, and your tutor may set a few ‘challenges’ to spark creativity. But overall see this as a chance to become intimately familiar with your surroundings in an exotic land, to develop and sharpen your skills, and to generally have an extremely memorable holiday.
Please note that due to the very limited number of rooms in the special hotel we use, this trip fills up quickly and should be booked as early as possible.
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about this holiday or need help finding one we're very happy to help. The Travel Team.
01273 823 700 Calling from outside the UK? rosy@responsibletravel.comCheck dates, prices & availability
Responsible tourism
As the pioneers of responsible tourism, we screen every trip so you can travel knowing your holiday will help support conservation and local people.
Environmental and wildlife concerns are my passion and I travel as sensitively and sustainably as I can, with and without clients.Small group size limits our environmental and cultural impact generally, while I always encourage the group to make wiser environmental choices wherever possible.
On joining a sketching holiday I provide my clients with a sustainably-produced sketchbook from Khadi paper imported (and fairly traded) from India.
Littering is a particular bugbear of mine and can be a problem in developing countries. I come down very heavily on any client or driver who litters in front of me. I am currently seeking local anti-litter organisations/campaigns to become involved with and the recent appearance of recycling facilities in Sri Lanka is a welcome sight which I go out of my way to use and support.
I drink tap water whenever and wherever it is safe to do so in a concerted effort to avoid plastic bottles and I encourage my clients to do the same. Where this is not possible I discourage the buying of small size bottles and advise the use of reusable water carriers into which we can decant from a large vessel.
The Impacts of this Trip
All clients are issued with a 'Facts about the country' information sheet at or before the time of booking which outlines cultural considerations such as what to wear and how to handle the inevitable attention received while painting.
I am always quick to point out whose country we are visiting and that we have a responsibility to adapt as far as possible to the culture of the host country and not expect them to adapt to us (beyond common politeness and decency of course!) Cultural differences are very much part of the fun and interaction is always encouraged. This is pointed out in the pre-booking literature where travelling with an open mind is always emphasised.
On joining the trip I supply clients with a hand-woven pencil-case from a colourful co-operative in Colombo which seeks to help rural village women. A visit to the shop is recommended to those who are passing through Colombo.
Visits to local craft co-operatives and small art-related businesses are always included where possible and I always encourage buying items such as souvenirs and snacks from the smallest establishments and neediest people.
I emphatically discourage donating to child-beggars which is nearly always perpetrating an undesirable and unnecessary lifestyle in the places we visit. I would always suggest giving an endearing child onlooker a quick sketch rather than a pen!
the hotel we stay in on this trip is Sri Lankan/English owned and staffed exclusively with locals who are paid a fair wage. The menu includes Western as well as Sri Lankan dishes but all the ingredients are sourced locally.
Outside of the hotel the restaurants we eat in are locally owned, locally run and employ local staff. They are all small establishments and not part of a large chain or franchise. The food is local in style and uses home-grown produce, cooked in the traditional way.
I use only local, self-employed drivers and guides and like to support new enterprises started by young people struggling to raise themselves out of poverty. These enterprises are emerging all the time and I aim to identify them as they appear and where possible, incorporate them into the itineraries.
Environmental and wildlife concerns are my passion and I travel as sensitively and sustainably as I can, with and without clients.Small group size limits our environmental and cultural impact generally, while I always encourage the group to make wiser environmental choices wherever possible.
On joining a sketching holiday I provide my clients with a sustainably-produced sketchbook from Khadi paper imported (and fairly traded) from India.
Littering is a particular bugbear of mine and can be a problem in developing countries. I come down very heavily on any client or driver who litters in front of me. I am currently seeking local anti-litter organisations/campaigns to become involved with and the recent appearance of recycling facilities in Sri Lanka is a welcome sight which I go out of my way to use and support.
I drink tap water whenever and wherever it is safe to do so in a concerted effort to avoid plastic bottles and I encourage my clients to do the same. Where this is not possible I discourage the buying of small size bottles and advise the use of reusable water carriers into which we can decant from a large vessel.
The Impacts of this Trip
All clients are issued with a 'Facts about the country' information sheet at or before the time of booking which outlines cultural considerations such as what to wear and how to handle the inevitable attention received while painting.
I am always quick to point out whose country we are visiting and that we have a responsibility to adapt as far as possible to the culture of the host country and not expect them to adapt to us (beyond common politeness and decency of course!) Cultural differences are very much part of the fun and interaction is always encouraged. This is pointed out in the pre-booking literature where travelling with an open mind is always emphasised.
On joining the trip I supply clients with a hand-woven pencil-case from a colourful co-operative in Colombo which seeks to help rural village women. A visit to the shop is recommended to those who are passing through Colombo.
Visits to local craft co-operatives and small art-related businesses are always included where possible and I always encourage buying items such as souvenirs and snacks from the smallest establishments and neediest people.
I emphatically discourage donating to child-beggars which is nearly always perpetrating an undesirable and unnecessary lifestyle in the places we visit. I would always suggest giving an endearing child onlooker a quick sketch rather than a pen!
the hotel we stay in on this trip is Sri Lankan/English owned and staffed exclusively with locals who are paid a fair wage. The menu includes Western as well as Sri Lankan dishes but all the ingredients are sourced locally.
Outside of the hotel the restaurants we eat in are locally owned, locally run and employ local staff. They are all small establishments and not part of a large chain or franchise. The food is local in style and uses home-grown produce, cooked in the traditional way.
I use only local, self-employed drivers and guides and like to support new enterprises started by young people struggling to raise themselves out of poverty. These enterprises are emerging all the time and I aim to identify them as they appear and where possible, incorporate them into the itineraries.
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