Sri Lanka wildlife and whales tour
“Whales in Sri Lanka? Who knew? This company does. With three whale watching trips and six safaris to various national parks, this is a Sri Lankan wildlife extravaganza.”
Highlights
3 whale watching excursions | 6 game drives in Yala National Park | Expert naturalist guidesDescription of Sri Lanka wildlife and whales tour
Sri Lanka is well known for its cultural heritage and gorgeous beaches, but perhaps less famous as a wildlife hotspot. But thanks to its wide range of habitats, this small island is one of the best locations in Asia for wildlife. It contains the variety of altitudes, climates and landscapes you’d typically only find across a whole continent, and all in a conveniently compact package! Blue whales congregate off the southern coast, elephant herds gather in Udawalawe and the elusive leopard rules in Yala.This 11 day guided group tour includes four game drives within Yala and Udawalawe National Parks and a private whale watching tour from Galle. Blue whales, the largest animals that have ever lived, frequent these waters between November and April, and we may also see sperm whales, Bryde’s whales and large pods of spinner and bottlenose dolphins. In the biodiversity hotspot that is Sinharaja rainforest, look out for sambar, barking deer and wild boar, and around 160 varieties of bird.
You’ll travel by private bus, boat and 4WD, staying in comfortable hotels, beach-side cabanas and an eco lodge in Sinharaja. In between wildlife spotting, you’ll have the chance to wander through the cobbled streets of Galle Fort, built by the Dutch in 1663, and relax at Talalla, a quiet and remarkably undeveloped beach, where the warm waters of the Indian Ocean lap the shores and hammocks swing from palm trees.
Travel Team
If you would like some help or advice, or just want to discuss your ideas for your next trip, do give us a call.
Check dates, prices & availability
Date
Price per adult
Basis
Status
16 Oct 2019
£2479
including UK flights
8 spaces left
06 Nov 2019
£2479
including UK flights
8 spaces left
20 Nov 2019
£2479
including UK flights
8 spaces left
08 Jan 2020
£2579
including UK flights
8 spaces left
29 Jan 2020
£2579
including UK flights
8 spaces left
26 Feb 2020
£2579
including UK flights
8 spaces left
11 Mar 2020
£2579
including UK flights
8 spaces left
08 Apr 2020
£2879
including UK flights
8 spaces left
14 Oct 2020
£2579
including UK flights
8 spaces left
04 Nov 2020
£2559
including UK flights
8 spaces left
11 Nov 2020
£2559
including UK flights
8 spaces left
18 Nov 2020
£2559
including UK flights
8 spaces left
Our top tip:
Bring travel sickness tablets if you are prone. There are long periods on the road and at sea. Also a warm fleece for early morning starts.
Trip type:
Small group tour, max 16 people, min. age 16
Accomm:
Premium hotels for 8 nights. Hotel for whale watching is standard, but great location.
Included:
Flights, all breakfasts, dinners, all transport, activities, tour leader.
Meals:
Breakfasts and dinners provided. For lunch budget £5-8 per day.
Solos:
Solo travellers welcome, with surcharge for single rooms.
Vouchers
Accepted
Holiday type
Small group holiday
Small group travel is not large group travel scaled down. It is modelled on independent travel – but with the advantage of a group leader to take care of the itinerary, accommodation and tickets, and dealing with the language. It’s easy to tick off the big sights independently – but finding those one-off experiences, local festivals, travelling markets and secret viewpoints is almost impossible for someone without the insider knowledge gained from years in the field. If you’re heading off on a gap year your, perhaps – but for those with a two-week holiday, a small group tour will save valuable planning time.The leaders are not guides – they’re not there to shepherd you around. Instead, they’ll let you know which local restaurant serves great value food – without running the risk of travellers’ tummy. They’ll allow you to avoid hour-long queues at train stations and attractions.
We like to think of small group travel as the Goldilocks option. It is independent travel without the fuss, worry and bunk beds – and organised travel without the coaches. And it’s cheaper than a tailor made tour. It’s sits somewhere in the middle – and we think it’s just about right.
What are the main benefits?
Big experiencesHave big, life-enriching experiences that would be impossible to organise without lots of time and insider knowledge.
Simplicity
Make the most of your holiday time by letting someone else do the hard work and boring logistics!
Peace of mind
Small group tours take care of the security aspects – and provide a safety net should anything unexpected happen.
Who is it ideal for?
Travellers who are short of timeIf you don’t have three months to spend exploring, small groups trips let you cover more ground in less time. Your days are not spent queuing for tickets or finding hotels – so you can squeeze more into your holiday.
Solo travellers who’d like company
Likeminded travel companions plus peace of mind for those travelling alone. Single supplements are usually available – providing privacy if you want it.
Less confident travellers
Stray from the tourist trail without worrying about getting lost, and meet local people without dealing with the language barrier.
Mythbuster
“I won’t get any privacy!”Couples and friends have private rooms, and you can choose to eat alone or not. Single supplements give solo travellers their own room.
“There won’t be any free time”
Free mornings or afternoons let you explore on your own, or just relax.
“The accommodation will be basic”
Trips are as high or low end as you like. Though off the beaten track destinations won’t have luxury hotels, this is all part of the adventure.
“I won’t like the other travellers!”
Tour operators try to create groups with a similar demographic – age, families, activity levels... Chances are, you’ll even make new friends.
“Will we be following an umbrella?”
No.
Meet a group Leader
Name: Valerie ParkinsonStory: The first British woman to climb Manaslu, Valerie climbed Everest for her 50th birthday. She’s spent fourteen Christmas Days trekking to Everest Base Camp, and is involved insetting up Responsible Tourism initiatives in the Himalayas.
Meet a local guide
Name: Roshan FernandoStory: Roshan has led over 130 trips – he adores showing travellers around Sri Lanka. He won the company Leader Award in 2010, but his career highlight was working on their Tsunami Project – which earned him a responsible tourism award.
“I would like to introduce our greeting in Sri Lanka. We say ‘Ayubowan’, meaning ‘may you have a long and happy life’.”
Learn more about this itinerary in Responsible Travel's interview with Neelaka, a tour leader on this tripRead full interview
Responsible tourism
Responsible tourism: Sri Lanka wildlife and whales tour
Environment
Activity:We are very conscious of the environment and try to limit our impact on our surroundings as much as possible. All of our vehicles on this tour are subject to annual eco testing and we monitor this closely in order to reduce our carbon footprint. We do believe in leaving no more than footprints, although this tour actively encourages guests to talk to local people, visit local cafes and restaurants and use markets to purchase traditional crafts. We also leave a positive impression by visiting important National Parks like Yala, our entrance fees to which contribute to upkeep of environment, improvement of facilities for wildlife and staff, and conservation projects.
UK Office:
It all starts at home so we have first worked at reducing our carbon footprint in our UK Offices. Through energy conservation measures and recycling policies, we are proud to be actively reducing the waste produced and our impact on the environment. We support various projects all over the world to try and give something back to the places we visit.
Community
Accommodation and Meals:This trip offers 9 nights in comfortable hotels and eco lodges. All of the properties that we stay in are dedicated to hiring local staff and using freshly sourced produce wherever possible. This helps to benefit the surrounding community by providing employment opportunities and income alternatives where they may be otherwise hard to come by. Where meals are not provided, we suggest that clients spread their commerce to small local businesses and try some authentic food.
Local Craft and Culture:
There are plenty of opportunities to engage with local culture on the several visits to towns and villages such as Ahangama located on the south coast.
Activity:
We are very conscious of the environment and try to limit our impact on our surroundings as much as possible. All of our vehicles on this tour are subject to annual eco testing and we monitor this closely in order to reduce our carbon footprint. We do believe in leaving no more than footprints, although this tour actively encourages guests to talk to local people, visit local cafes and restaurants and use markets to purchase traditional crafts. We also leave a positive impression by visiting important National Parks like Yala, our entrance fees to which contribute to upkeep of environment, improvement of facilities for wildlife and staff, and conservation projects.
Charity:
We have financially co-sponsored a local Tsunami relief project, which has enabled 25 families to be rehoused and for two schools to be equipped with toilets, running water and outdoor swings. In collaboration with a German operator and the village temple, we have helped towards 10 large water tanks and an eye clinic in a remote village with a donation of 200 pairs of glasses. We also assisted a principal agent of Unicef in development of day care and education of school children of the estate sector labourers in the hill country.
Group Size:
This small group tour has a maximum of 16 participants, meaning that we have a low impact on the environments and communities we visit and are able to ensure that we do not disrupt or lead to the displacement of local people. The small number also allows us to stay in unique, family-run hotels that cannot benefit from coach tours and other mass tourism due to their limited sizes.
4 Reviews of Sri Lanka wildlife and whales tour
3.5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed on 08 Feb 2019 by Catherine Stothart
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
It was all great. The diversity of bird life is astonishing - we saw 85 different types of bird - Sri Lanka is wonderful for anyone who likes bird watching. I guess the rainforest was different, but we liked all the places we went to - great variety of habitat and places to stay. It was good having a naturalist with us - he spotted and identified a lot of the birds for us.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Take binoculars - you get a much better view of the wildlife, especially birds, if you have binoculars. Don't go if you don't like curry! (Though most places had alternatives).
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Not sure. It was good that we used our own water bottles that were topped up each day, rather than having single use bottles. Apart from that, tourism does
damage the environment, but on the other hand, it also provides employment to local people. There probably needs to be more control over the jeep safaris -
when a leopard was spotted in Yala, there were about a dozen jeeps trying to get close.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Excellent holiday for anyone who likes wildlife and especially birds. We stayed in lots of different types of accommodation in wonderful locations (rainforest, beach etc,) the food was good, the people friendly and it was a relaxing experience. Our guide was especially good - both his organisation of the tour, and in the
information he gave us about Sri Lanka. We would go to Sri Lanka again.
Read the operator's response here:
We would like to thank Catherine for her feedback and we were very pleased to read that she had a great time overall. We were concerned to read of her experience at Yala National Park and have brought this to the attention of our Responsible Travel Manager who will discuss ways in which to prevent this happening with our local manager.
Reviewed on 10 Dec 2017 by Martyn Todd
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Not a good trip but good birds.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Food is mainly served cold - be prepared for this.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
No.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Poor.
Reviewed on 14 Apr 2014 by Chris Rose
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
There were many, but it had to be finally seeing a Leopard in the wild, it was not without its stress as there were too many jeeps trying to populate a very small space but eventually we were lucky and had wonderful views as an adult female came down to drink at a waterhole.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
It is extremely hot in early April, ensure you use plenty of sunblock, and be
prepared for very early mornings, and quite tiring drives and boat rides, in the end though it is worth it.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
yes, but I was concerned that we were taken to two events that exploited us, one was the stilt fishermen, and the other a Turtle hatchery. The fishermen was blatant tourist exploitation, and I resented being treated like a fool. The turtle hatchery claimed to be a conservation concern, but was not. They were using turtles and turtle eggs to attract tourists. The turtles themselves looked awful, longing for the sea that they could clearly hear
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
It was a wonderful trip, providing many new sightings, Sperm, Bryde's and Killer Whale, and of course the Leopard. The country was wonderful, and beautiful. The people very friendly. Our guides were very attentive. I would definitely recommend to any one to go to Sri Lanka, it was excellent, and we have the perfect reason to go back, as we never did see Blue Whale!
Read the operator's response here:
Thank you for your feedback and the concerns you have raised over certain aspects of your trip. We have investigated these as clearly they are a concern to us as well. The turtle Hatchery you visited was an optional excursion and we have been looking at the release data and discussing the practices here with our local leaders and operator. Historically the local population have used Turtle eggs to supplement their diets and this has been a practice that has been going on for hundreds of years, the aim of the hatchery is to facilitate the release of Turtle after they have been dug up and the nest disturbed. There is a large amount of conflicting data and whether the hatchery actually encourage s the disturbance of nesting sites for the Local population to remove the eggs and be paid by the hatchery. I will personally be going to visit this in November and we will make a decision then. As to the stilt fishermen being a blatant tourist attraction I am sorry you felt this way again it’s an ancient practice and I have been there at 6am in the morning and the only tourist in sight and they are there and its an iconic element of this coastal stretch. I am glad there as so many other positive aspects to your trip with us and that you had some spectacular wildlife sightings there is always something else on the list to see like the Blue whale.
Reviewed on 11 Apr 2013 by Susan Fox
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Seeing what I went to see - leopards and whales!
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
They need to know that there's an early start every morning of the holiday and not much free time for R&R.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Not really ...
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
It promised things that it didn't provide - e.g. naturalist / knowledgeable person(s) about Sri Lankan wildlife - and that affected my enjoyment of this holiday.
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