SRI LANKA & MALDIVES

Day 1 : Airport of Colombo/ Negombo (15 km) (- / L / D) 

Arrival at Colombo International Airport. Welcome by our representative with garlands of frangipani flowers. Departure for Negombo. Arrival and check-in at the hotel. Free time In the afternoon visit the city of Negombo, a major city in Sri Lanka, located on the west coast of the island and at the mouth of a lagoon.

Negombo is the fourth largest city in the country after the capital Colombo, Kandy and Jaffna. It is one of Sri Lanka's main commercial centers, with about 128,000 inhabitants, about 37 km north of Colombo. Negombo is known for its very important fishing industry, its lively fish markets, and beautiful sandy beaches.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Included meals: lunch and dinner.

Day 2 : Negombo / Pinnawala / Dambulla (B / L / D) 

Breakfast at the hotel. Departure for Pinnawala to visit the elephant orphanage which houses sixty pachyderms: we will attend the meal of elephants and also their bath in the nearby river. This orphanage was created in 1975 to accommodate young elephants lost for various reasons: disruption of their natural habitat by planning projects, abandonment by parents when they fall in holes or ravines ... Some animals are sick or injured when they arrive at the orphanage where they are then treated. Departure for Dambulla.

Afternoon: visit the rock temple of Dambulla. In Sri Lanka, there are many ancient cave-temples, but the golden temple of Dambulla is the most revered and best known. The temple includes five caves-sanctuaries that contain 157 statues, 153 images of the Buddha and 4 images of deities. It is believed that King Valagamba took refuge in the caves of Dambulla when he fled the Indian invaders. A Buddhist monk who was in these caves welcomed the king and protected him. When the king recovered his throne, he turned the caves into sanctuaries to show his gratitude to the monk.

The second king who participated in the renovation of the caves is called Nissankamalla. Of Indian origin, he wanted to win the acceptance and affection of his people. He gave great importance to Buddhism and committed to renovating old Buddhist temples and building new ones. According to Mahavamsa, (a historical record about Sri Lanka,) King Nissankamalla donated 73 golden sculptures to the Dambulla Temple and ordered a major renovation. The Dambulla Temple was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1991. Arrival and check-in at the hotel.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Included meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Day 3 : Dambulla / Sigiriya / Hiriwadunna / Dambulla (B / L / D) 

Breakfast at the hotel. Departure to visit the fortress of Sigiriya. Sigiriya is, still today, a prodigious place. A massive red stone monolith stands 200 meters above the green jungle and stands out against the bright blue sky. At the height of its ephemeral glory, eighteen years at the end of the fifth century, it was one of the most charming royal cities that one never saw on earth. The ruins of this legendary palace are scattered all over the peak of the "Lion Rock", so named, because formerly the visitors had to, for the final hard climb, pass through the jaws of the throat of a lion carved in mid - path of the summit of the monolith.

Today only the gigantic legs remain. The main interest of the visit lies in the almost contemporary frescoes of the famous Indian paintings of Ajanta; but, here, there are real frescoes, paintings done on a fresh coating. These paintings consist of twenty-one female figures, represented half-way, gracefully bearing flowers. Beauty pure and striking, without sensitivity, they are one of the peaks of universal art.

Afternoon: Departure to the village of Hiriwadunna to visit by oxcart, and boat on the lake. Tasting of a traditional meal.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Included meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Day 4 : Dambulla / Matale / Kandy (B / L / D) 

Breakfast at the hotel, and departure for Matale. Visit of a spice garden in Matale. The Garden of spices in Matale offers all the native varieties to discover and sometimes to taste: bamboo, pepper, areca, banana, coffee, coconut, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, cardamom, etc. Visit of Riverston Peak. This can be reached by traveling, about 30 km from the city of Matale, on the road Matale - Girandurukotte. This road offers some of the best views of the surrounding countryside.

The hike is about two and a half kilometers in one direction, and should not take more than an hour or two in maximum health. He runs a section known as Pittawala Paththana and leads to the Riverston Summit. The countryside along the hike offers a view of the rice terraces, unique to some mountainous regions of the world.

Afternoon: visit of Buddha Tooth Temple in Kandy. The sacred tooth of the Buddha is the most revered relic among Buddhists in the country, it is at the temple in Kandy. In the Buddhist world, it is one of the most sacred places. According to legend, the tooth was recovered when the body of the Buddha was still in the funeral pyre. It was brought to Sri Lanka in 313 AD by the Indian princess Hemamali. In Sri Lankan history, the Sinhala kings did everything to protect it from invaders from South India. In the evening, show traditional and folk dances. Arrival and check-in at the hotel.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Included meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Day 5 : Kandy / Nanu oya / Nuwara Eliya (B / L / D) 

Breakfast at the hotel. Departure for Kandy station to reach Nanu oya by local train (the train will leave at 08:40 from Kandy station, and it will arrive at 12:40 at Nanu oya station). During the trip, you will enjoy the beautiful mountain scenery and tea plantations of this region.

Afternoon: visit of a tea plantation and its factory. Tasting a real cup of Sri Lankan tea. Sri Lankan tea is more commonly known as "Ceylon tea", after the name of the country until 1972. Ceylon produces almost only black tea, recognizable by its beautiful amber color. Arrival and check-in at the hotel.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Included meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Day 6 : Nuwara Eliya / Udawalawe (B / L / D) 

Breakfast at the hotel. Visit of the city of Nuwara Eliya. This city is considered 'Little England', because everything is really English: the gardens, the architecture of the houses, the landscape, and even the rain! Departure for Udawalawe, arrival and check-in at the hotel.

Afternoon: Safari in Udawalawe National Park by 4x4. This park covers 310 km² around a giant reservoir. There are about 500 wild elephants, as well as many mammals and some leopards. This reserve is also famous for its variety of birds. Return to the hotel.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel

Included meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Day 7 : Udawalawe / Colombo (B / L / D) 

Breakfast at the hotel. Visit the Udawalawe Elephant transit home, which is an establishment in Sri Lanka's Udawalawe National Park, established in 1995 by the Sri Lanka Wildlife Conservation Department. Its main goal is to rehabilitate orphaned elephants to release them in the wild.

Baby elephants have all the amenities and luxuries they need in the elephant transit house, and they are provided with enough food and drinking water. Elephants roam freely, and they are able to obtain food by grazing in a peaceful and natural environment. This normally happens during the day, and the feeding schedule is scheduled in three-hour intervals, each starting at 6:00 am daily. In addition to this, elephants have their freedom to play with the necessary amenities that are available. The milk provided is specially formulated to help the healthy development of these baby elephants.

Afternoon: visit of the city of Colombo and possibility of shopping. Colombo is the commercial capital, a cosmopolitan city, and the main city of the country: Colombo, with its 850,000 inhabitants offers the colorful image of a city rich with the many influences of its past and its present diversity. Strolling through the streets means stocking up on smells, images and sounds that make for a story of lavish events in Sri Lanka today. Arrival and check-in at the hotel.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Included meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Day 8 : Colombo / L’aéroport / Malé (B / - / - ) 

Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the airport to catch your flight to the Maldives.

Note: You must book the flight transfer from Sri Lanka to Maldives by yourself.

Included meals: breakfast.

Days 9 - 10 : Malé (B / - / - ) 

Free days at the beach

Included meals: breakfast

Days 11 : Malé / Airport (B / - / - ) 

Breakfast at the hotel.

Transfer to the airport to catch your return flight.

Included meals: breakfast

End of the Tour