It was almost a year since we booked a 12 September departure for a twelve day tour to Sri Lanka. It was with mixed emotions that the date to leave was suddenly upon us. On the one hand I was keen to explore a new country, but on the other the thought of an organised tour filled me with trepidation. I need not have been so concerned.
I had never been on an organised tour, but my experiences of them amounted to viewing them from outside:
- Large ‘luxury’ coaches spewing hordes of tourists seeking quick selfies
- Jostling crowds descending on the breakfast buffet like clouds of locusts
- An obstacle course of row upon row of suitcases in all shapes, sizes and colours in reception waiting to be loaded for a 07:00 departure.
We had been assured that our tour group would not exceed twenty, a number which turned out to be only eleven when we all got together for the welcome information on the first night in Negombo. My anxiety relaxed considerably.
Getting there was a bit convoluted as we were not able to book a direct flight from Adelaide. So, on Wednesday 11 September we drove to Victoria for an early afternoon departure the next day from Melbourne Airport. The whole experience of the flight: the check in; the security; the hanging about; the lack of legroom; the very tired Sri Lankan Airline aircraft; the queues to purchase a ‘visa on arrival’; the queues to clear immigration, all compounded my increasing dislike of air travel.
Arriving in the heat and humidity at 01:30 in the morning to find that our booked transfer was nowhere to be seen did nothing for our tired state of mind. Thanks to the help of another local driver, we eventually managed to track our transfer down, arriving at our hotel by 03:00 (07:30 Australian time).
By the time we woke the next morning, the trauma of the journey paled into the background as we started to appreciate and enjoy our new calm surroundings.
The official start of the tour was not until the next morning, giving us time to explore Negombo by Tuk Tuk, before meeting our fellow tourists in the evening.
We were a mixed group:
- A young couple from Melbourne
- A middle aged married couple from Brisbane
- A mother and daughter from Adelaide
- A mother, her friend and daughter from Sydney
As we got to know each other, it was clear that positive relationships were to develop.
Our tour guide, Sara (male), introduced the tour itinerary and various key parameters, such a tipping, timing of departures, etc. and in the morning, we met our driver, Pem, and driver’s assistant, Ayesh.
I do not plan to provide a detailed account of the tour, but will write about some of the key experiences in later posts. So, the following summarises out itinerary.
On leaving Negombo, we had a long drive to Dambulla with our first tourist stop at the Golden Cave Temple of Dambulla. For the first 90 minutes of the journey, Sara spoke non-stop about the history of the country, the sights we were to experience and the political situation in the country (with a national election due the following Saturday). He was very knowledgeable but it was a bit of information overload.
We stayed in the Amaya Lake resort for two nights, our one full day being filled with a visit to the Sigiriya Rock Fortress (Lion Rock), which we climbed, and the ruins of Polonnaruwa. We were feeling very drained on our return to the resort on account of the heat and humidity and the exertion of climbing the rock (2282 steps to the top) and walking around the ruins.
Day 4 of the tour took us to Kandy with a stop at a spice and herb farm where I had a relaxing head and neck massage and K had a reviving knee and leg massage. We were soon to learn that at each of such stops there is always a shop ready to relieve us of our tourist dollars! We didn’t mind this one as we were hoping to by some local spices to bring home.
Before heading to our next hotel for a one night stay, we were taken to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. This is one of the most sacred Buddhist sites in Sri Lanka and as such it was very busy – people everywhere. Incredibly the tooth was nowhere to be seen – hidden behind a closed door. This was, undoubtedly, one experience that we would happily have missed.
The hotel, Amaya Hills Kandy, sits at the top of a long winding steep road on the edge of a mountain with views across Kandy. We arrived as the sun was setting, but managed to enjoy the view the next morning before our departure.
Our journey to Nuwara Eliya for a two night stay featured one of the highlights of the tour – a four hour scenic train journey from Kandy. After a stop at a gem factory and shop, we arrived in plenty of time for our train. The journey elevated us by 1400 m to a height of 1868m above sea level. At this elevation the climate was much cooler, ideal for the tea plantations that we passed on the way.
Day 6 happened to fall on my birthday, so it was a treat to be taken tea picking in the morning and for a lunchtime high tea at the Grand Hotel. Built in 1827 during British occupation, the hotel is a masterpiece of colonial architecture that exudes the opulence of the era resulting from the riches gained from tea growing. Nuwara Eliya is nicknamed ‘Little England’ on account of its more moderate climate.
The first part of the long drive to the coast the next morning took us down a never ending winding road through remarkable landscapes of lush green mountains and valleys that gradually transformed from patterned tea plantations to cultivated pastures. With some relief we arrived at Ella, a popular backpackers spot, for a short comfort/coffee break. From there we had a brief stop to view the second highest waterfall in the country, Rawana Waterfall, arriving at our next hotel, Chaarya Resort and Spa, for lunch and an afternoon safari through Yala National Park.
The jeep safari introduced us to a range of new animals and birds, such as mongoose and black faced monkeys and some never seen in the wild, such as the elephants and water buffalo.
Our second safari the next day meant a departure from the hotel at 05:30 to give us an early morning perspective of the park and the wildlife. We had our first afternoon to ourselves. Without anything organised by the tour, K was keen to visit a local bird reserve, Bundala National Park. Our guide, Sara, arranged for a safari jeep to pick us up from the hotel and take us on to the park where we were joined by our very own ranger, Copila. In contrast to Yala, we were the only jeep in the park, making it a much more leisurely experience, spotting in excess of 30 different bird species. One of the highlights was coming close to a 10 year old male elephant at the side of the road.
On day 9, Saturday, we left Yala to drive along the coast towards Kalutara. On the way we stopped to see the stilt fishermen, now only a tourist attraction.
Being voting day, Sara left us in the afternoon at the hotel, Tangerine Beach. With nothing planned, K and I walked up the street and round the back lanes to get an idea of local life. Although a beach resort, there was no adjacent beach and, in any case, the Indian Ocean was too rough for swimming – a major disappointment. I tried the pool, but it was too heavily chlorinated and busy.
On Sunday we visited the fortress at Galle. Due to the election the previous day, the government had implemented a curfew between 06:00 and 12:00. This meant that an otherwise very busy tourist destination was left to a few tour groups, giving us great views of the uncrowded fortress and surrounds.
On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at a beachside café for lunch and passed the unfinished Tsunami Train Memorial that commemorates the loss of more than 1700 lives in the 2004 tsunami. After one final stop at a moonstone mine and gem shop, the group met up for a final dinner before we all started to head home during the next couple of days.
The last day of the tour involved the short drive to Colombo and a scenic tour round the city in the coach. Our three Sri Lankan hosts were very happy that the country’s preferred new president had been elected and that this heralded a new era in the political history of the country. When we passed parliament building, they were delighted to witness the presidential motorcade leaving to drive to Kandy where the new president was to address the nation.
On arrival at the Kingsbury Hotel, it was time to say farewell to Sara, Pem and Ayesh. K and I spent the afternoon looking around the immediate vicinity of the hotel, stopping for a cool beer and checking out possible restaurants for dinner. That evening five of our group left for the airport, with the rest of us leaving first thing the next morning.
Rather than going directly home, we stayed four nights in Singapore, arriving back in Melbourne on Saturday 28 September.
As I said in the introduction, I had mixed feelings about the tour. Inevitably there were minuses and pluses.
On the negative side:
Our tour guide micro-managed us, giving us little latitude during tour activities
The coach was not very comfortable
A couple of the days were too intensive
Very little free time
We were taken to too many tourist shops
However, on the positive side:
It was great not to have to worry about our cases
We were given a lot of local information
We stayed in some amazingly comfortable hotels
We enjoyed a really friendly group of fellow travellers
Would I go on another tour? Yes, but only in a small group and to a new country.
Would I go back to Sri Lanka? Yes, but as an independent traveller.
Sri Lanka is a beautiful country: the people are always smiling and the food is delicious (provided you like spicy cuisine) and the variety of scenery is spectacular.
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