sri lanka tour of india 2015 16

sri lanka tour of india, 2015-16

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Trip Report - April/May 2024 India to Srilanka - Sri Lanka Forum

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Trip Report - April/May 2024 India to Srilanka

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Long Report alert:

Flights /Airport: Direct flight from Chennai Air India. It was delayed for 4 hours on our way back. Duty free was pretty decent but the Lotus lounge ( Priority pass) was not all that great. One thing that kind of irratated us ( and a lot of other passengers) was the number of times they had to do security check ( atleast 3) and I have never seen security checks being done on the aerobridge just before boarding. With respect to SIMs, we opted for Dialog and it had good coverage. I also got free IPL thru their app if in case that matters during April/May.

Visa: We went when they just started the new visa system but luckily I had applied for the ETA already. I tried applying the new visa but the website was bit of a pain so I just carried my ETA and went thru immigration without any issues.

Money Exchange: I carried some USD, INR and my forex cards. Airport rate for INR was not very good ( 3 when the actual rate was around 3.5). I changed some of the money in Habarna for 3.2 and some in Kandy for 3.3. But most of the time I used ATM. For my Niyo and Indian debit card, HNB charged around 800 LKR for atm withdrawl and Commercial bank didnt charge anything. So it is better to use Commercial and better to withdraw larger amt ( 2L LKR).

Driver: I opted to book a driver/guide for the first 10 days and chose from a forum recommendation. I have left a seperate TA review and it is highly recommended.

Day 1, Day 2:

Picked up from airport and straight to Sigriya. Stayed at ilFrangipane and it is a great property. Next day morning climb up sirgriya at 6 and even though we are not the fittest it was not as difficult as I imagined. Lot of steps but if we start early in the morning before the heat it is doable. They take USD/cash and cards in the ticket counters and take your original passports if you are a part of SAARC country for 50% discount.

After the hike, we opted for the Minnerya national park ( 22K LKR including entrance, private Jeep , tips etc). We saw tons of elephants on this safari so if that is your thing, try it out.

On the way we stopped in a cafe in Habarna for coffee and pizza and it was really good. I also tried Laya and Kenoli restauarant which is near my hotel. The wait times are too long but the food in Kenoli was really good.

I skipped Pidurangala, Hot air baloon ride as we were a bit tired and I did not want to cramp the day.

8 replies to this topic

Checked out from Sigriya and enroute visited Dambulla temple. No discount for SAARC countries, even though we visited mid day and had to climb those stairs it was nicely shaded so wasnt that big a problem. Great temple and views.

Next Kandy Lake, Tooth relic temple and the Kandiyan culture show. I was not really interested in going to the show but was encouraged by our driver and it turned out to be a great show. I decided to book Yo Kandy ( last minute booking near Tooth relic temple) and it was good for one night stay. PickMe works in Kandy so can be used for food deliveries which we did.

Next day check out visit some more view points and the botancial gardens. Had to book/wait for the buggy but it turned out to be a good decision to cover lot of places in the gardens. We visited tea tasting, tea factories enroute Nuwara Eliya and though it is good for photos etc I found the tea sold there to be expensive. On the way to NE hotel had lunch near Ramboda falls.

Stayed in Hilldale retreat ( great hotel, fantastic service) and glad that I did as it is one of the very few hotels that had an AC. The climate in NE wasnt as cold as expected so it helped. Spent a day exploring NE ( post office, lake, park, Little England cottages etc) and another day enjoying in our hotel. You could post a card from the post office to your home address ( 50 LKR for the card) if that's your thing.

Next day train from Nanu Oya to Ella ( 12 pm train) and the views were great. Second class reserved seat ( booked thru driver and was 2000 LKR). Picked up in train station by driver and was dropped off in the hotel ( Ella moon rock, small hotel close to Ella town and had AC/heater). Covered Ravana Falls, Mini adams peak ( next day early morning hike - easy one) , Zipline, rock climbing, Nine Arch bridge. Everything was great but we had to opt for tuk tuk as the car couldnt go all the way in some places and it was very expensive. PickMe doesnt work here so it is either walk or high priced tuk tuk.

Visited Belihuloya especially for The Glenrock hotel. Stunning property admist nature and even more stunning service. Feels like living inside a forest but with luxury rooms. Did river bath, waterfalls, village walks, nature pool etc. Though it is slightly outside my original itineary this was the best part of the trip. The also provide food/lodging for the deriver/guide so that was good.

Day 10: Enroute Mirissa we visited Tangalle and Hirikitiyea beaches and I loved the vibe in Hiri. Checked into Slow Vegan Mirissa ( Stunning location, vegan food but pricey rooms. If given a choice, I would swap this to another hotel). The hotel is situtated close to parrot rock, cocunut hill and Turtle beach. Stayed 4 days and sent the driver/guide. It was raining on and off but we still managed to cover most of the planned things. Took a bike rental ( experience of driving bikes in India) with passport as deposit for 1500 LKR/day.

Snorkeling: 15 USD per person including equipment plus personal guide. Lil pricey but since it was our first time wanted a guide and this was highly rated near our hotel. Saw lot of turtles.

Surfing in Welligama ( Ama surf school) 20 USD per person for beginner class plus surfing for 1.5 hours.

Whale watching: Since it was rough sea during early May, they had the activity only few times a week. Spoke to Raja&Whales and Kumar&Whales and decided with Kumara. 50 USD/person and half for kid including pickup/drop. Was a new boat and we managed to see tons of Dolphins and one blue fin whale.

Last 3 days:

Divine Villa Unawatuna . Stunning property but very far from beach and up on a big slope. Covered beaches around unawatuna and Galle fort area ( vsited twice actually and did lot of shopping). We found that the souvenirs was slightly better priced in Galle compared to Ella /Mirissa. Did turtle hatchery (2K per person) and had some good food near the beach restaurants. Cancelled the last night stay in Bentota ( for river safari) since it was raining and extended in the same place to enjoy the Pool, etc. There are also lot of people asking if we want to exchange INR to LKR in Galle fort area at a better price ( 3.5) so if you want to exchange during your trip that is to be noted.

Last few days I also used PickMe taxis/tuktuks, Less Taxi for one off trips and all were good. No major complaints. Unwatuna to airport was done by the property car ( 20000 LKR) and took around 2 hours on the expressway.

It was a great trip and we enjoyed a lot. Thanks for all the help during the planning.

Excellent report. Thank you for taking the time to post and give feedback.

That's a great report. We stayed at The Glenrock a few years ago and love it. Belihuloya has been a favourite place of mine for a long time - it feels slightly off the beaten track, but the scenery is stunning.

I am glad you had a good time. Nice report. Thanks.

Yes, totally agreed. Wonderful place and service

Thank you Archi and Sunil for your help on this forum.

Great report. Will help others too.

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Sri Lanka tour of India, 2015-16

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