Suggested itineraries
Sri Lanka itineraries, day by day
Classic routes for a first trip, and routes that take you where few travellers go. Each one is put together from our drivers' experience, with realistic drive times for every day.
Classic routes
The great first trip, in one or two weeks.
One week: culture and tea country
The best of the Cultural Triangle and the hill country in a week, without long drive days in the middle.
- Day 1
Airport → Sigiriya🚗 Drive: about 4 h
Drive to the Cultural Triangle, your base for three nights.
See: Sigiriya
- Day 2
Sigiriya and Dambulla
Climb Lion Rock at opening time, before the heat and the crowds (about 3 hours). In the afternoon, the Dambulla cave temples (cover shoulders and knees).
See: Dambulla
- Day 3
Polonnaruwa and an elephant safari🚗 Drive: about 1 h 30
The ancient royal city in the morning, by bicycle or with the driver between the sites. Late-afternoon jeep safari at Minneriya or a nearby park.
- Day 4
Sigiriya → Kandy🚗 Drive: 2 h 30 – 3 h
A stop at a spice garden on the way. In the evening, the ceremony at the Temple of the Tooth.
See: Kandy
- Day 5
Kandy → Nuwara Eliya🚗 Drive: 2 h 30 – 3 h
Up through the tea estates, with a tea factory visit on the way. Bring a warm layer for the evening.
See: Nuwara Eliya
- Day 6
Horton Plains
Leave at dawn to reach Horton Plains at opening, before the clouds hide World's End. A quiet afternoon in town.
- Day 7
Nuwara Eliya → Airport🚗 Drive: 5 – 6 h
A long drive back. If your flight is the next day, stop for a night in Kandy or Negombo instead.
Good to know: Driving after dark is best avoided on hill roads: plan the last day around your flight time.
The essential first trip
The route most first-time visitors dream of: ancient cities, the tea country, Ella and the south coast, paced so you don't spend the trip in the car.
- Day 1
- Days 2–4
The Cultural Triangle🚗 Drive: about 4 h on day 2
Three nights near Sigiriya or Dambulla: the Dambulla cave temples, Lion Rock at opening time, Polonnaruwa and an elephant safari.
See: Sigiriya, Dambulla, Polonnaruwa
- Day 5
Sigiriya → Kandy🚗 Drive: 2 h 30 – 3 h
Spice garden on the way, Temple of the Tooth in the evening.
See: Kandy
- Day 6
Kandy → Nuwara Eliya🚗 Drive: 2 h 30 – 3 h
Tea estates, waterfalls and a tea factory visit.
See: Nuwara Eliya
- Day 7
Nuwara Eliya → Ella🚗 Drive: 2 h 30 – 3 h
One of the most beautiful roads in the country. The train from Nanu Oya to Ella is an option when it runs and tickets are available.
See: Ella
- Day 8
Ella → Mirissa🚗 Drive: about 4 h
Little Adam's Peak early in the morning, then down from the mountains to the ocean.
See: Mirissa
- Day 9
Beach and Galle🚗 Drive: about 1 h
Whale watching in the morning (roughly November to April), then Galle Fort at sunset.
See: Galle
- Day 10
Galle → Airport🚗 Drive: about 2 h 30
Back along the southern expressway.
Good to know: Don't build the trip around the Kandy–Ella train: it is a beautiful option when it runs, but service can be interrupted and tickets sell out.
Two weeks: the full loop with safari and beaches
The classic loop at a relaxed pace, with time to breathe in each region, a leopard safari in Yala and a few real beach days.
- Day 1
- Day 2
- Day 3
Sigiriya
Lion Rock at opening time; a village tour in the afternoon and Pidurangala at sunset.
See: Sigiriya
- Day 4
Polonnaruwa and Minneriya🚗 Drive: about 1 h 30
The ancient city in the morning, an elephant safari in the late afternoon.
- Day 5
Sigiriya → Kandy🚗 Drive: 2 h 30 – 3 h
Spice garden on the way, Temple of the Tooth in the evening.
See: Kandy
- Day 6
Kandy
Peradeniya botanical gardens, or the old temples of Embekka, Lankatilaka and Gadaladeniya.
- Day 7
- Day 8
- Day 9
Ella
Little Adam's Peak at sunrise, the Nine Arches Bridge outside the midday crowds, Ravana Falls.
- Day 10
Ella → Yala🚗 Drive: about 2 h 30
Afternoon jeep safari in Yala, the leopard park. Night in Tissamaharama.
See: Yala National Park
- Day 11
Yala → Mirissa🚗 Drive: about 2 h 30
A morning safari if you'd like a second chance at leopards, then on to the coast.
See: Mirissa
- Day 12
Mirissa
Whale watching in season (roughly November to April), then a light day on the beach. Coconut Tree Hill at sunset.
- Day 13
- Day 14
Galle → Airport🚗 Drive: about 2 h 30
Back along the southern expressway.
Good to know: Parts of Yala can close for a few weeks around September–October. In that season, Udawalawe is a reliable alternative for elephants.
Off the beaten track
For a second trip, or to escape the usual loop.
The far north: Jaffna and its islands
Few travellers go north of Anuradhapura, and they miss a different Sri Lanka: Tamil temples, palmyra palms, quiet islands reached by ferry and some of the best food on the island.
- Day 1
Airport → Anuradhapura🚗 Drive: about 4 h
Drive north to the first royal capital and settle in for two nights.
See: Anuradhapura
- Day 2
Anuradhapura and Mihintale
Explore the sacred city by bicycle or tuk-tuk: the Sri Maha Bodhi tree and the great white stupas. Mihintale, where Buddhism arrived in Sri Lanka, is about 30 minutes away and best in the late afternoon.
- Day 3
Anuradhapura → Jaffna🚗 Drive: about 4 h
The landscape changes to palmyra palms and red earth. In the evening, attend the puja at Nallur Kandaswamy temple (men remove their shirts before entering).
See: Jaffna
- Day 4
Jaffna and the coast
The Dutch fort, the rebuilt public library and the market in the morning; in the afternoon, Keerimalai springs and Point Pedro, the northernmost tip of the island.
- Day 5
Nainativu island
A short drive to the jetty, then a ferry to Nainativu, home to a Hindu temple and a Buddhist shrine side by side. Ferries are limited: one island per day.
- Day 6
Delft island
A longer crossing to Delft: wild ponies, walls of coral stone and an ancient baobab. Check the ferry times the day before.
- Day 7
Jaffna → Trincomalee🚗 Drive: about 4 h
Down the east coast to Trincomalee, one of the finest natural harbours in the world.
See: Trincomalee
- Day 8
Trincomalee
Snorkelling at Pigeon Island in the morning, Nilaveli beach, and Koneswaram temple on Swami Rock at sunset.
- Day 9
Trincomalee → Airport🚗 Drive: 5–6 h
A long drive day. With an extra day, stop for a night in Habarana or Sigiriya on the way.
See: Habarana
Good to know: From about October to January the north-east monsoon brings rain and rough seas to the north and east: plan this route between March and September.
The wild west: dolphins, leopards and a forest monastery
A short, nature-filled loop most visitors skip: a sandy peninsula with dolphins and kite-surfers, the island's largest and quietest national park, and jungle ruins with almost no one around.
- Day 1
Airport → Kalpitiya🚗 Drive: about 3 h
Up the coast to the Kalpitiya peninsula, between the lagoon and the sea. ATMs are rare: withdraw cash before you arrive.
See: Kalpitiya
- Day 2
Dolphins and the lagoon
Boats leave early to find the dolphins (roughly November to April). Spend the afternoon on the lagoon, or try a kite-surfing lesson in season.
- Day 3
Kalpitiya → Wilpattu🚗 Drive: about 2 h
Move to a lodge near the park entrance. A quiet afternoon, and an early night before the safari.
- Day 4
Wilpattu safari → Ritigala🚗 Drive: about 2 h
A morning jeep safari among natural lakes, looking for leopards, sloth bears and elephants. Then drive to Ritigala, ruins of a forest monastery hidden in the jungle (it closes in the late afternoon). Night in Habarana.
See: Habarana
- Day 5
Habarana
Sunrise from Pidurangala rock, about 30 minutes away, then a late-afternoon elephant safari at Hurulu, Minneriya or Kaudulla, wherever the herds are that week.
- Day 6
Habarana → Airport🚗 Drive: about 4 h
Back to the airport, or continue to Kandy and the hill country.
Good to know: Plan only one sunrise activity a day: dolphins, safaris and Pidurangala all start at dawn.
The quiet hill country and the deep south
The tea country without the crowds of Ella, then the wildest stretch of the south coast: rafting, sunrise viewpoints over the plains, elephants and turtles on quiet beaches.
- Day 1
Airport → Kitulgala🚗 Drive: about 3 h
A rainforest village on the Kelani river. Afternoon walk in the forest.
See: Kitulgala
- Day 2
Rafting → Nuwara Eliya🚗 Drive: about 3 h
White-water rafting in the morning, then up through the tea estates to Nuwara Eliya. Bring a warm layer: the evenings are cool.
See: Nuwara Eliya
- Day 3
Horton Plains → Haputale🚗 Drive: about 1 h
Leave before dawn to reach Horton Plains at opening, before the clouds hide World's End (about 3 hours of walking). Then on to Haputale.
- Day 4
Haputale
Lipton's Seat at sunrise, before the mist rolls in, then the walk down through the tea to Dambatenne tea factory. Adisham monastery opens on certain days only.
- Day 5
Haputale → Udawalawe🚗 Drive: about 2 h
Down from the hills to Udawalawe, the most reliable park in the country for elephants. Half-day jeep safari.
- Day 6
Udawalawe → Tangalle🚗 Drive: about 1 h 30
To the deep south. In the afternoon, climb to the cave temples of Mulkirigala rock, about 30 minutes from Tangalle.
See: Tangalle
- Day 7
Tangalle
Quiet beaches (some have strong currents: ask locally where to swim), Hummanaya blowhole, and turtle watching at Rekawa beach at night.
- Day 8
Tangalle → Airport🚗 Drive: about 3 h
Back along the southern expressway.
Good to know: Horton Plains and Lipton's Seat both need a very early start: keep them on different mornings, as here.