Taste & Spirit of Sri Lanka

Welcome to Sri Lanka – a land of warm hospitality, vivid flavour, and cultural richness. On arrival at Colombo Bandaranaike International Airport, you’ll be met by your guide and transferred to your hotel. NOTE: Many flights arrive very late at night there are no planned activities today. Overnight: Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel, Colombo

Meals: Nil

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Today we begin our introduction to Sri Lanka, exploring the city of Colombo, Sri Lanka’s energetic capital and home to more than 5 million people. Once a modest trading port, it’s now a fascinating blend of old and new - colonial era architecture, leafy lakeside suburbs, and a growing skyline of modern towers, all stretched along the island’s western coast. Begin at the Paliyagoda Fish Market, the country’s largest seafood hub where over 2,000 traders gather before dawn each day to auction tuna, cuttlefish and reef fish fresh from the Indian Ocean. Continue to the nearby Manning Market, Colombo’s oldest wholesale market, now operating in a vast new complex where hundreds of vendors trade fruits, vegetables and spices from across the island, from glossy purple eggplants and sacks of dried chilies to fragrant curry leaves and tamarind pods. Wander through the narrow streets of Pettah and Fort, the city’s traditional commercial heart, where every block has its own specialty: textiles, brassware, ayurvedic herbs and cooking utensils Tonight a memorable welcome dinner awaits, at the renowned Ministry of Crab, and a chance to meet founder and chef Dharshan Munidasa who’ll share insights into Sri Lanka’s seafood traditions. Overnight: Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel, Colombo

Meals: B,D

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This morning we travel to the rural community of Milleniya. We begin at the historic Kithsiri Mevan Raja Maha Viharaya Buddhist Temple, which has stood for more than 1,700 years. Here we’re welcomed by the head monk for a short blessing and an introduction to Buddhist teachings, before exploring the peaceful temple grounds. Next, we board local tuk tuks and venture through the surrounding countryside. Passing rubber plantations, we stop to see the tapping process and the making of sheet rubber, before continuing to a traditional rice field to watch farmers and their water buffalo prepare the paddies. We also visit a farm, where a variety of vegetables, fruits, spices and herbs are cultivated. Here we join a hands on cooking demonstration, and enjoy lunch prepared entirely from the garden’s own produce. We return to our hotel to freshen up before a special evening. Your host, Jeremy, welcomes the group into his family home for a private dinner, lovingly prepared by his family. This warm and informal meal offers a chance to relax, share stories and experience the genuine hospitality that defines Sri Lankan life. Overnight: Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel, Colombo

Meals: B,L,D

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After breakfast, travel south along the coastal highway, where glimpses of village life unfold - fishing boats drawn up on golden beaches and roadside fruit stalls piled high with king coconuts. We stop at Kosgoda, home to one of Sri Lanka’s best-known turtle conservation projects. Here we learn about Sri Lanka’s long running efforts to protect endangered sea turtles and have the opportunity to see five of the world’s seven turtle species, from tiny hatchlings to larger, rehabilitated adults. Local conservationists explain how the hatchery works, from safeguarding eggs to releasing young turtles safely back to the sea. Next in Balapitiya, we take a gentle boat safari on the Madu River, a serene network of waterways and mangrove islets. Glide past cinnamon plantations, water lilies and prawn traps as your local boatman explains the delicate balance of this wetland ecosystem. Visit a small island where cinnamon is still peeled and rolled by hand. Arriving into Galle, we'll enjoy a Malay style curry lunch at the rustic Sydney Hotel, established in 1921. The evening is free to enjoy Galle's maze of cobbled lanes lined with colonial villas, cafes, boutiques and local homes. Drive: 4 hours Overnight: Yara Fort Hotel, Galle

Meals: B,L

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Join the hotel's chefs for a guided visit to Galle’s buzzing vegetable, spice and fish markets. Together, you’ll explore the colourful stalls and select fresh local ingredients for today’s hands on cooking experience. Under the chefs’ guidance, prepare a delicious Sri Lankan lunch, learning traditional techniques and flavour combinations. As evening falls, take a guided stroll along Galle’s ramparts before a relaxed beach barbecue at nearby Habaraduwa, watching Sri Lanka’s iconic stilt fishermen with the Indian Ocean as your backdrop. Overnight: Yara Fort Hotel, Galle

Meals: B,L,D

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We travel inland and visit the Elephant Transit Home, where orphaned calves are rehabilitated before being released back into the wild. Watching the young elephants being bottle-fed and bathed offers a glimpse into one of Sri Lanka’s most respected conservation programs. Today we travel through one of the poorest regions of the country and part of the tour cost (USD 25 per person) will be allocated to purchase rice, lentils, tea, sugar and tinned fish to be donated to those in need. We will stop to make this special delivery. We continue to a nearby village to meet Master Potter Ajith Perera, whose family has been shaping clay in this region for generations. Try your hand at the potter’s wheel and learn how traditional earthenware vessels are still used in local kitchens. Together with village hosts, prepare a simple vegetarian lunch using seasonal vegetables cooked over an open wood fire, a genuine taste of rural Sri Lanka. Later this afternoon, drive south to Tissamaharama, the gateway to Yala National Park, and settle into our resort surrounded by paddy fields and tropical gardens. Drive: 4 hours Overnight: Kithala Resort, Tissamaharama

Meals: B,L

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Rise early for a morning safari in Yala National Park, Sri Lanka’s best-known wildlife reserve. The park’s varied terrain, from grasslands and lagoons to forest scrub, supports a remarkable diversity of species. With luck, you may spot leopards, sloth bears, elephants, jackals, crocodiles, and a wealth of birdlife. Breakfast will be enjoyed picnic style inside the park, with hot tea or coffee served by your crew. After returning to the resort to rest, visit a nearby family home that produces buffalo curd and the traditional sweet kalu dodol, both local favourites. Later, in the early evening, travel to Kataragama Temple, a sacred pilgrimage site revered by Buddhists and Hindus alike. Witness the evening pooja, a colourful ceremony of drumming, chanting and flame offerings. Dinner tonight is interactive, with a hands on cooking session in the garden where you’ll learn to make hoppers and kottu roti, two Sri Lankan street food classics. Overnight: Kithala Resort, Tissamaharama

Meals: B,D

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For those eager to begin the day immersed in nature, join an optional sunrise walk around Debarawawa Tank, a short drive from the hotel. The 'tank' is an ancient artificial lake, originally built to irrigate rice fields and sustain the once flourishing city of Tissamaharama. Today, its still waters and reed-fringed edges provide a tranquil haven for wildlife. As we stroll along the banks in the morning light, we have the opportunity to spot up to 35 different bird species. After returning for breakfast, we continue our journey north to the hill country and the tranquil village of Wellawaya. We settle in to our luxurious eco agro-resort and unwind to the sounds of nature. The vegetable garden onsite promotes the ‘field to fork’ concept, providing fresh produce straight to the hotel’s kitchen. Overnight: Jetwing Kaduruketha, Wellawaya

Meals: B,D

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Begin the day with an optional nature walk before a relaxed breakfast created from the ingredients grown around you and at the resort. Next on to Ella Railway Station to board the local train to Nanu Oya. This is one of the world’s most scenic rail journeys, climbing slowly through tea plantations, cloud forests and small hill villages. We continue by road to Nuwara Eliya, known as “Little England” for its colonial architecture, cool climate and rolling green hills. Our historic hotel dates back to the British Era of 1876, in the afternoon we enjoy a British style high tea. In the evening, we dine in style, starting off with a tea infused cocktail, and local coconut arrack. Overnight: The Hill Club, Nuwara Eliya

Meals: B,D

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After breakfast, travel to a working tea factory to follow the journey of Ceylon tea from leaf to cup. Introduced by the British in the 19th century after a devastating coffee blight, tea quickly became Sri Lanka’s lifeblood, today employing over a million people and shaping the country’s economy, culture and landscape. Walk through plantations where women in bright saris pluck tender 'two-leaf-and-a-bud shoots' by hand, a skill passed down through generations. Inside the factory, watch as the leaves are withered, rolled, fermented and fired, the same process perfected more than 150 years ago. End your visit with a tea tasting, comparing the subtle notes of high-grown and low-grown varieties, from delicate floral aromas to robust malty flavours. On to Kandy, stopping for a picnic lunch in the Peradeniya Botanical Gardens, home to centuries-old banyans, spice trees and orchid houses. Established under British rule, these gardens are among Asia’s finest examples of colonial botanical design. Arriving in Kandy, settle into our resort overlooking lush hillsides and the city below. The evening is at leisure to enjoy the hotel’s serene setting or explore Kandy town on your own. Drive: 3 hours. Overnight: Fox Resort, Kandy

Meals: B,L

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Begin the day with a hands on breakfast class, featuring traditional dishes such as kola kanda (herbal rice porridge), kiribath (milk rice), and pittu served with spicy coconut sambol, all prepared over clay stoves. Later, visit the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, one of Buddhism’s most revered pilgrimage sites. Within the temple complex, whitewashed walls and golden roofs surround shrines scented with jasmine and incense. Wander the Kandy bazaar and nearby markets, where stalls overflow with textiles, spices and locally made crafts. Tonight’s dinner at the hotel features a chef led demonstration of regional dishes, each accompanied by detailed recipes so you can recreate the flavours of Kandy at home. Overnight: Fox Resort, Kandy

Meals: B,D

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We travel north through lush countryside toward Matale, a region known for its fertile soil and thriving spice gardens. Here, you’ll walk among groves of cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper and clove, learning how these aromatic crops have shaped Sri Lanka’s history, once drawing traders from Arabia, Portugal and beyond. You’ll have the chance to make your own traditional Sri Lankan curry powder, blending roasted spices by hand under the guidance of local growers. Lunch is a home style meal served under the shade of mango trees, featuring dishes made with ingredients grown just metres away, fragrant rice, coconut sambol and sweet banana fritters. In the afternoon, continue to the Dambulla Cave Temples, one of Sri Lanka’s most remarkable World Heritage Sites. Carved into a granite outcrop, the complex contains over 150 statues of the Buddha and walls covered in exquisite frescoes dating back more than 2,000 years. By evening, arrive and enjoy dinner at your peaceful, lakeside hotel . Overnight: Village Habarana by Cinnamon, Habarana

Meals: B,L,D

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Tuk tuk's take you through the backroads of Sigiriya to the spectacular Sigiriya Rock Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Sri Lanka’s most celebrated landmarks. Rising 200 metres above the plain, this vast column of granite was transformed in the 5th century into a royal citadel by King Kashyapa. Climb the ancient stairways past colourful frescoes of celestial maidens and the enormous “Lion Gate”, whose carved paws guard the summit. From the top, enjoy breathtaking views across the central plains. After, we visit a busy vegetable market where farmers and traders from across the island gather with sacks of chillies and bundles of lotus flowers bound for temples. For lunch we stop at a farming village where you’ll be welcomed by local families and together, prepare a traditional lunch. We travel westward toward the coast, the landscape changing from forested hills to coconut groves and buzzing villages, arriving into Negombo, a coastal town north of Colombo, known for its fishing traditions and Dutch era canals. Visit the harbour, where colourful boats unload the morning’s catch, and walk through the salted fish markets, where seafood is preserved in the tropical sun. Our last night is spent by the beach with a farewell seafood dinner and raise a glass to the people, flavours and stories that have shaped your Sri Lankan journey. Overnight: Goldi Sands Hotel, Negombo

Meals: B,L,D

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Enjoy a leisurely breakfast at the hotel before your transfer to the airport for your onward flight. We farewell Sri Lanka, after our tour exploring the taste and spirit of this remarkable island. NOTE: Many flights depart late at night, check out is midday, it is however possible to keep your room longer, at an additional cost.

Meals: B

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