* the prices are per person, you need to double it to get room price.

At the time of writing this post the USD1 was worth LKR133, so my visit to Sri Lanka cost approximately USD280.

Just want to add some remarks to above number.
I was traveling in the group of 5 people, so we split total cost of car rental of USD400 (including tips).

You can’t save much on sightseeing, though you can pay even more for safari to Yala NP if only couple people are booking it.

The quality and the price of accommodation depends on location.  By looking to above table you could see I paid almost the same price in Dambulla and Mirrisa beach, but you can’t compare these two places. Here is what we got in Dambulla:

Unfortunately I don’t have picture of the hotel in Mirrisa beach because my camera was stolen in India couple days latter, but I can assure what guest house in Mirrisa was like paradise comparing with this one in Dambulla. Cost additionally only USD1 per person and was 400 meters (1/4 mile) away from perfect beach:

I didn’t book any hotels/guest houses in advance because of intensive plan I had I didn’t know where I end up that night. But you can check Agoda accommodation booking site if you know your schedule and want to book hotels in advance as usually they have good deals with 50-60% discount for same places.

The prices are for double room and online you can get better rooms for similar price especially in Sigyriya/Dambula area. Of course prices are tend to change.

Food price depends on what do you eat and where do you eat. Breakfast (Sri Lankan or American/English) and lunch will cost about 250-400 rupees, dinner can start at 300 rupees and can go to 1000-1200 rupees if you order fresh sea food plate at the beach cafe. So everything depends on you.

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By initial plan I supposed to visit Dambulla cave temple on the first day of my trip to Sri Lanka and spend night in Kandy, but because of slow traffic I need to adjust the plan.
I get up as early as possible for short climb to Dambulla Cave temple. It is the largest and best-preserved cave temple complex in Sri Lanka and it should be on everybody’s “to do” list if the one is interested in such places.

It is really short climb but it is better to go there in the early morning or late afternoon as the path is exposed to the sun and during day it can be quite hot. .
Temple is open 7:00- 19:00 (7am – 7pm). Cost 1300LKR

From Dambulla I was heading to Kandy.  On the way to Kandy there are numerous spice gardens to see many different types of spices Sri Lanka is famous for.

You can see how vanilla, black pepper, coco beans, cardamom,  cinnamon and other  spices are grown and of course you can buy processed spices or cosmetic product if you want. There is no hard selling, so you can just take a look and drive away.
On the same road there are some  handcraft shops. Somebody will show you how souvenirs and furniture are crafted, how natural colors to paint goods is made .  It is also free and it is only up to you do you want to buy souvenirs or may be order some furniture.

Just before  Kandy in Matale there is largest hindu temple in Sri Lanka – Mariamman Kovil. Because of some hindu celebration it was closed for visitor when I was passing by.

The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is the main attraction in the Kandy. It houses most important Buddhist relic in Sri Lanka – a tooth of the Buddha. You won’t be able to see tooth itself as it is kept in a gold casket, but you can see illustrations how the tooth arrived to Sri Lanka.
Temple is open 6:00-17:00 (6am – 5pm). Cost 1000LKR

I was short of time, so I just to a look to Kandy panorama and went further to Nuwara Eliya.

But if you have time it is good idea to stay in Kandy and at night watch performance of famed Kandyan dancers and in the morning go to Royal Botanic Gardens  (working hours 7:30-16:30) – the largest and very beautiful botanic garden in Sri Lanka. Unfortunately I didn’t have time for it either.

From Kandy road to Nuwara Eliya winds up to the mountains the most of tea plantations are located. There are couple tea factories on the road – Blue Field Tea Gardens and Labookellie Tea Factory – you want to visit at least one to see how tea is processed, to tasted it and may be buy some.
There are some waterfalls on this road, but in dry season they can be short of water and you won’t see anything spectacular.

It was long day and I arrived to Nuwara Eliya only after sunset.

The post Sri Lanka in five days. Day 2 appeared first on Vi Travel Tips.

We arrived to Colombo International Airport and drove straight to Sigiriya. There are enough places there to stay between Dambulla and Sigiriya. As I mention in previous post it took much longer then I expected and we arrived to Sigiriya are very late. It was already dark and best what we could do just go to bed.

Day 1

The first task was visit Sigiriya (Lion’s rock)  – a large stone and ancient rock fortress or ruins of the fortress dated back to 5th century.

It is better to go in the morning as you will need to do some stair climbing to get to the top of the rock and it won’t be so hot. Or you can do it later afternoon as it will be better light for taking photographs of the rock.

At the left side of the rock the narrow pathway emerges on the large platform from which the rock derives its later name, the Lion Rock.

There was a sculpted lion’s head above the legs and paws flanking the entrance, but the head broke down many years ago.

It is probably half way of  the ascent to the summit of Sigiriya Rock. Most people take a rest here before heading further up.

Give about 2 hours to see everything in slow pace, but it can take more time for somebody less physical fit.
Sigiriya site is open 7:00 – 19:00 (7am – 7pm). Cost 30$US.

East from Sigiriya there is Polonnaruwa – 1000 years old ruins of the second most ancient of Sri Lanka’s kingdoms.  On the map it looks not so far, but with Sri Lankan traffic it takes some time to get there.

It is quite big site, split to couple locations,  also there is museum, so give about 3 hours.
Cost 25$US

It was enough for one day and we went back to Dambulla for the night.

If you are lucky you can see elephants on the way to Polonnaruwa. The road between Sigiriya and Polonnaruwa is boundary of Minneriya-Giritale National Park and it is not rear to see elephants crossing that road.

We saw only one elephant on the way to Polonnaruwa, but on the way back to Dambulla about 10 elephants were crossing the road. It was fantastic.

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