Leopard country

Eight days across elephant country, Yala and the whale coast

Length: 8 days, 7 nights
Pace: Steady
Bases: 6
Best months: Feb to Apr
From: $1,530$1,225· $153/day
Save $305 · 20%Ends today, 31 October

per person, twin share, excluding international flights.

Green-season rate20% off every tier on this trip when the booking is confirmed by 31 October. Applies to travel between May and September, on the tier you choose, and holds once a deposit is paid.

IndicativeThese prices are modelled from market rates and have not been costed yet. We will quote a real figure when you enquire.

When this trip works

Two seasons have to line up for this route and only three months do it. The parks run February to July, when the dry season shrinks the waterholes and concentrates the animals around them. The whales off Mirissa run November to April, and from May the south coast is in the southwest monsoon, so the last two days stop working before the parks do. February to April is where both hold. Ask us about May to July and we will finish inland instead.

October — out of season

It is October now, and this route reads out of season this month.

Prime
Good
Mixed
Out of season

The shape of it

Colombo and the westCultural TriangleHill countryThe southeastern parksWest and south coast

6 bases, 5 changes of hotel. The longest stay is 2 nights in Yala.

Negombo
1 night, day 1
Dambulla
1 night, day 2
Kandy
1 night, day 3
Nuwara Eliya
1 night, day 4
Yala
2 nights, days 5 to 6
Galle
1 night, day 7
Fly home

Day by day

Breakfast, lunch and dinner, where they are included that day.

Stop 1 · Colombo and the west

Negombo

Day 1 · 1 night

Day1
Day 1: Negombo
Arrive BIA, pick and drop, leisure.
- Negombo
Meals
Dinner
Pace
Barely moves
Transfer
No intercity drive planned

Stop 2 · Cultural Triangle

Dambulla

Day 2 · 1 night

Day2
Travel day · timing to be confirmed
Day 2: Negombo → Dambulla
Morning fish market, boat ride, check-in, evening Minneriya safari.
- Morning fish market
- Boat ride
- Evening Minneriya safari
Meals
Breakfast, Dinner
Pace
Steady

Stop 3 · Hill country

Kandy

Day 3 · 1 night

Day3
Travel day · timing to be confirmed
Day 3: Dambulla → Kandy
Dambulla cave, spice garden, check-in, cultural show, Maligawa.
- Dambulla cave
- Spice garden
- Cultural show
- Maligawa
Meals
Breakfast, Dinner
Pace
Steady

Stop 4 · Hill country

Nuwara Eliya

Day 4 · 1 night

Day4
Travel day · timing to be confirmed
Day 4: Kandy → Nuwara Eliya
Botanical, full Kandy city tour, shopping, tea experience.
- Botanical
- Full Kandy city tour
- Shopping
- Tea experience
Meals
Breakfast, Dinner
Pace
Steady

Stop 5 · The southeastern parks

Yala

Days 5–6 · 2 nights

Day5
Travel day · timing to be confirmed
Day 5: Nuwara Eliya → Yala
Morning Horton Plains, then the Yala hotel and the rest of the day at leisure.
- Morning Horton Plains
Meals
Breakfast, Dinner
Pace
Full days
Day6
Day 6: Yala, same hotel
Morning safari, optional safari.
- Morning safari
Meals
Breakfast, Dinner
Pace
Gentle
Transfer
No intercity drive planned

Stop 6 · West and south coast

Galle

Days 7–8 · 1 night

Day7
Travel day · timing to be confirmed
Day 7: Yala → Galle
Morning whale watching, Galle city tour if you would like it (decided with your guide on the day), leisure.
- Morning whale watching
- Galle city tour if you would like it (decided with your guide on the day)
Meals
Breakfast, Dinner
Pace
Gentle
Day8
Travel day · timing to be confirmed
Day 8: Galle → airport
Galle → airport.
- Galle → airport
Meals
Breakfast
Pace
Steady

What it costs

One route, three levels of hotel. The itinerary does not change.

Comfort

Save 20%

$1,530

$1,225

Save $305

$153 a day · single supplement $415

Well-run three-star hotels and family-owned guesthouses, chosen for location and the people who run them rather than the star rating.

Private air-conditioned vehicle and driver-guide throughout
Daily breakfast
All transfers and road tolls
24-hour local support line

Boutique

Save 20%

$2,320

$1,855

Save $465

$232 a day · single supplement $705

Small boutique hotels, tea-estate bungalows and design-led beach houses. Twelve rooms rather than a hundred.

Everything in Comfort
Breakfast and one further meal daily
Park fees and site entrances as itemised
A trip designer on WhatsApp for the duration

Luxury

Save 20%

$3,500

$2,800

Save $700

$350 a day · single supplement $1,260

The best rooms on the island: colonial bungalows, private villas and lodges with their own naturalists.

Everything in Boutique
All meals, and a private chef where the property allows
Private guiding at every site rather than shared
Airport fast-track on arrival and departure

per person, twin share, excluding international flights. The green-season rate holds until 31 October. Applies to travel between May and September, on the tier you choose, and holds once a deposit is paid.

Entrance fees, itemised

Site fees in Sri Lanka are high and rising: Sigiriya alone is thirty-five dollars. Most operators bury them in the exclusions. Here is the whole list, with what we cover and what we do not.

Minneriya or Kaudulla and jeep
$40
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Dambulla cave temples
$10
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Kandyan dance performance
$10
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic
$12
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Peradeniya botanical gardens
$10
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Tea factory tour and tasting
$8
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Horton Plains National Park
$30
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Yala National Park and jeep
$45
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Whale watching boat, MirissaSeasonal and weather-dependent.
$45
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Galle FortA living town; there is no ticket.
Free
In the price
Yes, we cover it
Yala National Park and jeepOptional.
$45
In the price
No, paid on the day

Entrance fees for Leopard country
Site	Fee	Included
Minneriya or Kaudulla and jeep	$40	Yes, we cover it
Dambulla cave temples	$10	Yes, we cover it
Kandyan dance performance	$10	Yes, we cover it
Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic	$12	Yes, we cover it
Peradeniya botanical gardens	$10	Yes, we cover it
Tea factory tour and tasting	$8	Yes, we cover it
Horton Plains National Park	$30	Yes, we cover it
Yala National Park and jeep	$45	Yes, we cover it
Whale watching boat, MirissaSeasonal and weather-dependent.	$45	Yes, we cover it
Galle FortA living town; there is no ticket.	Free	Yes, we cover it
Yala National Park and jeepOptional.	$45	No, paid on the day

Covered by us: $210
If you do the optional ones: $45

Who this is for

Travellers who will get up at half past four without complaining about it
Anyone who understands the difference between a sighting and a guarantee
First-time safari-goers who want two contrasting parks rather than one twice

And who it is not

Travellers set on this exact route between May and July: the parks are still good, but the whale boat has stopped for the year and the south coast is rough, so the ending has to change
Anyone who would be put off by jeep density; Yala is busy in season, and Wilpattu is the quieter answer on our longer wildlife route

Included

Private vehicle and driver-guide throughout
Seven nights accommodation
Breakfast and dinner daily
Game drives at Minneriya (day 2) and Yala (day 6 morning)
Whale watching (day 7)
All entrance fees marked included above

Not included

International flights
Travel insurance
Visa or ETA

Make it yours

This is a starting shape, not a fixed departure. The changes people ask for most:

Come between May and July and we finish inland rather than at Mirissa, which keeps the parks at their best and drops a coast that does not work in those months
Swap Yala for Wilpattu if crowds would ruin it: quieter, larger, and sightings take more patience
Add two nights at Sinharaja for endemic birds and rainforest

Ask about this trip Talk to a trip designer