15-Day Sri Lanka Rainforest, Safari & East Coast Tour

Meet and greet at Bandaranaike International Airport, then a three-and-a-half-hour drive south-east to the edge of the Sinharaja Forest Reserve.

• Check in to your rainforest eco-lodge.
• Short orientation walk and evening briefing with your naturalist guide.

Overnight: Sinharaja

A full day inside Sri Lanka's last major tract of primary lowland rainforest and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

• Early morning hike of five to seven hours through ridges and valleys.
• Look for rare endemic trees, mixed-species bird flocks, butterflies, reptiles and amphibians.
• Afternoon at leisure or an optional stream walk.

Overnight: Sinharaja

Leave the rainforest for the dry zone, a three-and-a-half-hour drive.

• Afternoon jeep safari in Yala National Park, home to 44 species of mammals and 215 species of birds.

Overnight: Yala

A second day in the park, with a choice of a half-day or full-day safari for the best chance of a leopard sighting.

• Dawn departure with a park tracker.
• Picnic breakfast inside the park on the full-day option.
• Afternoon at the pool, or a second evening drive.

Overnight: Yala

A short ninety-minute transfer west to elephant country.

• Afternoon safari through Udawalawe's open grasslands - excellent for photography and near-guaranteed elephant sightings.
• Optional visit to the Elephant Transit Home to see orphaned calves being fed.

Overnight: Udawalawe

A long but interesting five-hour drive north-east to the eastern seaboard.

• Visit the Batticaloa Dutch Fort, a well-preserved colonial site on the lagoon.
• Evening by the water in a part of the island few visitors reach.

Overnight: Batticaloa

A two-and-a-half-hour coastal drive to one of the emptiest beaches in Sri Lanka.

• A full relaxing day at Sampur Beach, far from the crowds.
• Swimming, reading and fresh seafood.

Overnight: Sampur

A one-hour transfer to Trincomalee, your base for the next four nights.

• Check in at Nilaveli or Uppuveli.
• Afternoon on the beach and an evening walk into town.

Overnight: Trincomalee

A cultural and historical day around the Trincomalee peninsula.

• Visit Koneswaram Temple, the clifftop Hindu temple with sweeping ocean views.
• See Lover's Leap, the cliffside viewpoint with its famous legend.
• Bathe at the Kanniya Hot Water Springs, where each of the seven wells sits at a slightly different temperature of around 42 degrees.

Overnight: Trincomalee

An early start for the best sea conditions.

• Three to four hour dolphin watching boat tour at dawn.
• Snorkel among the corals and reef fish of Pigeon Island Marine National Park.
• Afternoon at leisure.

Overnight: Trincomalee

A deliberate rest day midway through the tour.

• Relax at Marble Beach or Nilaveli Beach, both known for calm water and soft sand.
• Optional whale watching (seasonal) or a visit to the Trincomalee war cemetery and harbour.

Overnight: Trincomalee

A three-hour drive west across the island to Sri Lanka's largest and oldest national park.

• Check in at a lodge on the park boundary.
• Afternoon safari among the villus - the natural lakes that give Wilpattu its character.

Overnight: Wilpattu

A full day inside the park with a picnic breakfast and lunch.

• Search for the elusive Sri Lankan leopard, sloth bears, elephants, water buffalo, sambar deer and mongoose.
• Wilpattu sees far fewer jeeps than Yala, so sightings feel genuinely wild.

Overnight: Wilpattu

A final dawn game drive, then time to rest at the lodge.

• Morning safari with your tracker.
• Afternoon free, or an optional visit to the nearby Wilpattu archaeological ruins.

Overnight: Wilpattu

Relax at the lodge before your four-hour transfer to Bandaranaike International Airport, departing with a very different set of Sri Lankan memories from most visitors.