Staff Educational: Highlights of a Trip to Sri Lanka

This is Rachel from our Vista Product department and she has recently set off on the adventure of a lifetime exploring the magical wonders that Sri Lanka has to offer! From stunning green landscapes and ancient temples to the dynamic culture and wildlife safaris that make you stop in your tracks and say 'woah!'. So we've caught up with her to find out all about this spectacular trip…

“Sri Lanka is a destination that I would recommend for all travellers, all year round! It's important to know that I'm a (relatively) young female who travelled solo and felt so comfortable the entire time! There are luxury options for Honeymooners, boutique properties offering a personal experience and hotels catered specifically to families with kids clubs, soft play areas and games and activities.

I toured with Jetwing Travels allowed me the opportunity to tailor-make a lot of my excursions based on my interests. I visited the rose-gold beaches of Negombo, the Cultural Triangle, and Cave Temples, which was one of my highlights of the trip - the hand painted murals were so beautiful and unexpected.

While on Safari in Minneriya National Park, we saw herds of Elephant and that was a stark contrast to another Safari we ventured on further South in the country in Udawalawe National Park where we spotted the elusive leopard, as well as crocodiles, jackals, birdlife, lots of flora and fauna.

You can't visit Kandy without experiencing some of of the most incredible street food like Egg Hoppers, Kotthu and King Coconut - truly sensational tastes. While stopping here we also visited the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic situated around Kandy Lake, which was a lovely city to explore on foot and perfect for foodies!

En-route to Nuwara Eliya known as "Little England" we visited a Tea Factory to learn more about Sri Lanka's largest export and watched the ladies traditional art of plucking tea leaves.

One of the most memorable parts of this trip, was the scenic train journey that took me through the clouds towards Ella where the vast, green landscapes differ so much from the palm-fringed beaches on the Coast. So, my best advice for those wanting to experience the best of Sri Lanka's coasts would be to stay in Tangalle and Mirissa as they offered the chance to watch Whales and Dolphins from the shore, which was such a memorable experience.

Colombo was a firm favourite of mine that is often overlooked - I did a tuk tuk tour exploring the various districts for half a day, while trying some incredible street food along the way.

The Hindu and Buddhist Temples and Muslim Quarter offered up some of the most beautiful religious buildings I'd seen throughout my trip! And so many people offered insights on their religions and cultures, which was so lovely to learn. It's certainly something I'll be advising people to visit if they are going to tour Sri Lanka!

• If you wish to climb Sigiriya Lion Rock - 5am is a must to avoid the heat and humidity and staying closeby will be imperative.
• Half Board is a must as hotels are quite isolated and "Elephant Corridors" where wild Elephants roam freely prevent you from walking out and about on an evening.
• Yala National Park is mostly known for it's Leopard sightings but is incredibly busy, often with 1hour queues to even enter the park before your game drive has even began.
• Wilpattu National Park in the North is a better alternative with larger volumes of Leopards!
• Sri Lanka's beaches each offer something totally different based on their tides, wildlife opportunities and excursions.