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Try The Best Sri Lanka Cultural Tour
The island of Sri Lanka is a land steeped in history and culture—from Anuradhapura in the cultural triangle, an ancient city older than the Pyramids of Giza, to the 15-century Galle Fort rock in southern Sri Lanka, which was declared a UNESCO world heritage site. You can find heritage-laden attractions all over the island, but the cultural triangle of Sri Lanka houses the majority of them. These thousands of years of old ancient monuments give visitors a chance to uncover the stories that have made the destination what it is today.
The remnants of a spiritual past await your discovery in Sri Lanka, from the ancient cliff-built complex of Lion Rock in Sigiriya to the ruins of the Sinhalese capital in Anuradhapura. Explore wonders of nature and humanity—often both at once—on this 6-day adventure through the cities, jungles, and caves of Sri Lanka. Beginning in Colombo, travel through verdant countryside, past tea plantations, into the wildlife-filled Minneriya National Park, and to the thriving capital of Colombo. An immersive and cultural Sri Lankan escapade awaits—the only thing left to choose is when to go.
Start: Colombo, Sri Lanka
Finish: Colombo, Sri Lanka
Ages: Min 15
Group size: Min 1
Nature of tour: private
Why you'll love this trip
- Drive safely and comfortably in a modern, air-conditioned, private vehicle with a local driver/guide.
- Visit the most important cultural hotspot and 5 UNESCO world heritage sites: Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya Rock, Dambulla Temple, and Tooth Relic Temple.
- Travel through Kandy and sample some of the acclaimed tea varieties that grow on the hillsides with your small group.
- Learn of the varied cuisine and local customs of different regions around Sri Lanka, highlighted by a rhythmic cultural dance performance in Kandy.
- See one of the world’s most revered relics at the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, home to the earthly remains of the Lord Buddha, and discover the cave temple of Dambulla.
- Head on safari—Sri Lanka style! Look for elephants and leopards while you cruise the beautiful Minneriya National Park in a Jeep with expert local guides at twilight.
- Watch candy-colored tuk-tuks zip down the street in Colombo, and while you’re checking out all the sights, have time to shop locally and ethically at small cottage industries.
Is this trip right for you?
- The entire trip is private (transfers and sightseeing), and only you and your associates take part in the trip.
- These 6-day trip packs a lot in. It’s one of the most popular Sri Lanka tours; we run in our original style, perfect for those who look for a one-week trip and a desire to do the most with it. If you are after a more leisurely trip in Sri Lanka or a shorter trip, please check our other tour itineraries.
- Sri Lanka can get extremely hot in the summer. While we aim to do our walking tours and city tours early in the morning or afternoon, when it’s cooler, remember to keep water on you and to bring a hat, sunscreen, a long-sleeved shirt, and anything else that will protect you from the sun.
- Part of traveling with Intrepid means respecting local cultures and sensibilities. That way, you get the most out of your interactions with local people and environments. We visit a number of temples on this trip, and to enter them, you must have clothes that cover your wrists and below the knee. Sometimes you have to remove the head covers and shoes upon entering the temple. Please click here to know more about the rules and regulations pertaining to Sri Lanka temple visits.
- This is a busy trip, with lots of included and optional activities to make the most of your short time in the country.
- Though its equatorial position means fairly constant year-round temperatures, the summer months in Sri Lanka are very hot with short, sharp monsoons in the southwest of the country. Check the weather before you travel to make sure you are well prepared with sun protection and suitable clothing.
- If you have issues with heights, you may wish to sit out the climb of Lion Rock at Sigiriya as rough, narrow steps and tight walkways take you to the top.
Hotels
The tour can be booked with three types of accommodations. 3-Star Hotels, 4-Star Hotels, and 5-Star Hotels.
Highlights
- Touring Sri Lanka’s cultural triangle.
- Experience Sri Lanka’s historical and cultural heritage while visiting thousands of old monuments.
- Cycling through the ancient monuments in Polonnaruwa.
- Go bicycling, ride a tuk-tuk and take an oxcart ride.
- Kandy sightseeing tour with Kandyan cultural show.
- Visiting Kandyan cultural show and witnessing the acrobatic performance of Sri Lankan dancers and listening to the soothing music of musicians.
- Take a 360-degree panoramic view from the summit of the Sigiriya rock fortress.
- Walking through the Spice Garden while learning about herbal trees, plants and spices.
- Walk in the tea plantations and Royal Botanic Gardens of Peradeniya, Victoria Park, and many more.
- Minneriya Safari Park is in search of wild elephants, crocodiles, and other wild creatures with a local guide and driver.
- Visiting Pinnawala elephant orphanage and seeing the elephant bath on the Maha Oya River.
Trip includes
- 5 nights of accommodation in the chosen category of hotels
- Daily breakfast and dinner at the hotel (5 breakfasts, starting from day 2, 5 dinners, starting from day 1)
- Colombo sightseeing tour
- Kandy city tour
- Transport in an air-conditioned, private car
- Hop-on hop-off tour to Anuradhapura ancient city
- Hop-on, hop-off tour to Polonnaruwa ancient city
- Hop-on, hop-off Kandy City Tour
- Colombo Hop-on Hop-Off City Tour
- Guided walking tour of Gangarama and Kelaniya temples
- Guided cultural tour to Sigiriya rock fortress
- Guided walking tour of spice/herbal garden
- Guided temple tours to Dambulla cave temple and temple of the tooth relic
- Service of an English-speaking driver/guide (please inquire about other languages)
- Discount voucher of 10% at a jewelry shop (only in Colombo or Kandy)
- Discount voucher of 5% to shop at Silk Garden in Kandy
- Batik factory and gem museum in Kandy
- Entrance fees for the following site.
- Anuradhapura monuments
- Polonnaruwa monuments
- Sigiriya Rock Fortress
- Kandy tooth relic temple
- Dambulla cave temple
- Gangarama Buddhist temple
- Kelaniya temple
- Bubpharam Temple
- Thuparama Dagoba
- Ruvanveli seya
- Jetavanaramaya
- Abhayagiriya
- Moon Stone
- spice/herbal garden
- Safari at Minneriya National Park
- Meeting arrangements at the airport on arrival and departure.
- All government taxes and insurance
Trip excludes
- Expenses of personal nature such as tipping, porters, laundry, telephones, etc.
- Video and camera permits
- Any meals not specified throughout the tour
- Any other services not specified.
Cancellation policy
Cancel five days prior to arrival for a full refund.
Choose your payment method.
We offer you mainly three payment options: credit card payments, bank transfers or payment on arrival. You can choose whatever is the most convenient payment option for you. If you opt for payment on arrival, we will collect a 25% advance payment from you as a guarantee once the booking is confirmed.
Single supplement
The trip can be booked with a single room for the entire trip with a single supplement (please inquire about your chosen category of the hotel).
Additional info
- Confirmation will be received at the time of booking.
- A current valid passport is required on the day of travel.
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Comfortable walking shoes are recommended for this tour.
- All visitors to Buddhist and Hindu temples are expected to remove footwear and hats upon entering the temples.
- Dress code, shoulders, and knees should be covered.
- The duration of transfers is approximate; the exact duration will depend on the time of day and traffic conditions.
- A current valid passport is required on the day of travel.
- Subject to favorable weather conditions
- Infants must sit on laps.
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems.
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not suitable for travelers with heart problems or other serious medical conditions.
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level.
- This is a private tour/activity.
- You can reach us 24 hours a day through our hotline at 0094-77-4440977.
Culture Cocktail Tour-Sri Lanka 6 days tour
Itineraries
Day 1
Colombo / Anuradhapura/ Sigiriya
Arrive at Bandaranaike International Airport, meet and greet "Serendipity Tour" representatives, and proceed to the hotel in Sigiriya/Habarana.
En-route visits,
Pinnawala Elephant orphanage
Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is an orphanage, nursery and captive breeding ground for wild Asian elephants located in Pinnawala village. Pinnawala has the largest herd of captive elephants in the world. The orphanage was founded to care for and protect the many orphaned, unweaned wild elephants found wandering in and near the forests of Sri Lanka. It was established in 1975 by the Sri Lanka Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC).
On 31 August 2021, a 25-year-old elephant named Sarangi gave birth to twin male baby elephants at the orphanage. It also marked the first instance of the birth of twin elephants in Sri Lanka after a gap of 80 years since 1941.
Anuradhapura
Anuradhapura, with the recent excavations, the history goes back to the 8th C.BC. Or 2800 BP. However, legends take history more than 3000-5000 years. (Ramayana is one of them.) At that time, there were 4 tribes living in Sri Lanka. Kingdom lasted one thousand and five hundred years from 380 BC. This city is home to many of the earliest and grandest monuments of Sri Lanka. A popular destination for the Sinhalese Buddhist pilgrimage because of its many ancient Buddhist monuments.
Anuradhapura city tour
There are eight significant icons that represent Sri Lanka’s connection to Buddhism, and all of them are situated in Anuradhapura, thus calling this collection “Atamasthanaya,” meaning “eight sacred places.” There is a unique story or history connected to each one of them. Most of them were built by kings that ruled the Anuradhapura Kingdom. You will visit all these places on our hop-on, hop-off Anuradhapura City Tour.
• Ruwanwelisaya: It is a “stupa” that was built by King Dutugamunu and is one of the biggest completed ones to date.
• Thuparamaya: It is the oldest ‘dagoba’ in Sri Lanka and possibly the oldest visible one in the world.
• Lovamahapaya: The significance of this building is that the roof was once covered in bronze tiles.
• Abhayagiri: It is one of the biggest viharas in Anuradhapura. It was a monastery of 5000 monks.
• Jethavanaramaya: It is a sacred world heritage site and accommodated some 3000 monks at the time. It is also quite similar to Abhayagiri.
• Mirisavetiya: This stupa was built by King Dutugamunu after defeating King Elara.
• Lankaramaya: This is also built by a king called King Valagamba in the Anuradhapura Kingdom times and is one of the eight sacred places in the city.
Activities planned for today
Visiting Pinnawala elephant orphanage, Anuradhapura ancient city tour
Accommodation
Overnight in Sigiriya
Day 2
Time : 8:00 am
Sigiriya / Dambulla
After breakfast, leave for Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, and Dambulla Golden Cave Temple.
Sigiriya Rock Fortress
Sigiriya is located in the central Matale District near the town of Dambulla in the Central Province, Sri Lanka. The name refers to a site of historical and archaeological significance that is dominated by a massive column of rock nearly 200 meters (660 feet) high. According to the ancient Sri Lankan chronicle, the Culavamsa, the site was selected by King Kasyapa (477–495 CE) for his new capital. He built his palace on the top of this rock and decorated its sides with colorful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway up the side of this rock, he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. The name of this place is derived from this structure—Sīhāgiri, the Lion Rock. The capital and the royal palace were abandoned after the king's death. It was used as a Buddhist monastery until the 14th century.
Golde Cave Temple (2 Hours)
Dating back to the 1st century BC, this is the most impressive cave temple in Sri Lanka. It has five caves under an overhanging rock, carved with a drip line to keep the interiors dry. Inside the caves, the ceilings are painted with religious images as well as various gods and goddesses. There are images of the Buddha and the bodhisattvas. The temple has several caves, which have been converted into shrine rooms. The caves were built at the base of a 150-meter-high rock during the period of the Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa kingdoms.
The famous Dambulla Cave Temple is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Dambulla cave monastery remains the best-preserved ancient edifice in Sri Lanka.
Activities planned for today
Dambulla temple, Sigiriya rock fortress
Accommodation
Hotel in Sigiriya
Day 3
Time : 8:00 am
Sigiriya / Polonnaruwa / Minneriya
Breakfast at hotel and leave for Polonnaruwa sacred city. En route, visit the archaeological museum.
Polonnaruwa (3 hours)
Polonnaruwa is the second-most historical city in Sri Lanka. It was made the capital of Sri Lanka after Anuradhapura. The ruins in Anuradhapura are much older than the ruins in Polonnaruwa; therefore, the ruins in Polonnaruwa are in much better condition than the ruins in Anuradhapura. On your hop-on, hop-off city tour, you will be visiting palaces, dagobas, and temples, which provide a good example of Sri Lankan historical craftsmanship. In this 3-hour guided tour of the ancient city of Polonnaruwa, you will cover some of the following attractions:.
• Royal Palace (Palace of King Parakramabahu, the most prolific and gifted builder of the era)
• Nissankamulla Palace (Royal audience hall with impressive stonework)
• Gal Viharaya (Contains some of the best rock sculptures in the country)
• Thuparama & Lankathilaka Image Houses (good examples of vaulted shrine rooms)
• Vatadage (gives an idea of what a complete vatadage may have looked like)
• Rankoth Vehera (largest stupa in Polonnaruwa)
• Parakramabahu Statue (Statue of one of the greatest kings of ancient Sri Lanka)
Minneriya safari (optional)
Get a thrilling look at the elephants of Minneriya National Park during this 3-hour private Jeep safari. Travel to a wilderness refuge known for hosting one of the largest gatherings of Asian elephants on earth (each June through September), observing these giant creatures as they drink, feed, and congregate.
This activity will include a safari tour by Jeep with a jungle tracker, where you can see animals in the jungle, including elephants, bears, wild boars, deer, buffalo, Monkeys and many other animals (if you are lucky, leopards too). Return to Habarana.
Activities
Polonnaruwa ancient city, museum, Minneriya safari
Accommodation
Hotel in Sigiriya
Day 4
Time : 8:00 am
Sigiriya/ Kandy
Breakfast at the hotel and leave for Kandy; en route, visit Matale aluvihara temple and spice garden. In the evening, visit the tooth relic temple (ceremony).
Temple of the tooth relic (1 hour)
Sri Dalada Maligawa (Sinhala), or The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, is a Buddhist temple in the city of Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is located in the royal palace complex, which houses the Relic of the Tooth Buddha. Since ancient times, the relic has played an important role in local politics because it is believed that whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country. Kandy was the last capital of the Sinhalese kings and is a world heritage site partly due to the temple.
Kandyan cultural show (1 hour)
The Cultural Dance Show. Sri Lanka's culture is so closely connected to dance and drama, and no function will be complete without displaying a dance or even a drama. As a multi-ethnic land, Sri Lanka boasts of a rich conflux of dance and drama. The two main ethnic groups share two spectacular dance and drama traditions, which enrich the fame Sri Lanka has gained in this sphere.
CITY and SHOPPING (optional)
The city tour will include places of tourist interest such as Kandy Lake, a historical church, Buddhist Hindu Temple, and a batik factory.
Shopping at
Silk garden, Hemachandra jewelers, Barefoot, etc.
Activities
Spice/herbal garden, Kandyan cultural show, Kandy city tour, Tempel of the tooth relic
Accommodation
Hotel in Kandy
Day 5
Time : 8:00 am
Kandy / Colombo
Break the fast at the hotel and leave for the hotel in Colombo. En route, visit Peradeniya botanical garden, Kelaniya temple and Gangarama temple.
Royal Botanical Garden (1 hour)
The Botanical Garden of Peradeniya was a pleasure garden of a Kandyan King of the 16th century; it was later made into a Botanical Garden during the British regime. This garden, one of the best in Asia, is a place of beauty and a site for bird watchers.
Kelaniya Temple
Buddhists believe the temple to have been hallowed during the third and final visit of the Lord Buddha to Sri Lanka, eight years after gaining enlightenment. Its history would thus go back to before 500 BCE. The Mahayana records that the original stupa at Kelaniya enshrined a gem-studded throne on which the Buddha sat and preached. The temple flourished during the Kotte era, but much of its land was confiscated during the Portuguese empire. Under the Dutch empire, however, there were new gifts of land, and under the patronage of King Kirthi Sri Rajasingha, the temple was rebuilt. It was refurbished in the first half of the 20th century with the help of Helena Wijewardana.
Gangarama Temple
Gangarama is located in the heart of Colombo, and it is very easy to find for any visitor to the country. It is picturesquely located bordering Beira Lake, the largest lake in Colombo. Gangarama had been a small Buddhist construction in the 1800s. It was started by a disciple of popular scholar-monk Hikkaduwa Sri Sumangala Thera. The disciple who constructed the temple was called Sri Jinaratana Thera. If you have booked a Sri Lanka tour itinerary with a Colombo sightseeing tour, then you will not miss this temple, which ranks among the beautiful temples in Colombo in the heart of the city.
Activities
Kelaniya, Gangarama temple, Peradeniya botanical garden
Accommodation
Hotel in Colombo
Day 6
Colombo / Airport
Leave for Bandaranayke international airport after breakfast en route optional Colombo city tour.
Colombo
Colombo had been a well-known city in the region among the Arabian, Chinese, Indian, Persian, and Roman traders as early as the pre-Christian era. Sri Lanka is located on the East-West Sea route and is visited by traders in order to exchange their goods with the local traders. Even though Colombo was a well-known city among the ancient traders 2,000 years ago, the capital city of the country had been Anuradhapura. There was an Arabian settlement in the city of Colombo at the mouth of the Kelani River. Arab traders were exporting goods from the port of Colombo. Goods such as cinnamon, ivory, gems, and elephants were exported by the king of Kotte with the help of Arabs. With the beginning of the British colonial period, Colombo city received a prominent place as the capital of Ceylon. Colombo was the capital of the island from 1815 to 1978 until the administrative capital was moved to Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte.
Galle Face
This had been a well-known racecourse during the British colonial period in the country. This racecourse, which is located bordering the Indian Ocean, had to be abandoned later on due to the sea crabs, which are making holes in the track. Afterwards, it was developed as a promenade for the city dwellers and named Galle to face Green. Today Galle Face Green contains an open theater and spacious open space for a picnic, sports and walking.
Viharamahadevi
Viharamahadevi is located in Colombo 7, or Cinnamon Gardens. It is the largest and most popular park in the city. It is believed that there had been a twenty-square-kilometer cinnamon plantation in the area. Today most of the palaces of wealthy people can be seen in the area, and Colombo 7 is the most picturesque part of the city.
Wolvendaal church
The Wolvendaal Church is located in Fort and within walking distance from the center of the city. It has a large collection of tombstones of important Dutch personalities. Fort is made at the highest point of the city and dates back to 1813. The church is built in the doric style of the period. In the form of a Greek cross, with five-foot-thick walls and the gables raised over. The transepts are roofed with brick barrel arches and a central dome.
Aukana Buddha statue / independence hall / BMICH
Facing the Bandaranayke Memorial International Conference Hall stands a beautifully executed statue of the Buddha in a standing posture. The statue is 36 feet tall and is the largest Buddha statue in the city of Colombo. It is a replica of the Avukana statue on the banks of the Kalawewa Anuradhapura.
city and shopping
The city tour will also include places of tourist interest such as the Old Parliament, Bandaranaike Memorial International, conference hall, Buddhist Hindu Temple and Town Hall, Devatagaha mosque, Galle Faces Green, Cinnamon Garden, and Beira Lake.
Shopping at
Odel, Ananda Premadasa, Barefoot, etc.
Activities
Colombo city/shopping tour
Accommodation
No accommodation for today.
End of the trip
Entire trip can be booked for a single with a single supplement
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