An ultimate 2-week Sri Lanka Itinerary: A Travel Guide

Explore the highlights with this 2-week Sri Lanka Itinerary: A travel guide

In April 2018, at the end of high season in the southern area, we went to Sri Lanka for a 2-week trip. The idea was to spend about 1 week inland to hike and discover hill country and spend the remaining week at the coast to enjoy the sun and see. I’ll share our travel tips and exact route in this 2-week Sri Lanka itinerary: A travel guide.

We decided to book all hotels upfront since it was high season, although I wouldn’t say that was completely necessary. What I liked about it though, is that you don’t have to walk around and search for places to stay. 

2-week Sri Lanka Itinerary

Sri Lanka Travel Route

Day 1: Amsterdam to Habarana
Day 2: Relax from flight in Habarana
Day 3: Sigiriya Rock and head to Kandy
Day 4: Explore Kandy
Day 5: Kandy to Ella train ride
Day 6 & 7: Explore Ella and surroundings
Day 8: Ella to Udawalawe
Day 9: Elephant safariand head to Mirissa
Day 10: Explore Mirissa
Day 11: Head to Hikkaduwa
Day 12: Back to Mirissa
Day 13 & 14: Beach day in Mirissa 
Day 15: Mirissa to Negombo
Day 16: Flight back home

|| Habarana to visit the Sigiriya / Pidurangala Rock

1 night

After a long flight to Colombo/Negombo airport, we landed around 5 AM. We already booked a car to pick us up and drive us to Habarana straight away. We wanted to make some kilometres of the trip already, as entering a hotel at 6 AM wouldn’t make sense.

In Habarana we spend the first day relaxing at the hotel, reading a book and seeing monkeys play. We arranged a ride for the next morning, to check out Sigiriya/Pidurangala Rock. We didn’t climb the Sigiriya itself to save some money and climbed the Pidurangala rock to enjoy an amazing view of Sigiriya.

2-week Sri Lanka Itinerary, Travel Guide, Monkey in Sri Lanka
Sigiriya Rock from Pidurangala Rock, Sri Lanka

|| Head to Kandy for the most scenic train ride

1 night

After a 1,5 hour’s ride, we arrived in Kandy. We weren’t staying in Kandy town but a little bit outside, to enjoy a view. It wasn’t my favourite view though. I wouldn’t recommend 2 nights in Kandy. 1 night is more than enough if you are not really into visiting all the paid sights.

Kandy Station, Sri Lanka

|| Ella to embrace nature and enjoy some hiking

3 nights

One of the most scenic train rides in the world brought us to Ella. We didn’t buy tickets in advance and were lucky enough to buy tickets at the station. This meant we didn’t have seats and thus had to stand for around 7 hours. Luckily, we could sit somewhere after 3 hours. To fully enjoy the train ride, you might want to prearrange tickets. Ella itself has enough to offer, such as the Ella Rock, Nine Arch Bridge and Little Adams Peak.
You can reach Ella by train from Kandy, on one of the most beautiful train rides in the world, for €3 per person.

Where to stay in Ella

If you want to splurge (which is still affordable in Sri Lanka), I could highly recommend you to stay in either EKHO Ella or Zion View Ella Green Retreat. If you are into great views but want to benefit from the lower prices in the country, there are also amazing stays between 25 and 45 euros a night, such as Glorious Nature Inn, Guest Inn Avendra, Country Homes or Arana Sri Lanka Eco Lodge.

Ella Rock, Sri Lanka
Train Nine Arch Bridge, Sri Lanka

|| Go on an elephant safari in Udawalawe

1 night

A car brought us to our next destination in Udawalawe. We went to the bus stop and got offered a fairly cheap taxi ride. This is a good tip! Try to get your transport at the bus stop, as negotiation is easier as they are aware you are willing to take the bus. At the resort (Kottawatta Village) we were able to book a safari tour for the next morning. As there is not much more to do in Udawalawe, we decided to continue our journey to Mirissa straight after the safari.

Where to stay in Udawalawe

We really loved Kottawatta Village, where you can stay for €35 a night in a lovely tent in the jungle. There is a swimming pool on the property and they can arrange your morning safari.

Shooting pictures in Udawalawe, Sri Lanka
Safari in Udawalawe, Sri Lanka

|| Enjoy the beach in Mirissa and go whale watching

Straight after the safari, we were planning on taking the bus to Mirissa. However, waiting at the bus station, we again were able to arrange a tuk-tuk for a pretty good price. 2 hours later we were in Mirissa, where we mainly spend our time at the beach, pool and drinking beers. We walked up Parrot Island, visited the famous palm trees and did a whale-watching tour. Our first stay there was supposed to be 2 nights, but in the end, we went back as we didn’t like Hikkaduwa, staying another 2 nights.

Check out the full Mirissa guide here, including the best restaurants in town!

Where to stay in Mirissa

Morning Star (€55), Pearldrop Waves Mirissa (€30), Bisandu (€26), Peacock Villa (€75)

2-week Sri Lanka Itinerary, Coconut Hill, Mirissa, Sri Lanka
2-week Sri Lanka Itinerary, Mirissa Harbour, Sri Lanka

Our mistakes

HIKKADUWA

We’d heard Hikkaduwa was the more lively beach destination and when we booked our hotels and hostels, we decided to spend more time in Hikkaduwa than in Mirissa, as we wanted to visit a place with some more nightlife. Well, we couldn’t have been more wrong in April. Hikkaduwa was empty and the guesthouse we booked was horrible. So after a night of no sleep, we decided to go back to Mirissa for the last days of the holiday.

WHAT WOULD I RECOMMEND

There are many other small beach towns in the south, such as Tangalle, Weligama and Unawatuna. I would recommend combining one of those with Mirissa. Something else I would have liked is to climb Adam’s Peak. 

Why this travel route?

For our 2-week Sri Lanka itinerary we decided to go for a mix between nature and beach, and ended our trip with relaxation. Sri Lanka knows different seasons within the country, and as we went in April, the beaches in the south would still be most suitable. 

We choose to do the Udawalawe Safari instead of the Yala Safari as we heard it would be slightly less touristy, but you might have a bigger chance of spotting elephants. There will still be many jeeps driving around, but I would recommend the experience!

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