Must-see attractions in The Hill Country

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    Uda Walawe National Park

    Uda Walawe National Park

    With herds of elephants, wild buffalos, sambars and spotted deer, and giant squirrels, this Sri Lankan national park is one of the nation's finest. In…

  • View from World's End within the Horton Plains National Park in Sri Lanka.

    World’s End

    The Hill Country

    The Horton Plains plateau comes to a sudden end at World’s End, a stunning escarpment that plunges 880m. The walk here is 4km, but the trail then loops…

  • buduruvagala buddhist temple sri lanka

    Buduruwagala

    The Hill Country

    The beautiful, 1000-year-old, rock-cut Buddha figures of Buduruwagala are the region's biggest attraction. The gigantic standing Buddha (at 15m, it is the…

  • Royal Botanical Garden in Peradeniya, Sri Lanka.

    Peradeniya Botanic Gardens

    The Hill Country

    These stunning gardens were once reserved exclusively for Kandyan royalty. Today, even commoners are allowed in to enjoy the most impressive and largest …

  • Temple Of The Sacred Tooth Relic, in The Royal Palace Complex Of The Former Kingdom Of Kandy Sri Lanka.

    Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic

    Kandy

    The golden-roofed Temple of the Sacred Tooth houses Sri Lanka’s most important Buddhist relic – a tooth of the Buddha. During puja…

  • Elephants at the Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home.

    Elephant Transit Home

    Uda Walawe National Park

    This complex is a halfway house for orphaned elephants. After rehabilitation, the elephants…

  • View from World's End within the Horton Plains National Park in Sri Lanka.

    Horton Plains National Park

    The Hill Country

    Horton Plains is a beautiful, stark world with excellent hikes in the shadows of Sri Lanka’s second- and third-highest mountains, Kirigalpotta (2395m) and…

  • Lankatilake Temple, Kandy, Sri Lanka.

    Lankatilake Temple

    The Hill Country

    This impressive 14th-century temple, mounted on a rocky bluff, is the most imposing in the region. It's divided into two halves – one half Buddhist and…

  • Uva Halpewaththa Tea Factory

    The Hill Country

    The Uva Halpewaththa Tea Factory, 5km north of Ella, runs some of the better tea plantation tours in Sri Lanka. After you've enriched yourself with…

  • A beautifully coloured Agamid lizard in the Sinharaja Forest Reserve, Sri Lanka

    Sinharaja Forest Reserve

    The Hill Country

    The Sinharaja (Lion King) rainforests occupy a broad ridge at the heart of the island’s wet zone. The only way to get about the reserve is by foot, and…

  • Kandy Lake and the island which houses the Royal Summer House at dawn, Kandy, Central Province, Sri Lanka, Asia

    Kandy Lake

    Kandy

    Dominating the town is Kandy Lake. A leisurely stroll around it, with a few stops on the lakeside seats, is a pleasant way to spend a few hours, although…

  • Pedro tea estate in Sri Lanka.

    Pedro Tea Estate

    Nuwara Eliya

    To see where your morning cuppa originates, head to the Pedro Tea Estate, about 3.5km east of Nuwara Eliya on the way to Kandapola. You can take a 20…

  • A Buddha statue in Degaldoruwa temple

    Degal Doruwa Raja Maha Vihara

    Kandy

    Hidden away in Kandy's leafy outskirts is the little-visited, but fascinating, Degal Doruwa Raja Maha Vihara cave temple, constructed (with the help of…

  • KANDY/SRI LANKA - FEB 06: Crowds of people pay respect to the Buddhist relic on February 06, 2013 in Temple of the Buddha Tooth, Kandy, Sri Lanka. ; Shutterstock ID 147514913; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    Sri Dalada Museum

    Kandy

    This museum occupies the upper two floors of the Alut Maligawa building and contains a stunning array of gifts donated by several presidents and Buddhist…

  • The entrance to the main shrine at Embekka Devale is located at the end of the digge (drummers pavilion) through a door guarded by lion statues.

    Embekka Devale

    The Hill Country

    Dedicated to the worship of the Hindu deity Mahasen, this beautiful temple, with its finely carved wooden pillars depicting swans, eagles, wrestling men…

  • Bambarakanda Falls

    Bambarakanda Falls

    The Hill Country

    At 240m, the remote Bambarakanda Falls are the highest in Sri Lanka. March and April are the best months for viewing the falls, but any visit after heavy…

  • Ceylon Tea Museum, Kandy, Sri Lanka

    Ceylon Tea Museum

    Kandy

    This museum occupies the 1925-vintage Hantane Tea Factory, 4km south of Kandy on the Hantane road. Abandoned for more than a decade, it was recently…

  • World Buddhism Museum in Kandy, Sri Lanka.

    World Buddhism Museum

    Kandy

    Housed inside the former High Court buildings, the World Buddhism Museum contains lots of photographs, models and displays illustrating Buddhism around…

  • Dowa Temple

    The Hill Country

    The highlight of the charming Dowa Temple, 6km east of Bandarawela, is a 4m-high standing Buddha cut into the rock face. The walls of the adjacent cave…

  • Maha Saman Devale

    The Hill Country

    This Buddhist temple, 4km northwest of the city, is an architectural treasure well worth visiting. Perched on a small hill, it has a handsome series of…

  • Kandy Garrison Cemetery

    Kandy

    This well-maintained cemetery contains 163 graves from colonial times. Perhaps the most striking aspect of a visit here is learning just how young most…

  • Classic Car Museum

    The Hill Country

    It's more of a hotel garage than a museum, but this fine collection of classic cars is well worth a peek. Just buy a drink at the hotel and someone will…

  • Blue Field Tea Estate

    The Hill Country

    This large tea estate is 20km north of Nuwara Eliya. Short tours are offered and there's a decent restaurant here too. Blue Field Tea Estate has no…

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    National Museum

    Kandy

    This museum once housed Kandyan royal concubines and now features royal regalia and reminders of pre-European Sinhalese life. One of the most impressive…

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    Asgiriya Maha Vihara

    Kandy

    The head monks here also administer the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. Inside, there's a large reclining Buddha. It's located 1km northwest of the town…

  • Alut Maligawa

    Kandy

    The three-storey Alut Maligawa is a large shrine hall displaying dozens of sitting Buddhas donated by devotees from Thailand. Its design resembles a Thai…

  • Hakgala Gardens

    Nuwara Eliya

    These attractive gardens, 10km southeast of Nuwara Eliya, are a peaceful retreat. Highlights include a fine rose garden, a Japanese garden, an orchid…

  • St Mark’s Church

    The Hill Country

    If you’re a history buff, take a look through St Mark’s Church and peruse the old headstones. Inside is a plaque commemorating the elephant hunter Major…

  • Lovers Leap

    Nuwara Eliya

    From the Pedro Tea Estate, take a very enjoyable 5km (round-trip) walk to Lovers Leap, an impressive waterfall.

  • Gadaladeniya Temple

    The Hill Country

    This Buddhist temple with a Hindu annex dates from the 14th century, and the main shrine room contains a stunningly beautiful, gilded seated Buddha. Built…

  • Audience Hall

    Kandy

    To the north of the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, but still within the compound, is the 19th-century Audience Hall, an open-air pavilion with stone…

  • Rakkhiththakanda Len Viharaya Cave Temple

    The Hill Country

    The rock face around this remote and little-visited cave temple, which is signed off the road to Wellawaya, is covered in faded Kandyan-era paintings…

  • Henerathgoda Botanic Gardens

    The Hill Country

    The Henerathgoda Botanic Gardens near Gampaha, 32km northwest of Colombo, are where the first rubber trees in Asia were planted (in 1876, after being…

  • Udawattakelle Sanctuary

    Kandy

    This forest on the north side of Kandy Lake has soaring hardwood trees and giant bamboo, good birding and loads of cheeky monkeys. Birdwatchers can…

  • Diyaluma Falls

    The Hill Country

    The 171m-high Diyaluma Falls is Sri Lanka’s third-highest waterfall. Cascading down an escarpment of the Koslanda Plateau, the falls leap over a cliff…

  • Seetha Amman Temple

    Nuwara Eliya

    This colourful Hindu temple, 7km southeast of Nuwara Eliya, is said to mark the spot where Sita was held captive by the demon king Rawana, and where she…

  • Millennium Elephant Foundation

    The Hill Country

    The Millennium Elephant Foundation houses elephants rescued from aggressive mahouts, and elephants retired from working in temples. Be aware that though…

  • Galway's Land National Park

    Nuwara Eliya

    One of Sri Lanka's newest (2006) and smallest (29 sq hectares) national parks, Galway's Land is a dense patch of montane forest a couple of kilometres…

  • Farr Inn

    The Hill Country

    A local landmark, Farr Inn was a hunting lodge for high-ranking British colonial officials, but now incorporates a basic but expensive cafe and a visitor…

  • Victoria Park

    Nuwara Eliya

    This is one of the country's most attractive, and best-maintained, town parks. A stroll around its paths, past manicured lawns, is a pleasure. The park…