Places to visit

Elephant Orphanage

Pinnawela orphanage is situated northwest of the town Kegalla, half ways between the present capitol Colombo and the ancient royal residence Kandy in the hills of central Sri Lanka. It was established 1975 by the Sri Lanka Wildlife department.

This 24 acres large elephant orphanage is a also breeding pace for elephants, twenty elephants were born since 1984, and it has the greatest herd of elephants in captivity in the world.

Elephant numbers:

1975: 5 baby elephants
1978: 12 elephants of those 5 babies
1997: 56 elephants
1998: 63 elephants
2000: 70 elephants
2003: 65 elephants

Yala Natioanl Park

The Ruhuna (Yala) National Park is one of the largest national parks in the Country with 103,882.9 hectares. It is situated 300 K.M. south of Colombo on the southeast shore of Sri Lanka.The Park can be visited via the town of Tissamaharama in the Hambantota District of the Southern Province.

This National Park has several habitat types such as forests, scrub lands, grass lands, lagoons, beaches and other wetlands. This is the most visited national park of the country and its main attractions are Elephants, Leopards, Sloth Bears, Crocodiles, migratory and resident birds. Most appealing is the overall 'feel' of undisturbed jungle. Big rock formations, Tanks, Beaches and the Lagoons amplify the scenic beauty. A safari jeep ride will take you to close encounters with the wild beasts and to the beauty of the park and make it an unforgettable experience of your life.

Horton Plains

Horton Plains is one of the pristine watersheds in Sri Lanka where three out of four major rivers - namely, Mahaweli, Kelani and Walawe spring up. It is a very important location for bio-diversity holding four eco-systems; the primary evergreen mixed forest (which is fast becoming a rarity in Sri Lanka), wet grasslands, marshes and riverine habitats. Acres of grassland dotted with islands of short and sturdy trees, epiphytes such as 'Old-man's beard' moist with droplets of water, herds of sambur grazing leisurely and brooks of crystal clear water are common sites which give you that heavenly feeling of becoming one with nature.

The Horton Plain National Park is the only national park situated in the wet zone of the country and falls within the Nuwara Eliya district. Situated 2300m above sea level this national park has different climatic conditions and habitat to all the other national parks. Almost all life forms in Horton Plain are adapted to the high altitude conditions. There are a lot of endemic flora and fauna found in the plains itself. The endemicity among fauna is comparatively high. Bear Monkey (race of the Purple Face leaf Monkey), Sambhur and Leopard are some interesting mammals. One would also find several endemic hill country birds in the Horton plains national park.

The panoramic scenic beauty of the hill country could be witnessed within the park. The famous "World's End" and "Bakers Falls" are major attractions. The Kirigalpotta, second highest peak and the Thotapola, third highest peak of the country are also situated in the Horton plains.