Tropical Island Wanderer Family Holiday

Discover the treasures of laidback Sri Lanka with your loved ones

Sri Lanka has an amazing array of mesmerising sites to visit. From the ancient cave temple of Dambulla to the world-famous Temple of the Tooth, there is something to fascinate everyone. We climb to the top of the Lions Rock fortress at Sigiriya, take a game drive to see elephants in their natural habitat, and visit Kandy, the cultural hub of Sri Lanka. After exploring the tea plantations in the cool highlands, we travel to Yala National Park where we search for leopards! Finally, we head to the idyllic palm-fringed beaches of the south coast, the perfect end to a varied and fun family trip.

People, Places & Planet

We work hard to create trips that improve life for the people and places we visit and look after the planet we explore. Find out more about our sustainable travel ethos and practice here, and find out about the work of the Exodus Travels Foundation here.

Some sustainable travel highlights of this trip include:

People

How this trip helps improve life for local communities.

• The use of a local guide means our customers will be well informed about local traditions and cultural-social sensitivities.
• This trip brings income and opportunity to the destination community through the inclusion of locally owned hotels and restaurants, the emphasis on eating locally produced food, and by supporting other local enterprises.
• We visit a rope-making factory, which is a local house in the Matale area, where the group witnesses the traditional rope-making process. We also visit a sari factory, where we learn about these traditional garments that have been worn in Sri Lanka for thousands of years.
• We stop in Tangalle and walk through a rice field to a village where customers can try local delicacies such as boiled manioc served with coconut and a spicy mixture of chillies, onions, peppers and lemon. Here, we see daily life and may even take part in traditional Sri Lankan games.
• We have financially co-sponsored a local tsunami relief project, which has enabled 25 families to be rehoused and for two schools to be equipped with toilets, running water and outdoor swings.
• In collaboration with a German operator and the village temple, we have helped towards 10 large water tanks and an eye clinic in a remote village with a donation of 200 pairs of glasses.
• We also assisted a principal agent of Unicef in development of daycare and education of school children of the estate-sector labourers in the hill country.

Places

How this trip helps protect and conserve local landscapes and nature.

• Read about our commitment to nature protection and restoration here, including our rewilding commitment for every customer who travels.
• By travelling in a small group, led by a local guide, we ‘tread lightly’ to minimise our impact on local resources and the environment.
• Our trips adhere to ABTA’s industry-leading animal welfare guidelines to ensure the best possible practices with regard to working animals and wildlife viewing. Our animal welfare policy can be found here.
• By visiting Yala and Minneriya national parks, Dambulla caves, and Nuwara Eliya tea plantations, our entrance fees directly contribute to their upkeep. Our game drives in Yala and Minneriya promote animal welfare and financially contribute to conservation projects in the area.
• We work with our partners on the ground to proactively eliminate or reduce waste, for example eliminating all single-use plastic water bottles and instead providing refills for reusable bottles.
• The Exodus Travels Foundation has launched the Community Kickstart Project to help our destination communities recover and rebuild following the impact of COVID-19. In Sri Lanka, we’ve contributed to the Yala Park Driver Support initiative, more details can be found here.

 Planet

How we seek to keep the carbon footprint of this trip low.

• Read about our climate action here, including our carbon reduction and compensation commitments.
• Accommodation and restaurants in the itinerary use locally sourced food which has not been transported long distances.
• Vegetarian and vegan options are available at majority of accommodation and restaurants.
• This trip favours locally owned and run accommodation.

Tips for sustainable travel on this trip

• Leave no trace: We do all we can to ensure we leave no rubbish behind in the wild and beautiful places we visit; we ask that you do the same. If there are no recycling facilities in-country, we’d ask you to consider bringing recyclable materials home with you.
• Plastic waste reduction: Please bring your own reusable water bottle on this trip; filtered water will be provided where tap water is not drinkable.
• There is a large number of stray dogs in Sri Lanka and you may encounter some during your trip. Our local operators are aware of this and we are monitoring any animal-welfare concerns.

Cultural respect:

• One should not touch someone’s head as this is considered disrespectful.
• It’s polite to use your right hand when shaking hands or handing money and small objects to someone else.
• It is common practice to remove one’s shoes before entering someone’s home.
• Especially when visiting temples, clothing should cover shoulders and be on or below the knee.

Visa

Sri Lanka

Travellers from the UK, US and EU normally need a visa to enter Sri Lanka. Please note, visa requirements often change and it is your responsibility to obtain any required visas for this trip. Therefore, we recommend that you check with the nearest embassy or consulate of your chosen destination(s), including any countries you may be transiting or transferring through.

Some local governments provide guidance on what visas their citizens need. To help, we’ve gathered a selection of useful links below.

• Australia: www.smartraveller.gov.au/destinations/asia/sri-lanka
• Canada: www.travel.gc.ca/destinations/sri-lanka
• United Kingdom: www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/sri-lanka/entry-requirements
• USA: www.travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/SriLanka.html

Travellers from most countries can obtain a visa (ETA) before travel through http://eta.gov.lk/slvisa/. It costs US$50 per applicant. We strongly recommend you obtain your visa (ETA) online prior to travel to avoid any complications and delays on arrival.

You should also be aware of local laws and customs in Sri Lanka (see: www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/sri-lanka/local-laws-and-customs). The mistreatment of Buddhist images and artefacts is an offence; please note, people have been refused entry to Sri Lanka because of visible tattoos of Buddha.

Vaccination

Sri Lanka

There are no required vaccinations. However, recommended vaccinations include tetanus, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, tuberculosis and typhoid. You will also need a yellow fever vaccination certificate if you're arriving from a country with risk of yellow fever transmission or transiting for more than 12 hours through a country with risk of yellow fever transmission. Please confirm with your doctor or travel clinic.

The risk of malaria is slight but you may wish to consult your doctor or travel clinic for further advice. Additionally, dengue fever, a tropical viral disease spread by daytime biting mosquitoes, is a known risk in places visited. There is currently no vaccine or prophylaxis available; the best form of prevention is to take the usual precautions to avoid mosquito bites.

Eating and Drinking

All breakfasts and one lunch are included.

We suggest allowing about 7,000 rupees (US$20) per day per adult for lunch and dinner (less if you are sharing dishes as a family). You can eat out very cheaply in Sri Lanka, but if you mainly eat at the more expensive restaurants, you will spend more than the suggested amount.

Sri Lankan cuisine is a fascinating reflection of the island’s heritage; there is a unique fusion of fresh local produce with spices brought to the island over the centuries by Malays, Arabs, Indians as well as the Dutch, Portuguese and English. Despite (or perhaps because of) these influences, Sri Lankan cuisine is often referred to as simply rice and curry. This is the staple dish in most restaurants and is usually a serving of rice accompanied by assorted meat and vegetable curries as well as various pickles, sambols (condiments), and a handful of tiny poppadum – all using the contrasting flavours of coconut, chilli, curry leaves, cinnamon and garlic.

Vegetarians are well catered for but please inform us before departure of any special dietary requests. Please note, the availability of certain products is minimal or non-existent in Sri Lanka. For example, wheat- or dairy-free options outside of hotels are limited. Please be prepared for this, you may need to bring these from home. Spicier food can be avoided easily and lots of the hotels will serve Western options alongside traditional food.

Mineral water is provided by our local operator in large containers throughout the trip so please bring a bottle with you to refill. Please note, restaurant service can be quite slow.

Weather

Generally, expect rain at some time but with plenty of sunshine. On the plains, day- and night-time temperatures are warm to hot with Colombo having an average daytime temperature of 30C (86F). The temperatures drop as we go higher into the hills and especially at Nuwara Eliya and Bandarrawella where daytime temperatures are 10C-25C (50F-77F) and night-time temperatures will be chilly (about 10C/50F minimum). A warmish jacket will be needed.

Is this trip for you?

This trip is graded Activity Level 3 (Moderate).

It is designed for nine to 12-year-olds but is also suitable for 13 to 16-year-olds. Our Family Activity Levels are aimed at children in the primary or ‘Designed for’ age group. We are confident it is also suitable for those in the ‘Also for’ age range; however, if your child is in this secondary category, they may find it a little easier. Please see the Family Activity Levels on our website for further information.

When grading our trips, we consider multiple factors, the pace, how busy an itinerary is, and the level of activity involved. Then there’s the amount of time a family will spend travelling. The weather is an important factor too.

This trip aims to show you the best parts of Sri Lanka by bus, foot and bike. Although this is not a particularly demanding trip, three of the drives are long (more than three hours with one drive of up to five hours) and are on windy mountain roads that can be affected by the rains, which occasionally cause short delays. The longer drives are broken up with many stops for a view or refreshing drink. Temperatures can be hot on the plains and chilly in the hills, but because we use an air-conditioned bus, this is not normally a problem.

Sinhala and Tamil New Year (April departures)

Unique to Sri Lanka, the new year national festival known as Avurudu in Sinhala and Puththandu in Tamil is not celebrated by any other nation. The festivities are observed by both Sinhala Buddhists and Tamil Hindus across Sri Lanka for two days on 12-13 April 2024 and 13-14 April 2025. If you are travelling in Sri Lanka over these dates, expect to see religious ceremonies, family activities, traditional foods, colourful decorations and a general feeling of goodwill toward neighbours and friends. Parties can go into the night and it can be quite loud during this period. Your leader will happily show you some of the activities where your itinerary allows. During the new year public holiday, most shops, monuments and attractions are closed; however, your leader will modify the itinerary as required to ensure minimal disruption.

Following a review of all our trips we have categorised this trip as generally not suitable for persons of reduced mobility. However if you are a regular traveller on such trips, please contact customer services to discuss the trip and your personal condition.