Sri Lanka Planning
 

Just booked flights from UK (Birmingham) to Columbo via Dubai with Emirates. Booked direct on their website as they have a deal on at the moment (saving about £70 pp over the next best fare which seemed to be with Expedia whose price seemed to increase every time I clicked to buy!!). We leave on 3rd Feb for 4 weeks so now down to the serious but enjoyable business of planning!

Kathie pointed me in the direction of dogsters post re www.reddotours.com which is proving invaluable loads of really good information. I tried to contact them by phone but no reply so I have fired an email off to them requesting a costing for using their http://www.reddottours.com/69/guesth...ry-profile.htm itineray as a base with a few days drawn in form their "Adventurous" and Undiscovered itineraries thrown in. We have 28 days on the ground so I am looking to spend 2-4 days in each main location and maybe get in a few days beach/scuba diving on the south coast if time permits.
We are looking a budget guesthouses/B&Bs and homestays (budget < $50for most of the trip (with maybe the odd splurge, probably in the hills/tea country.)

Our normal style of travel is basically have an outline plan and then to make it up as we go as far as travel and accomodation is concerned.

A few immediate questions:

How easy is it to arrange accomodation/car & driver/train travel at short notice whilst there?

Would this be significantly cheaper than a pre-arranged tour?

We arrive in the morning around 8.30am any recommendations fo places to stay in Columbo for a couple of days (or would negombo be better and leave Columbo till the end)??

Finally, we aim to visit all of the major sights and throw in some hiking and cycling along the way but would appreciate opinions/suggestions on what not to miss and what to avoid.
Any help would be appreciated.

thursday is on the ground right now, but by the time she gets a trip report out, you'll be there. Keep an eye out for her posts, tho.

'How easy is it to arrange accomodation/car & driver/train travel at short notice whilst there?

Very easy.

'Would this be significantly cheaper than a pre-arranged tour?'

No, for drivers it'll be significantly more expensive... but there are places where you simply won't need a driver for a few days. Swings and roundababouts. The only trains you're likely to want to explore are Colombo to Kandy, Kandy to hill country or Colombo to Galle. From memory, there aren't many others.

I've traveled with both a private tour/driver then in spurts with longer stays at places, using their transportation on the spot, then grabbing a local man to get me to the next place when I'm done. I prefer the second but you pay more, seeing as you have few choices. Why not use reddot for up north [cultural triangle], go train to Hill country and to coast. DIY along coast [easy].

Colombo: Galle Face Hotel.
Kandy: Helga's Folly
S.E.: Galapita

I'd not fuss about animals [Yala etc.]. In my experience there aren't any. lol. For surf, swim, get to the newly opened up East Coast. Aragun Bay.

Always remember just what the locals use the beaches for. It ain't pretty. Tourist beach towns are just that. Hikkaduwa is horrible, Unawatuna in season, much the same. Full of beach boys and hustlers. Cheap tho. Good food - or death on a plate.

Hiking, cycling - hill country for sure. It's very pretty - but kinda hilly. Lol. A combination tuk-tuk and bike hike is good. Use the tuk-tuk to carry you and bikes up to the top, bike or hike DOWN.

Cultural triangle ain't rivetting tourism IMO. Sigiriya is amazing and Dambulla temples is good for a day. Polonnawurra I found pretty uninspiring - but what do I know? Similarly Anuradapoura [or however you spell it]. Is it tea season? Better check. Don't fall for Tea Trails. Mega $$. There are other options.

Look Eco-places. I really did like Galapita - but it's gine upmarket. Spa places are just for rich, stupid people. Remember, Ayurvedic massage involves more oil than Dubai. Think carefully before submitting.

India-lite.

We had a driver for our whole time there, but our trip was short and our stays short enough it didn't pay to do it dogster's way.

We loved the cultural triangle area. The Dambulla Cave Temples are wonderful, Sigirya is fascinating, but Polonnaruwa was our favorite, There is a wonderful museum there, and we had a guide who was superb. I'm not usually big on guides, but there are a few places where I've really appreciated guides, and Polonnaruwa was one of them. Without background info (and it's hard to come by outside of Sri Lanka) and without a guide, I suppose it would just be ruins.

Reddot isn't your only option for booking. I'd suggest you get quotes from a couple of agencies. We used Boutique Sri Lanka, and at that time, they were significantly less expensive than reddot. There are plenty of other agencies as well.

I appreciated having a driver from an agency. The agency traded out the car we'd reserved for a larger car at no charge and if there had been problems they would have taken care of it. Robbie and Fred had problems with the wrong vehicle and problems with a driver, as I remember. It's always nice to have someone you can call to fix it.

It's hard for me to know whether you can wing it easily or not. We were there when the war was still going on, and I expect there are many more tourists now.

We met some Brits at Glenburn who are living in Delhi right now and who visited Sri Lanka and they couldn't get over how clean it was in comparison to India. India-lite, indeed!

Oh, and dogster's comment about massage is well-taken. We went to a local place fro massage - I could have done without them dripping oil into my hair!

I'll be watching to see how you go. I'll be there approximately the same time as you. I am more interested in wildlife, so I've geared my experience toward that- hoping to see a lot more than Dogster did!

It took a little prodding in the beginning to get them to respond, but ultimately I booked through Red Dot (after contacting about 6 other companies). Ayanthi was able to come up with the most original itinerary. I can't wait to see how it all turns out.

Femi, I didn't realize your trip was so soon! Leigh will also be in Sri Lanka in February. So you and crellston and Leigh should have a get together.

I'm glad to see so many people going to Sri Lanka. Indeed, a return trip is one of the places on our possibilities list for this year (Nov).

I had trouble getting replies from reddot, even after calling them. I also got a quote from Quickshaws, recommended by Lonely Planet, but I forgot to email them back at one point and by the time we sorted that out I had been communicating rather heavily with Boutique Sri Lanka. I'm traveling with Boutique Sri Lanka - reddot's eventual quote wasn't that much cheaper. (I ate lunch at their recommended Ice Bear in Negombo yesterday, and I think I'm much better off at the Villa Araliya.) If you're likely to have jetlag I'd think a night or two in Negombo would be a good way to start, but be warned that the tourist end of town is VERY touristy.

Thursdays, I'm looking forward to your impressions of Sri Lanka.

Toursim in Sri Lanka is really booming now and many hotels are fully booked/overbooked, advance booking is recomended for the more popular hotels. "Free Range" travel is very enjoyable - thats how I like to do it and is doable in Sri Lanka too, I am sure you will always find some place to stay at short notice but don't be too picky fussy.

Thanks for all the replies so far. I have emailed both Reddot and Boutiques Sri Lanka and received a v. prompt initial (& personal) response from Boutiques requesting I complete their online form but just an auto response from Reddot. Hopefully I will get quoted and itineraries from both in the next couple of days. I like dogsters idea of just getting a tour for part(s) of the trip and will probably go with this option once I get responses from the TO's.
I will now try quickshaws as recommended by thurdays.

Mohammed- thanks for the heads up on accommodation availability, As for not being "picky fussy" definitely not a problem you should have seen some of the places we stayed at when living in Sierra Leone!!

A Sri Lankan GTG would be icing on the cake!

Kathie, the wait has seemed like forever and a day.

I'll be stopping in Yala (camping), at Tea Trails, and in Habarana. Let me know if any of you will be in the same areas. I won't be spending any time in Colombo though, a pity because this would probably be the best location for a GTG.

Femi A gtg would be great if our itineraries match up at some point. I finally heard back from Reddot and Boutique Sri Lanka so hopefully I will get draft itinerary soon. i have been trying to finalise in my own mind where we want to go and when we will want a guide/driver and at this point I am thinking of a driver for the cultural triangle and part of the hill country and then winging it for the rest of the trip.

We arrive in Sri Lanka on Feb 12th.
All our hotels are booked and we have booked the services of Rammuni for twelve days.
On arrival we are going straight to Habarana for four nights,then on to Kandy for two nights, Nuwara Eilya for one night, Galle for three nights and finishing up in Colombo.
A gtg would be great.

I have a feeling that we are not going to fit in everything that we have listed as 'must do', so probably a return visit will be on the cards.

Any advice regarding what have been highlights for other fodorites will be much appreciated.

Leigh - did you book a tour or DIY? Where are you planning on staying in Habarana?

Have a wonderful time, Leigh. I'll look forward to your report.

crellston, have you ever heard back from Red Dot? I also sent inquiries to both BSL and Red Dot and have received a reply from BSL but not from Red Dot.

Kathie - I got an email from red Dot yesterday evening and a phone call this morning to say that they would email a draft itinerary today or tomorrow. I was getting a little concerned as I had called several times and got the voicemail and left messages (i.e. about 4x) each time plus a couple of emails cahsing them. the guy my wife spoke to seemed avery helpful. Got a couple of email responses of acknowledgement from boutique but nothing else yet.
PS Just heard on the BBC of floods in Sri Lanka apparently affecting 1 million people! maybe this is affecting comms?

Info on floods @ http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSSGE70CB8P20110113

Hi

The floods in Eastern Sri Lanka are really bad, we have a relief effort underway with Rotary, hopefully things will improve soon. Colombo and the Western side of the country is not affected although the weather is really unusually cool.

Hi Crellston, our trip is all DIY but of course...very much dependent on Rammuni. For Habarana we have selected Cinnamon Lodge. Yes I know there are mixed reviews and yes I know this hotel is used by tour groups but we have friends who have stayed there and they are full of praise. So......we'll see.

Kathie, thanks for your best wishes.....will do my best to provide a decent trip report.

Hi Leigh. its possible we will be in or close to Habarana about the same time as you. hopefull we will finalise things in the next day or so. maybe we could meet up.

Kathie - Just c=got an itinerary of sorts from Boutique but I am not altogether sure that they actually read my brief (i.e. budget guest houses NOT 5*!) Never mind i will go back to them with clarification.

Mohammed - our thoughts are with those affected. hopefully things will get back to normailiy soon.

Awww, looks like I will have just missed you Leigh. I'll also be at the Cinammon Lodge, but not until Feb 20th.

Looks like my trip will be moving in the opposite direction- Yala, tea country, Habarana, Kalapitiya, then home.

I'm trying to fit in so many activities, I'll be a little busier this trip than I usually like. Depending on how things go, I might also consider a second trip as there seems to be a lot that I couldn't cram into this one.

Also hope things improve for those affected by the floods. i am currently in the Cultural Triangle, and there are floods here, but nothing like those further east. Some houses and roads are flooded out, and we drove through a small river to reach Anuradhapura yesterday, but otherwise it's just cool and very damp.

Would definitely recommend a driver for the Cultural Triangle, as you'll likely want transport for at least Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa. If you also want a driver for the hill country as well it may not make sense to have one for each area, as I suspect driver accommodation and food are very cheap. The buses don't look great to me, and a well-traveled woman I met in Negombo recommended against taking the train - not for safety but for the state of the rolling stock,

If you want to book a driver direct, mine is free for February - J. R. A Ganiori at (0)71 49 50 890. He is a very sedate and careful driver and has been taking almost obsessive care of me!

Many thanks for for the update thursdaysd. Glad to here that you are ok and that the floods haven't affected you too badly. I will give your driver a call once I have received draft itineraries from Reddot and Boutiques. Any idea of a what he charges per day?

He said he was cheaper if booked direct - I booked through BSL and he was the driver they assigned. Am now in Kandy (actually a bit outside, but I do have good net access again) - I did see the sun this morning, but not for long. Did you get a quote from Quickshaws as well?

Still waiting on quickshaws (and revised itinerary from Boutiques SL for that matter!). I have had couple of phone conversations from Reddot and am quite impressed with the person I am dealing with who, once a few mis-understandings were corrected, seems to have good a grip on what I am looking for and has just sent me an itinerary which is pretty close. I am now going to check out the comparative costs of booking direct with the hotels just to see what the mark up is. Likewise with the car and driver costs which does seem a bit on the high side.

crellston - word of warning about not booking ahead. I spent an hour or two this morning checking hotels/guesthouses in Kandy for tonight as I was rather fed up with Serendip, where I was staying. Only one had space - Sharon Inn - and I didn't care for the look of their reception/breakfast area. One problem with Serendip is no AC - it's OK at night, but miserable in the afternoon and this is January...

Good to catch up with all the reports on fodors after a rather long break.Following your amazing journey thursday.Did stay in The Suisse Hotel.A very charming colonial building.You could give it a shot.
http://www.hotelsuisse.lk/

Hi inquest, welcome back and thanks. I ate dinner at the Suisse last night and one of the staff mentioned they were fully booked. Went to one of the "cultural shows" this evening - amazing number of tourists!!! May not be many Americans around but loads of Europeans.

After much fine tuning I have finalised our itinerary and have decided to book with http://www.reddottours.com/ I have been dealing with Lahiru there who has provided an excellent and responsive service and a reasonable cost. ( I checked their rates with those obtained buy booking direct or via other booikg agencies and they were more or less identical. An added attraction for me was that they also have a UK base so I can make payment direct to them without incurring costs with exchange rates and international banking transfers.

I did attempt to get competive quotes from Boutique Sri lanka but after the first email response it was clear that they had not even read my initial request. Several email reminders and phone calls to them and I have still not received a response so I have given up on them. I also tried quickshaws for car and driver rental but again after several emails and calls, no response.

A word of warning for anyone leaving it to the last minute like me, it has proved difficult to book rooms in some areas (Yala especially proved v. difficult).
Our first two weeks are looking like this:

4-6 Feb Colombo - 2 nights
06 to 08 Feb Anuradapura 2 nights
08 to 12 Feb Sigiriya 4 nights
12 to 14 Feb Kandy
14 to 16 Feb Dailhouse 2 nights
16 to 17 Feb Haputale I night
17 to 18 Feb Ella 1 night

After this we will head to the South coast (or maybe east to Arugam Bay as per dogsters suggestion if the floods have cleared) maybe see a bit of Yala NP and get in some diving before heading to Galle where we have booked a couple of nights in Mamas Galle Fort a small B&B.

If anyone (leigh, femi etc.) happens to be around any of the above locations at the same time, it would be great to meet up.
Many thanks to all who have provided input.

Sounds good, but what is your objective of going to Arugambay? Are you a passionate ocean wave surfer? If so Arugambay is one of the better right handers in the world, not much else. It is quite remote, some jungles/elephants etc around, a long and ardous drive and very hot too in Feb, very rough hippyish, jus be aware.

Not sure you need two nights at Anuradapura and four at Sigiriya. You can visit Dambulla on the way in, and Sigiriya, Polonnaruwa and Anuradapura don't need more than a day each, if that.

Mohammed - Thanks for the heads up. Arugam bay was one of dogster's suggestions for getting off the beaten track and away from the mainstream tourist beaches. I can cope with "rough and hippyish" it will be like being back in my travelling days the seventies LOL! Not into surfing as i just don't have the coordination! Would be intersted in photographing them though. Do you know if this area is/was affected by the recent floods?

Seems I'm out of luck again as far as GTG dates. Looks like I'll be moving in the opposite direction. I arrive on the 11th and start off in Yala then work my way up to Tea Country and Habarana.

That sounds just great! Have a wonderful time!

It's odd about agencies. I still have gotten nothing from Red Dot, and BSL has corresponded with me a bit, but has not come up with an itinerary yet... maybe because our trip isn't until November.

If your not into surfing pls avoid Arugambay, it is more than just off the beaten track, really and the beach is IMHO lousy too.

If you really want to have a nice "off the beaten track" beach and cultural extravaganza head east to Trincomalee and Nilaveli - beaitiful - see some pics here...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31829627@N02/5366482566/

Also, Trincomalee is only 2 hours drive from Sigiriya.

Also what Thursday says about Anuradhapura/Sigiriya is correct. Its probably best to base in one location for the whole cultural triangle.



then

Re garding floods - Arugambay was not badly affected, mainly was around Batticaloa and Muttur areas. Fooods are receding now and normalcy returning, but there is a lot of crop damage.

Sorry about all the typos, that's just the way I am, I fire away what comes to mind and hit the post button and then I go back to edit, but unfortunately Fodors does not allow edits, wish they did.

So sorry again.

Fantastic photos Mohammed. If I can get a shot like the one of the kingfisher, I shall return from Sri Lanka a happy man!

The beaches of Trincomalee and Nilaveli do look amazing and we will certainly consider heading there from the highlands before moving down the coast to the south (subject of course to the waether/flood situation)

<b>crellston</b> - did you see my post about six nights maybe being overkill for the Cultural Triangle? I think we were posting at the same time. This isn't Angkor Wat or Bagan - more like Hampi - fairly extensive area but pretty ruinous ruins. You could even do it in three nights, seeing Dambulla on the way in and Sigiriya on the way out, P. and A. as day trips, basing around Habarana. I spent four nights basing at Giritale, and thought that was plenty of time (of course, it was raining a fair amount!).

Another consideration is the cost of admission. Entry fees are startlingly high in Sri Lanka - I just paid nearly $30 US to enter Horton Plains Nat. Park to do the World's End hike. Another foreign adult would have been another 1,700 rupees ($15 US). You can buy a multi-site ticket for the Cultural Triangle for $50 US, but you still only get one entry per site - no going out for lunch and coming back in the afternoon, never mind the next day.

Thursdaysd - I did miss your post and I am sure you are right. The reason for the 2 days @Anuradapura was that we were originally planning to spend a couple of days at The Mud House @ Anamaduwa until we found out the cost of staying in a mud hut!! I then asked the agent to switch those nights, On balance I think I have short changed Columbo and so will move one or both of the nights from Anuradapura to Columbo as There are a few journeys I would like to take from Columbo. Many thanks for taking the time to post.

We have gone the route of the multi site ticket and think that will be ok for our style of travel.

What did you think of the Horton Plains NP? was it worth the $30 pp? We have been quoted $90 for a 4WD tour for 2 for the day but are undecided (we would much prefer the hike).

The multi-site ticket is a good deal as it gets you into quite a few places besides P. ad A.

I did think the World's End hike was worth doing, although $30 is still steep! (I have found Sri Lanka surprisingly expensive in general.) I left Nuwara Eliya at 5:40, and started the hike around 7:30. That got me to World's End before the clouds came in, although the view was still hazy. The view is good, and Baker's Falls were also worth seeing. However, this is not a stroll in the park. You'll often be hiking along stream beds, mostly but not all dry at this season, but still steep and uneven and rocky. I wouldn't have made it without my hiking stick!