Sightseeing

A private shore excursion from Colombo port, planned backwards from your sailing time – because the one thing that matters on a cruise day is being back on board.

The classic first or last day in Sri Lanka: up to Kandy for the Temple of the Tooth and the botanic gardens, with a spice garden on the way – and an honest conversation about Pinnawala.

One of the finest short walks in Sri Lanka, and one that has to be done at dawn – by 9:30 am the mist usually closes in and World's End shows you nothing but cloud.

Horton Plains from Ella means a 3:30 am start, but it is the only way to reach World's End before the mist if Ella is your base – and it is worth the alarm clock.

Follow the footsteps of Lord Rama, Sita and Hanuman to the sites linked with the Ramayana epic in Sri Lanka. Visit Munneswaram, the Seetha Amman Temple at Ashok Vatika, Divurumpola, the Ravana caves and falls of Ella, and Hanuman's herbal mountain at Rumassala.

Rest, restore and reset. After two gentle days in Kandy, spend seven nights at a certified Ayurveda resort on the south-west coast with daily treatments prescribed by an Ayurvedic doctor, yoga, meditation and herbal cuisine.

Travelling alone doesn't mean being alone. This tour is designed for solo travellers, with a trusted chauffeur-guide, safe and social hotels, and experiences where you meet local people – a cooking class, a village lunch and café evenings in Ella.

Taste your way across Sri Lanka. Visit fish and spice markets, cook with village families and home chefs, learn to make hoppers and kottu roti with street-food masters, and join a tea-tasting session – all combined with the key cultural sights.

Few visitors reach the north, which makes it all the more rewarding. Discover Tamil culture, colourful Hindu kovils, Dutch forts, palmyra landscapes and island shrines – and taste the famous Jaffna crab curry.

Visit the most sacred Buddhist sites in Sri Lanka, including the 'Atamasthana' (eight sacred places) of Anuradhapura, Mihintale, the Dambulla caves, the Temple of the Tooth and Kelaniya. Take part in offerings, a meditation session at a forest monastery and a Poya (full-moon) observance if dates allow.