Wildlife & Safaris

Designed with parents and kids in mind: short driving days, hotels with pools, and experiences children love – elephants, bullock carts, trains, tuk-tuks, turtles and beaches. Family rooms or connecting rooms are arranged in every hotel.

A short break that combines the best of the south: a leopard safari in Yala, whale watching in Mirissa and a sunset walk in Galle Fort. Perfect before or after a Maldives holiday or a business trip to Colombo.

Sri Lanka is Asia's best-kept safari secret: leopards, elephants, sloth bears and more than 400 bird species on an island you can cross in a day. This tour visits four national parks – Wilpattu, Minneriya, Udawalawe and Yala – with a naturalist guide and comfortable lodges close to the park gates.

The two giants of Sri Lankan wildlife in one trip: the leopards of Yala and the blue whales of Mirissa – the largest animal ever to live. Add flamingos in Bundala and a beach afternoon, and you have a perfect nature break on the south coast.

Sri Lanka has 34 endemic bird species, and this tour is designed to find as many as possible. With a specialist birding guide, explore the lowland rainforest of Sinharaja and Kitulgala, the dry-zone parks of Udawalawe and Yala, and the wetland of Bundala.

A tour designed around light, not a checklist. Travel with a photographer-naturalist, use private safari jeeps with beanbags and extra time at sightings, and plan every shoot around golden hour.

The perfect balance: eight days of culture, tea country and wildlife followed by four nights on the beach to unwind. It suits couples and families who want to see the island but also come home rested.

Arugam Bay is one of the world's top surf destinations from May to October. This week includes five surf sessions with certified coaches at breaks for every level, plus a stop in Ella on the way and a lagoon safari in Kumana.

Hand-picked romantic hotels, private experiences and plenty of time together. Enjoy a sunrise hot-air balloon flight option over the Cultural Triangle, a candlelit dinner in a tea bungalow, a private safari in Yala and three nights in a beach villa in Tangalle.

Ten days is the most popular length for a first trip to Sri Lanka, and this route shows why. You will see the ancient rock fortress of Sigiriya, the royal city of Kandy, the tea country, the leopards of Yala and the colonial charm of Galle – the five experiences almost every traveller comes for.