Things to do in Sigiriya

Fantastic visit and the highlight of our 1 day tour from Colombo. There is a water station halfway if you need to refill your bottle and on less busy days there is some limited shade at the top. Breathtaking views from the top.

We visited Minneriya hoping to see the famous elephant gatherings, but there were surprisingly few. The park’s terrain is mostly forested, with limited open plains for wildlife viewing. In contrast, Yala National Park offered a much richer experience with more wildlife sightings, including elephants.

The Dambulla Caves, a world cultural heritage, is the largest, most famous and best-preserved cave temple in Sri Lanka. A half-day tour of the caves was arranged, and 4 impressions are still fresh in my memory. 1. The antiquity of the caves. The Dambulla Caves were built in 89 BC (some say 1st-2nd century AD), earlier than the Mogao Caves built in 366 AD in my country. After more than a thousand years of unremitting efforts, a spectacular pattern of 5 caves connected to each other was formed between the rock walls on the hillside of the giant stone (186 meters high). 2. The beauty of the statues. The 2,100 square meters of murals and 157 Buddha statues in the caves are all treasures of Buddhist art. The most beautiful murals. The Buddha murals in Cave No. 2-Great King Cave, from the cave ceiling to the cave wall, are completed in one go, and are magnificent. The most beautiful statues. The 14-meter-long reclining Buddha in Cave No. 1-Heavenly King Cave is huge in size, peaceful in expression, and graceful in lines. 3. Fun of monkeys. It takes more than 20 minutes to walk up the mountain road with more than 400 steps from the foot of the mountain to the cave. All the way up, the view is wide, the air is fresh, and monkeys can be seen everywhere in groups, playing, being coy, or exercising, which are very cute. The locals told us: the reason for depositing shoes is not to prevent people from stealing, but to prevent monkeys from snatching them. 4. Pain in feet. You can only enter the cave after taking off your shoes to show your piety. The hot sand and the stones hurt your feet. My feet hurt so much... No one ever reminded me to wear thick socks.

It was a great rock climbing experience, especially suitable for taking children to play!

The ancient city of Polonnaruwa has a history of more than 1,500 years. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is well worth a visit. The ancient city is very large and its basic outline can still be seen.

What a fabulous night safari! 🌙🦉I just came back from an incredible experience where the team from Amba Yaalu Excursions & Experiences made everything feel seamless from start to finish. Since it’s my first visit to Sri Lanka, I was especially grateful—because “trekking through a jungle on a Saturday night” is definitely not my usual plan 😂😂😂The biggest highlight? My guides were both women, and they were absolutely exceptional—confident, warm, and brilliant. Not only did they expertly navigate me through the jungle, they genuinely ensured I learned so much. You know how the General loves to learn 😍—and this was learning done the fun way, with real context and enthusiasm, not just a “follow the group and hope for the best” kind of tour.It was also a huge upgrade compared to just settling for the park’s standard guide. This felt personal, guided, and thoughtful—like I was experiencing the jungle, not just passing through it.Massive thanks to Ravina and Sithumi for making it all smooth, safe, and memorable. If you want a night safari with depth, clarity, and incredible guidance, I can’t recommend this enough! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️