Things to do and excursions
Elephant rides
Sri Lanka is a country rich in elephants. These magnificent creatures have become a part of the tourist’s experience, but it’s important to do some research and ensure that you’re paying to spend time and ride on an elephant that has not been mistreated. Apart from it being a bad idea to encourage cruel treatment of the elephants, it’s also true that mistreated elephants are likely to be more aggressive and unpredictable.
UNESCO World Heritage sites
Sri Lanka has a total of eight UNESCO World Heritage site – a very impressive number for such a small island. To put this in perspective, this is the same number of sites as Argentina, which is more than 40 times the size. The most recent addition is the Central Highlands, which were designated a site in 2010. You should try to see as many of the sites as you can.
Beaches
Sri Lanka boasts a column of lovely beaches running south of Colombo down the west coast. The perfect silvery sand and year-round weather make for a fantastic relaxing holiday. The sea is a little choppy, and as such not ideal for swimming, but it is ideal for watersports and you really have a lot of fun between your sunbathing sessions.