The Heart of Sri Lanka

Built on a ground plan replicating the layout of the nearby ruins of ancient Ritigala, Cinnamon Lodge oozes retro-colonial chic. Its terracotta-roofed buildings are handsomely whitewashed, with architectural features picked out in traditional, Portuguese-style ochre. Deep, pillared balconies and verandahs provide plenty of cool outdoor space to relax in. All of the rooms and suites are air-conditioned. Meals are served in a beautiful, open-sided dining hall – ‘Ehala’ – whose sumptuous buffets feature a wide choice of European as well as Sri Lankan dishes. We particularly enjoyed the ‘Naughty Room’ – a chilled annexe devoted solely to sinful desserts!

Located on a huge granite inselberg, Dambulla occupies a wonderfully atmospheric spot, with views extending over the tropical canopy to distant Sigiriya and beyond. Adorning the interiors of the caves is an astonishing horde of 2,000-year-old murals and statues – unique in scale and degree of preservation. The mysterious, sculpted faces of the deities, and swirling reds and golds of the murals create an enchanting atmosphere.

Set in an area of gently undulating woodland, Polonnaruwa is the most spectacular of Sri Lanka’s many ancient ruins. From the 11th to 13th centuries, a succession of kings developed an immense city here, ranged around a huge artificial lake. The finely sculpted statues, frescoes, colossal Buddha images and immense stupas surviving here vividly convey the wealth and sophistication of medieval Sri Lanka. Nowhere else on the island will you encounter ancient buildings fine as those enclosed within the walls of the Quadrangle, where the Tooth Relic was once enshrined, or statues as magnificent as the four great Buddhas of the Gal Vihara.

Optional excursion: if you feel up to more sightseeing in the afternoon, sign up for a trip to the nearby Minneriya National Park where, in the summer months, between 50 and 300 wild Asian elephants congregate in a vast herd – one of Asia’s most compelling spectacles. The great gathering occurs around a huge reservoir, enfolded by a mix of forest, scrub, swamps and open grassland. During the hot season the waters of the tank recede leaving in their wake fresh shoots and mud which the elephants enjoy.

In the afternoon, another optional (but highly recommended) excursion takes you to the UNESCO-listed fortress-palace at Sigiriya. These spectacular 5th-century ruins rest on the top of a towering rock outcrop that can be scaled by means of steep staircases and catwalks. Along the way you’ll pass the much photographed wall paintings of curvaceous apsaras, or ‘heavenly nymphs’. Featured on innumerable publicity images for the island, they are believed to have been modelled on the real-life queens and princesses who once lived in the palace on top of Sigiriya rock. Marvellous views across the countryside of the Cultural Triangle are your reward for the climb, for which you’ll need a bit of a head for heights!

First port of call in Kandy will be the Royal Botanical Gardens of Peradeniya. Originally established as a royal retreat in the 14^th century, the park is famed for its world-class collection of orchids, palms and, the real showstopper, a giant Javan fig tree.

After lunch, we’ll continue to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, Sri Lanka’s most important Buddhist shrine. Pilgrims dressed in flowing white robes file through the complex throughout the day, carrying lotus blooms and frangipani flowers. The resident monks will demonstrate the traditional Thevada ritual offering for the group, accompanied by temple musicians. Time permitting, we’ll also visit the adjacent royal palace and National Museum, whose exhibits include an intriguing collection of traditional Sinhalese water clocks.

Founded in 377 BC, Anuradhapura thrived for over a thousand years until its destruction by Indian invaders in 993AD. Today, its vestiges retain great appeal for both tourists and Buddhist pilgrims, thanks to the impressive ‘dagobas’, or stupas, rising from its midst. Sri Lanka is dotted with these bell-shaped, whitewashed memorials, but the largest and most impressive are found here. One, the Jethawanarama, was at the time of its construction in the late-3^rd century AD almost as tall as the two great pyramids at Giza! The most revered monument on the site, however, is of more modest proportions. Enclosed within tiers of gold railings, the Sri Maha Bodi, or Sacred Bodhi Tree, is believed to have been grown from a cutting taken from the one under which the historical Buddha achieved enlightenment. The original, in Bodh Gaya, India, perished many centuries ago and worshippers from across the world have travelled here ever since to venerate its gnarled old off-shoot.

Your first stop in Trinco will be stately Fort Frederick, originally erected in the 17th century by the Portuguese to guard the town’s impressive harbour, which served as the lynchpin of Dutch, French and British colonial trade in the region. Crowned by the whitewashed Koneswaram Temple, nearby Swami Rock is no less spectacular. From the terrace of the shrine, you can gaze over the dramatic expanse of white sand and blue water sweeping north, where the local Cinnamon resort occupies a prime position. This will be your venue for lunch, and the hotel where any clients who have opted to extend their tour will spend the next few days. Before heading back to Harbarana, there will be time for a refreshing ocean dip and laze on the beach in front of the resort.

STAYING ON

The Cinnamon Lodge at Trincomalee, featured on Day Eight of this tour, is among our resorts of choice on Sri Lanka’s east coast, and the one we generally recommend to clients wishing to extend their stay to enjoy the island’s beaches. Extensively refurbished in 2017, the hotel is modern and luxurious, and enjoys a perfect location on one of Asia’s loveliest tropical bays.

Several other beaches lie within easy reach of the resort, including Nelaveli, a short drive north, which novelist Carl Müller once described as ”peach perfect . . . with a creaming sea of dreamy blue and a lagoon like a sculpted topaz”. Passikuda, a classic curve of shallow, translucent water and golden sand to the south, is equally beautiful, while Coral Island, just up the coast from Trincomalee, is the island’s best snorkelling site, its reef teeming with multi-coloured fish.

The seas off Trincomalee are also one of Asia’s top whale hot spots. Boats depart daily for a stretch of sea six miles offshore where blue and sperm whales are regularly sighted. March–April and August–September, when the whales migrate around the island, are the best periods.