Sri Lanka: Mirissa, Galle, Unawatuna

The next stop of our Sri Lanka adventures after Yala National Park was the seaside town of Mirissa. On the way there, we had pre-arranged with the driver to stop at the well known beach area of Hirikiteya. Bron really wanted to walk on the beach but it was blazing hot, so we settled for a smoothie bowl in the shade of a cafe instead. Once a hidden sleepy village, Hiriketiya is now well known for its sheltered excellent and consistent waves perfect for beginner surfers, yoga culture, and trendy cafe vibes. It looks very busy though and the prices were definitely higher than what we had encountered in Sri Lanka up to now. We would have loved to stay at least 1 night though; we didn’t have enough time in our itinerary to add another destination so a smoothie bowl on the beach would have to suffice this time. 

Further down the road at Mirissa, we enjoyed a long walk on the beach, a surprising and excellent Indian dinner of filled roti’s at No. 1 Dewmini Roti Shop, an impromptu game of street cricket with two local kids, and an unexpected release of baby turtles on the beach on the way back! All in all a pleasant day. 

Sunset vibes on Mirissa Beach

Filled rotis and lassis for dinner, yum

Not the best picture, but street cricket in action!

One of the most popular things to do in Mirissa is take a whale watching tour. Sadly it has become over commercialised and whale numbers in the bay have significantly decreased over the years due to boats chasing the whales. Even the type of whale visiting has changed, blue whales rarely come, only Bryde’s whale. After some research, we decided to go with Raja and the Whales, a family owned and run business and the only ethical whale watching enterprise in the area. They don’t chase whales and don’t allow people to swim with the whales, and they allow university students on the trips for free to conduct their research. 

The tour started really early, 06:00 check in at their office, and included breakfast on the boat, loads of tea and cookies, fruit, and a king coconut each. The staff looked after all of us really well and also gave a lot of information about the history of the area, whales, and the other animals we saw. Definitely take motion sickness medication though, even with my tablets I was feeling green around the gills on the open ocean. 

The first sighting was a (green?) turtle, we were really lucky to see him, he just popped up briefly for a breath of air. The second sighting was a number of spinner dolphins. Was so very special and fun watching them riding the waves in the bough of the boat, they are really small but so agile and were clearly enjoying themselves. They would have played all day if we had stayed. And then finally we saw a Bryde’s whale. Bryde’s Whales don’t come that high out of the water, don’t breach that often, and don’t lift their tails out of the water, so it was a very chill sighting lol, but still very special. After the whale sighting, it was time to head back to shore. It was a long morning on the boat, but lovely and worthwhile. Thank you Raja and the Whales for a fab morning and for all your conservation efforts!  

Not easy to see under the water, but spinner dolphins in action 

Bryde's whale 

King coconut on the boat 

Whale watching tour with Raja and the Whales 

Happy to be back on land, we stretched our legs and grabbed a drink and some lunch and were thankfully feeling less green. From Mirissa, we made our way to Galle, where the rest of the afternoon was spent exploring this UNESCO World Heritage fort city. 

Lunch vibes on Mirissa Beach watching the surfers

Galle was successively colonised by the Portuguese, Dutch, and British, and is most famous for its colonial era fort, the largest remaining European-built fortress in Asia. The first small defensive fortifications were originally built by the Portuguese in the late 1500s, were massively expanded by the Dutch into a full fort with protective ramparts, modern drainage, and a hospital in the late 1600s, while the British added the iconic lighthouse and clock tower in the 1800s before moving their trading operations to Colombo. Top sights include the stone wall ramparts, the old Dutch Hospital, the lighthouse, clock tower, the entrance gates, the Methodist Church and the Dutch Reformed Church. And of course the cafe-lined cobblestone streets and boutique tourist shopping opportunities laid out in the grid like fashion of European urban planning. 

We enjoyed a HOT afternoon walking around the old streets exploring the sights trying to hide in the shade. We were hoping for a famous fish dinner but all our chosen spots were out of fish, hello? Rather unplanned, we found ourselves at the pub at the now converted old Dutch Hospital, mostly in order to watch the T20 cricket. We struck up a conversation with an older British wandering nomad traveller and all in all had a rather pleasant evening despite the fact that they don’t serve tea (we are in Sri Lanka, where’s the tea?). 

Streets of Galle with the old entrance gate, churches, and old Dutch hospital

The Lighthouse

The Clock Tower and old rampart walls

Coconut delivery

The next day we were not traveling very far, only 15 minutes down the road to Unawatuna, so a slow morning of a late brunch, window shopping, and cafe hopping ensued. We enjoyed Galle but it was definitely the most seedy of all the places we stayed in Sri Lanka and would definitely recommend not wandering out of the fort area.

In the afternoon we made our way to Unawatuna, the super chill part and final destination of the holiday. Apart from two mornings of diving for Justin, the only plans were to walk on the beach, eat tuna steaks, drink tea, and relax. Mission accomplished. 

Originally built as the Governer’s residence in 1735, our accommodation in Unawatuna is a heritage hotel today. The original house is fully preserved with its high ceilings and terracotta floor tiles making it a cool oasis in the heat without needing airconditioning, and is dotted with antique furniture including what must be the wooden chest that came by ship from the Netherlands. Situated on acres of green garden where monkeys, monitor lizards, and many birds visit daily, plus two pools and the original freshwater well still visible. It really was such a treat to stay here and one of the highlight accommodations of the trip.  

The heritage hotel where we stayed in Unawatuna

At the foot end of the property is the Rumassala mountain with trails through the forest leading to Jungle Beach and then eventually Unawatuna Beach. The slightly long way round to Unawatuna beach but a good work out, we only did this route once lol. Once on the beach, we walked the full length and then back to the Red Snapper. Another couple staying at Yala with us told us about the Red Snapper and it did not disappoint! 

We arrived early enough for a table on the beach and in time for the tuna steaks to still be available. Oh my gosh, the best tuna steaks ever! And the biggest pot of tea. Someone was very happy. The food was amazing and the service excellent. We ate here all three nights we stayed in Unawatuna lol and highly recommend! Thank you Red Snapper. 

A beeg tea and tuna steaks for dinner at the Red Snapper.

Someone was very happy lol.

The mornings were spent diving for Justin and walking on the beach for Bron. We would meet back at the hotel for tea and a chill before heading back to the beach for another walk in the late afternoon and/or watching the cricket. Unawatuna beach has a distinct camber to it and the sand is very coarse which was starting to really hurt after a while. On the last evening, we decided to try a different beach further down the coast. Nice and flat with no camber and lovely soft sand, it had a different vibe with not that many hotels or restaurants on the beach. It was perfect. We came back on the last morning too for a final walk. 

The other gorgeous beach we walked on

And then all too soon it was time to start heading back home. 

Thank you Sri Lanka for the best time! It was the perfect combination of activities and relaxing and we came back feeling refreshed, that does not happen very often for us lol. We hope to be back to enjoy your sunny shores again. 

Until then xxx 

Sri Lanka: Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, Ella, Yala NP

We have been wanting to go to Sri Lanka for the longest time however Covid slowed us down. Our opportunity finally came over the Lunar New Year this year. The Pearl of the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka you did not disappoint! Your people are warm and friendly, your beaches are sunny, and your food diverse and delicious! Thank you for the best time. 

The trip started with a late arrival into Colombo. We decided to stay a bit out of the city at Negombo beach, a popular out-of-the-city stop for tourists. Even at the late hour with a 30 min drive to the accommodation, the taxi driver asked if we wanted to stop at a 24 hour supermarket. We were like, no…? Later we would realise that he was just being kind, friendly and genuine and this kind of offer was very normal in Sri Lanka and he would happily have waited for us to go shopping with no additional fee on the taxi, even at midnight. Sri Lanka your people are gems! What a treat to have this warmth again. 

We didn’t pre arrange any transport and were uncertain how that would go, but it was super easy with Uber and the local ride-hailing app PickMe. Would definitely recommend just winging it with these two apps for transport in Sri Lanka, it was easy and affordable. 

Negombo Beach

View from the hotel

First tea! 

After a walk on Negombo beach and a first in-country Ceylon tea, we booked an Uber to our next destination in Kandy. Another super lovely driver! There is not a lot to do in Kandy apart from temple hop, we only had one afternoon and morning and felt that was sufficient. We arrived early afternoon and headed to the Royal Botanic Gardens where we enjoyed a lovely long walk, being outside, the beautiful gardens in general, and had our first sighting of flying foxes! In the evening we went to find somewhere to watch the T20 cricket World Cup. We found out somewhat late that the T20 WC was being hosted between India and Sri Lanka, we need to be more informed lol. Unfortunately we were not able to watch any games live, and it was surprisingly difficult to find places to watch the games, but we did manage to watch a few of them. 

The Royal Botanic Gardens

Watching T20 World Cup cricket at the Queen's Hotel

The very colonial Queen's Hotel

Kandy Lake

Flying foxes! 

Looking into the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic complex from Kandy Lake 

The next morning we enjoyed walking two laps around Kandy Lake (and skipped the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic) and got ready to move on to our next destination: Nuwara Eliya in the highlands and tea plantations. The night before we had messaged with the lovely Uber driver that had driven us from Colombo to Kandy to see if he could take us onwards to Nuwara Eliya, he agreed and was on time waiting for us the next morning. What we didn’t realise is that he had driven home to the Sigiriya area after dropping us in Kandy, about a 2 hour 30 min drive north, and then driven all the way back in the morning to pick us up! He didn’t think anything of it and apparently that is very normal in Sri Lanka; the drivers make the most of the high season and have no problem driving long distances and indeed we would experience that again later in the trip. 

Traffic leaving Kandy was very heavy but orderly. Our driver had kindly offered to stop at some places and viewpoints along the way. First stop was Ambuluwawa Tower for views over the surrounding area, followed by the lovely Ramboda Falls. Last stop of the day was the Bluefields Tea Factory. Founded by the Worms brothers (somewhat unfortunate name lol, would you like some Worm tea?) in the 1840s, Bluefields is still an operational tea plantation and factory. The free tour was interesting and highly informative. We learned the history of the area, the plantation, how the ladies pick the leaves, the drying and sorting process, about the different grades of tea, and much more. We learned that all the tea plants in the area are the same and were brought from India. Each picker picks 20kg or more of tea leaves a day and each tea plant can be picked after just 8 to 10 days thanks to the favourable climate and soil conditions. Most astounding was that all the equipment was imported from Ireland, came in pieces by ship, and is still functional today! They sure don’t make things like they used to. The tour ended with a tea tasting where we tried the regular ceylon black tea, their earl grey blend, and the white tea. It was all really good. Their own label is only available on site. Otherwise you have probably enjoyed their tea in your favourite ceylon blend (Lipton, Dilmah, Five Roses, etc.). It had been a beautiful sunny day but the temperature was noticeably cooler in the highlands and would only drop further at night. We didn’t know it yet, but there were some wet days ahead. This region is not called Little England for nothing. 

Ambuluwawa Tower and surrounding views

Ramboda Falls

With our super lovely Uber driver at the falls

At Bluefields Tea Factory

One of the tea leaf drying conveyer belts at the factory

We had one full day to explore Nuwara Eliya. It was a very wet day but we headed out anyway. We went to go find the Lover’s Leap Waterfall in the pouring rain lol. The Tudor-style post office is a popular spot but not so pleasant in the rain, we came back later after lunch when the rain had calmed down. It is possible to freely wonder around any of the tea plantations; there was one directly behind our accommodation so the afternoon was spent getting lost among the tea plants. Our hotel and all the staff were really lovely. We had dinner there both nights and each meal was made from scratch per order. They were so kind to us and accommodated some meal requests. Sri Lankan curries are super yum and slightly different to Indian curries in that they are coconut milk based rather than tomato based. We would enjoy many amazing curries this trip! 

Views from our lovely hotel in Nuwara Eliya

First Sri Lankan curry! 

Lover's Leap Waterfall in the rain 

The Tudor style post office 

Walking in the tea fields behind the hotel 

Initially we had planned to take the very popular scenic train from Kandy to Nuwara Eliya and on to Ella. We were puzzled when we couldn’t find any tickets available well in advance of our trip. Then it dawned on us and a google search confirmed that the trains were not running on certain routes due to the typhoon that had passed through Sri Lanka in Oct/Nov 2025 and the resulting floods. Indeed a lot of damage was still evident on the roads driving between these highland cities. Some of the train routes had been restored but not all due to structural damage to some bridges. We decided to stick with using cars as our main transportation. 

Uber is not so big in the smaller towns so we took a PickMe to our next destination of Ella, still in the tea plantations but somewhat more touristy. Another rainy day but it let up enough for us to walk to the famous Nine Arch Bridge. The 100 year old colonial era railway bridge was designed to accommodate a nine degree curve and steep gradient, and was constructed entirely out of stone, brick and cement, no steel due to the commencement of WWI. The trains don’t run very often so it is safe to walk along the tracks. We decided to walk up the steep cliffside to a local cafe for a drink and views over the bridge and were treated to a train crossing the bridge in each direction at the perfect time of late afternoon. It is very touristy but still worth a visit.  

Nine Arch Bridge in Ella

We really wanted to do some hiking in Sri Lanka and had our sights on Horton Plains National Park but didn’t realise it was so far from everywhere and a bit of a logistical challenge from where we were staying (if you want to visit here, it seems worth it but we recommend staying closer nearby). However, we were happy there were some other options in Ella. Our time in Ella was predicted to be good weather in the morning with rain later, so we planned hikes in the morning with chilling in the afternoon. 

The first morning we went for a walk up little Adam’s Peak. Easily accessible, very touristy, but with lovely views over the area. After that we rather enthusiastically went to find Kuda Ravana Waterfall. Just out of town and an interesting climb, but worthwhile none the less. The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent chilling, watching cricket, and window shopping. 

Views from Little Adam's Peak

Interesting route to the waterfall...

Kuda Ravana Waterfall

Traditional Sri Lankan curry

Kotu

Basically chopped up rotti mixed together with egg and vegetables (mainly leek, carrot, and onions). With chicken is also popular.

delicious and filling but probably not very healthy...

King coconuts

Everyone raves about the king coconuts but we both think the coconuts in Vietnam are better.

Sorry Sri Lanka!

Top tip: serve them cold.

Frozen curd

We loved the curd which is basically yoghurt made from buffalo milk.

The second morning we got going a lot earlier to tackle the rather steep Ella Rock in the cooler early morning weather and before the rain. The route starts nicely flat along the train tracks and then veers off and gets steep fast, but the view and peace at the top are well worth the climb. A beautiful pooch and the goodest boy joined us from early on in the walk all the way to the top. I specially saved him half of my potato samosa snack which he promptly rejected in favour of sugary cookies, thanks boy. He abandoned us at the top and joined another group with said cookies. We got down just before the rain and went to go find our by now favourite cafe for lunch. 

This goodest boy joined us for the hike

Views from Ella Rock

Marry a man who makes you laugh

Look Mom, no trains

Mongoose

Happy tea face

Post hike refuel

From Ella we headed south to Yala National Park, the best park in the country to see leopards. Indeed, there were three good leopard sightings on the day we arrived so we were hopeful for our safari the next day. We had booked a great looking accommodation for this area and were super excited to stay there, sadly it turned out to be very different to what was advertised. The bathroom was outside, which in itself is not a problem, but it was very open so if it was raining, which it did all night, you would get soaked, combined with treacherous stairs and only cold water it was not a fun experience. We also had to change rooms halfway, the second room was a treehouse with even worse stairs, open air with no ac, and a leaking grass roof. It was difficult to communicate with the staff and also difficult to believe all they were saying. Anyway. We still had a nice time. Their redeeming factors were the wonderful dinners and the super friendly pooches that stayed with us almost the whole time. The park was amazing, and the sunset views from our treehouse room were very special.

There was a lake en route to the accommodation where we stopped to enjoy the buffalo.

Even though our accommodation turned out to be an adventure, it was still lovely and the dinner was amazing!

Sunset from our treehouse

We had high hopes for our early morning safari, however it rained heavily all night and all the cats were taking it easy in the morning. There were two leopard sightings on our safari, but we didn’t see either of them lol. The first leopard had moved off before we got to the front of the queue of jeeps. The second was there but only partially visible, neither of us could see it. Even though there were sooo many jeeps in the park, it was all very orderly. All the vehicles queued and patiently waited their turn, there was a maximum viewing time which was respected so the queue kept moving, and there were park officials at the leopard sightings helping to keep things orderly. A pleasant and very different experience to our safari in India last year and other countries in general. 

We were sad to not see any leopards but Yala is still a very cool park and well worth the visit, we saw loads! The safari started with a cheeky elephant relieving the car behind us of their packed lunch. He is well known in the park and amongst the jeep drivers, he first tried his luck in our jeep but fortunately our driver was fast enough and able to get past him, the car behind was less lucky. We saw loads of cool birds, elephant including many babies, buffalo, crocodiles, monitor lizards, monkeys, and a mongoose. Birds we saw included the little green bee eater, stork billed kingfisher, oriental darter, woolly necked stork, yellow billed stork, unknown kind of eagle, Eurasian spoonbill, and others.  

Cheeky Ellie relieving the jeep behind us of their packed breakfast

View from inside the car

Can you see the leopard?

No, neither did we lol

But we did see:

Ellies

Buffalo

Mongoose

Monitor lizard

Crocodiles

Monkeys

and lots of very cool birds.

From Yala we moved further south to commence the seaside part of the holiday. 

See you next time for beaches, whales, dolphins, coconuts, and more tea!

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