Classic 7-Day Independent Travel in Sri Lanka

Day 1: Airport --- Negombo — Stay at Terrace Green Hotel🏡 🍌Negombo is about 15 minutes from the airport and half an hour's drive from the capital Colombo. We chose to stay in Negombo because we arrived late. The seaside hotels in Negombo are very beautiful. I picked a cost-effective hotel, but its seafood restaurant, Salt, ranks second in Negombo.🍅 💓Day 2: Diving in Hikkaduwa -- Stay in Hikkaduwa — Hotel Citrus It's about two and a half hours from Negombo to Hikkaduwa.😘 We planned to go diving in the afternoon, so we visited downtown Colombo in the morning, checked in at the Pink Church, and experienced the coastal train.🚞 Day 3: Galle Fort -- Stilt Fishermen -- Coconut Grove -- Stay in Mirissa — Hotel Randiya Sea View Hotel🏢 🍑It was a relaxed day, and the whole drive was only about two and a half hours. For dining, you can go to Mirissa's seaside to eat seafood and drink wine 🥂— it's very chill.🐾 🍩Day 4: Whale Watching -- Stay in Yala — Hotel Cinnamon Wild Yala We went whale watching 🐳 in the morning, and the whole trip ended around 10:30.⛅ Since we chartered a yacht ⛵️, it was more flexible in terms of time than taking a large ship. After checking out at noon, we headed to Yala, which took about two hours. On the way, we could stop by to visit the bat colony. At the hotel, we walked by the lake and waited for the sunset.☀️ Day 5: Yala National Park --- Nine Arches Bridge, Stay in Nuwara Eliya — Hotel Mirage Kings Cottage🌟 🌙There are full introductions about accommodation and safari in other articles. In the afternoon, we went to Ella Town and Nine Arches Bridge along the way. Mirage Hotel is also very old, with beautiful views on the top of the mountain, and there is a band performance at night.🌙 Day 6: Horton Plains -- Tea Plantation — Kandy Lake -- Stay in Sigiriya — Hotel Heritance Kandalama🌈🌈 🌩️We hiked in Horton Plains in the morning, which is described in detail in other articles. In the afternoon, we stopped by Damro Tea Plantation to buy some souvenirs. If time permits, you can also visit the tea plantation and the entire tea-making process for free, with Chinese explanations provided by foreigners.🌊 🏞️In fact, if you don't like tea, you can spend the time at Kandy Lake, which is a beautiful place and worth staying for an extra day if time allows. Day 7: Sigiriya Rock -- Elephant Orphanage -- Stay in Negombo, at Terrance Green🌎 Because we stayed at Heritance, we set off quite late and didn't go to the Elephant Orphanage — we had seen too many elephants during the trip. After brunch, we went to Sigiriya Rock.🏔️ Day 8: Negombo --- Airport✈️ #SriLankaTravelRoute