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Explore the World Heritage City - "KANDY"

Heaven on Earth. Let’s Unlock the door to a wonder of the Heaven…

Kandy is a large city in central Sri Lanka. It’s set on a plateau surrounded by mountains, which are home to tea plantations and biodiverse rainforest. The city’s heart is scenic Kandy Lake (Bogambara Lake), which is popular for strolling. Kandy is famed for sacred Buddhist sites, including the Temple of the Tooth (Sri Dalada Maligawa) shrine, celebrated with the grand Esala Perahera annual procession.

Wondering what are the best places to visit in Kandy ? Kandy has no dearth of places when it comes to exploring this beautiful hill station. With plenty of attractions and exciting places to visit, here are the top common as well as uncommon places to visit in Kandy. From museums to viewpoints, there is something for all kinds of travelers. Take a look!

 

Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage

Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is an orphanage, nursery and captive breeding ground for wild Asian elephants located at Pinnawala village, 13 km northeast of Kegalle town in Sabaragamuwa Province of Sri Lanka. Pinnawala has the largest herd of captive elephants in the world.

 In 2011, there were 96 elephants, including 43 males and 68 females from 3 generations, living in Pinnawala.

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39.0 km
1 h 1 min

Temple Of Tooth Relic

Sri Dalada Maligawa or the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is a Buddhist temple in the city of Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is located in the royal palace complex of the former Kingdom of Kandy, which houses the relic of the tooth of the Buddha. Since ancient times, the relic has played an important role in local politics because it is believed that whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country. Kandy was the last capital of the Sri Lankan kings and is a World Heritage Site mainly due to the temple.

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5.1 KM
30 Min

Horton Plains National Park 

The weather at the plains varies considerably during the course of the day with temperatures as high as 27 degrees centigrade during the day and dipping as low as 5 degrees centigrade in the evenings and night with thick mist formation and regular rainfall throughout the year.

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102 km
3 h 19 min

Royal Botanical Garden

Royal Botanical Gardens in Peradeniya is the oldest formal gardens in Sri Lanka. It is located 460 Meters above the mean sea level about 5 km to the west of the city of Kandy in the Central Province of Sri Lanka. Royal Botanic Gardens Peradeniya attracts approximately 2 million local and foreign visitors annually. 

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5.2 km
12 min

Commonwealth War Cemetery 

One of the six Commonwealth War Cemeteries of Sri Lanka is located in Kandy. This beautiful but melancholic site is the final resting place of those who died defending this country during the Second World War. It is located near the Mahaweli riverside and was formerly known as Pitakande Military Cemetery, before the charge of its maintenance was taken over by Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

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5.3 km
12 min

Udawattekele Sanctuary

Udawattakele Forest Reserve, often spelled as Udawatta Kele, is a historic forest reserve on a hill-ridge in the city of Kandy. It is 104 hectares large. During the days of the Kandyan kingdom, Udawattakele was known as “Uda Wasala Watta” in Sinhalese meaning “the garden above the royal palace”

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6.0 km
19 min

Polonnaruwa-kingdom

The Ancient City of Polonnaruwa, designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982, provides an enlightening view of life in Sri Lanka’s capital city from 1070 C.E. to 1310 C.E. The seat of power for the Polonnaruwa Kingdom, the king Parākramabāhu I designed and built the city utilizing techniques of irrigation and reservoirs. Parākramabāhu I understood the importance of water to sustaining his kingdom, and made effective irrigation a priority. The kingdom needed the ability to withstand invasions from a succession of southern India dynasties. Powerful Indian navies and armies supported campaigns outside the India subcontinent. The kings of the Anuradhapura Kingdom moved their capital inland to Polonnaruwa in the hopes of averting being taken over by invading Chola armies. The Chola Dynasty was a Tamil dynasty that ruled primarily in southern India until the thirteenth century.

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139 km
3 h 3 min

Sigiriya

Sigiriya is one of the most valuable historical monuments of Sri Lanka.Referred by locals as the Eighth Wonder of the World this ancient palace and fortress complex has significant archaeological importance and attracts thousands of tourists every year. It is probably the most visited tourist destination of Sri Lanka.The palace is located in the heart of the island between the towns of Dambulla and Habarane on a massive rocky plateau 370 meters above the sea level.

The surrounding territories of Sigiriya were inhibited for several thousand years.Since 3th century BC the rocky plateau of Sigiriya served as a monastery. In the second half of the 5th century king Kasyapa decided to construct a royal residence here.

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94.2 km
2 h 27 min

The Dambulla Caves

Sitting on top of a 160-metre high rock, these five caves cut in have been a pilgrim’s destination for centuries. Given the discovery of human skeletons dating back around 3000 years in the local area, it is assumed these caves were homes to pre-historic locals.

There are five caves inside, each with a different interior and statues – though many people on a quick glance would assume they are pretty similar. The monastery dates back to the first century (BC) when it is believed the caves were converted. It has been added to over the years and been home to many different religions. The caves you can visit today were restored and re-painted as they stand now by the Kingdom of Kandy in the 18th century.

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139 km
3 h 3 min

Knuckles Range

The Knuckles range is one of the loveliest nature attractions of Sri Lanka. The changing terrain of grasslands, rugged mountain peaks interspersed with streams and cascading waterfalls make Knuckles mountain range that covers an area of 18512 hectares the trekker’s paradise.Knuckles mountain range, a World heritage Conservation Area that affords intriguing trekking possibilities, is still to a greater extent untouched zone of significant natural beauty and biodiversity. The serious trekkers and biodiversity enthusiasts would even take up a three day hike of 40 plus km trek with a guide.

Popular hiking trails are Mini world’s end from Deanston; Trail to Dothalugala from Deanston; Trail to Nitro Caves from Corbtt’s Gap; Trail to Augallena cave via Thangappuwa from Corbett’s Gap; Trail to Kalupahana from “Meemure” village.

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41.9 km
1 h 49 min

Anuradhapura

Anuradhapura Sri Lanka  was the first capital of the island established in the 4th century BC. It was the royal capital for 119 successive Singhalese Kings and lasted for about thousand five hundred years. Many historic monuments and buildings still remain in the acres of this sacred land.

Anuradhapura is revered as one of the greatest monastic sites on this planet.”The historic city of Anuradhapura is an essential stop on any tour of Sri Lanka. This city, located around 205 kms north of Colombo, is one of eight World Heritage Sites in Sri Lanka and is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world.

Anuradhapura currently serves as the capital city of the North Central Province, and is considered the cradle of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. Its vast network of ancient Buddhist temples, monasteries and places of worship which cover over 40 sq kms has made it a sacred site to Buddhists around the world.

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139 km
3 h 3 min

Trincomalee

Trincomalee is a port city on the east coast of Sri Lanka. The Bay of Trincomalee’s harbour is renowned for its large size and security; unlike every other in the Indian Sea, it is accessible to all types of craft in all weathers. The beaches are used for surfing, scuba diving, fishing and whale watching. The city also has the largest Dutch fort in Sri Lanka. It is home to major Sri Lankan naval bases and a Sri Lankan Air Force base.

Most of the Tamils and Sinhalese believe that this place is sacred to them and they are the indigenous people of the area. Trincomalee and its environs have both Hindu and Buddhist sites of historical importance. These sites are sacred to the Hindus and Buddhists.The Eastern Province is one of the 9 provinces of Sri Lanka. 


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41.9 km
1 h 49 min

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