01Cultural TriangleFrom 6.30am
Sunrise at Sigiriya
At the gate before it opens, up the 1,200 steps while the rock is still in shadow, and on the summit as the dry zone comes out of the haze below.
02South CoastDecember to April
Blue Whales off Mirissa
The continental shelf runs close to shore here, which brings the largest animal that has ever lived within an hour of the harbour wall.
03South EastGate-open, 6am
Tracking Leopards in Yala
One tracker, one vehicle, and the discipline to switch the engine off and wait. The highest leopard density on earth rewards patience.
04Nuwara EliyaYear round
A Day in Tea Country
An hour in the fields with a picker, a working factory floor, and a tasting through the grades that explains everything you thought you knew about tea.
05South CoastLate afternoon
Galle Fort on Foot
Four hundred years of Portuguese, Dutch and British trade inside one sea wall, walked at the hour the stone stops radiating heat.
06Kandy or GalleHalf day
Cooking in a Family Kitchen
Grinding your own roasted curry powder, tempering a dhal properly, and understanding why rice and curry is fifteen dishes rather than one.
07Nanu Oya to EllaFour hours
The Hill Country Railway
Reserved seats, open doors, and the four hours of the line that carry almost all of the scenery. Your driver takes the luggage round by road.
08SigiriyaHalf day
A Village Afternoon
A bullock cart, a catamaran across the tank, and lunch cooked over a wood fire by the family who invited you.
09WeligamaNovember to April
Learning to Surf
A soft bottom, a slow break and the most forgiving bay in the country. Most people stand up on the first morning.
10SinharajaHalf day
Rainforest at Dawn
Mixed feeding flocks, twenty endemics before lunch, and the noise a primary rainforest makes when it wakes up.