Sri Lanka is home to some of the best wildlife viewing of anywhere on the planet. Known as the Pearl of the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka is home to majestic elephants, elusive leopards, gigantic crocodiles and sleepy sloth bears. The diversity of animals and habitats means that Sri Lankan safaris all offer their own unique and unforgettable experiences. Read on to discover Sri Lanka’s best wildlife destinations, where two zoologists break down the wonders of Sri Lanka through 5 of the best Sri Lanka safari destinations and what makes each of them unique.
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Sri Lanka: A Biodiversity Hotspot
Being located in the tropics, just south of India, Sri Lanka’s climate is hot and tropical with multiple monsoon seasons across the country. With a broad range of habitats from beautiful tropical rainforest to dry savannah, it is a land of incredibly diverse wildlife and nature. Despite Sri Lanka’s small size, the biodiversity is extraordinary and it is considered the most biodiverse country in the whole of Asia in terms of species concentration.
In fact, together, with the Western Ghats of India, Sri Lanka forms one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots. This means that Sri Lanka is of critical importance to our planet’s diversity and nature, but crucially, that Sri Lanka’s biodiversity is also under a great threat of being lost or destroyed due to human activity and habitat loss, having already lost over 70% of its natural habitat.
Sri Lanka is becoming increasingly well-known for its wildlife safaris, and in recent years has begun to be considered as one of the best and most impressive big game wildlife safari destinations outside of Africa. As a nation with one of the densest populations of Asiatic leopards and Asian elephants anywhere on the planet, Sri Lanka safaris are not to be missed!
Best Sri Lanka Safaris
Due to the remarkable abundance of life and the relative ease of seeing big game, Sri Lanka is a dream travel destination for wildlife and nature lovers. Across dense rainforest, grassy plains, marshland, and dry savannah, a Sri Lanka safari will offer the chance to explore various habitats providing a unique opportunity to encounter some of the world’s most fascinating creatures. Follow us to learn about some of the best Sri Lanka safaris as we discuss what you can expect from each.
Wilpattu National Park
Wilpattu National Park is Sri Lanka’s largest national park at over 131,000 hectares. Located around 140km north of Colombo, it is a little off the beaten path, but still easily accessible via a direct bus from Negombo. Nonetheless, its remote location means that it is far less crowded than the more popular and overcrowded Yala National Park. Although, due to its large size animal-sightings can be less frequent, Wilpattu provides a far more authentic safari experience for those who really want to get lost amongst Sri Lanka’s wildlife and nature.
It is this tranquility that makes Wilpattu National Park our favourite place in the whole of Sri Lanka, and in our opinion, Wilpattu offers the best and most intimate Sri Lankan safari experience possible in the country. Wilpattu’s enormous size and array of habitats means you have a good chance of seeing many of Sri Lanka’s most desirable animals including the iconic leopards, sloth bears, elephants, jackals, water buffalo, sambar deer, crocodiles, peacocks and so on.
Best Time to Visit…
The best time of year to visit Wilpattu is during the height of the dry season between May and September. Vegetation is significantly reduced and water is sparse, leading animals to congregate around the few remaining waterholes, making wildlife spotting easier.
Wilpattu is still great to visit all throughout the dry season from January through to October, and our visit in early January gave us incredible wildlife sightings, with the lush vegetation providing incredibly picturesque scenery.
If you visit between May and July when the palu tree is in fruiting season, you have a prime opportunity for sightings of the elusive sloth bear. The palu fruit is one of the sloth bears favourite foods and so this period is the best time to see them.
Times to avoid are usually between October and December, as this period is marked by the north eastern monsoon season, bringing with it lots of rain and potential flooding and closure of the park.
How to Get There…
Despite being located pretty far off the beaten path, it is still easily accessible using Sri Lanka’s vast bus network, with direct buses travelling between Negombo and Wilpattu Junction regularly and taking you there in around 4 hours. Look out for the number 87 bus and hop off at Wilpattu Junction. With bus tickets costing us 750Rp (£1.94) per adult for the 4 hour journey, it is an extremely cheap option of travel!
You can also travel to and from Wilpattu Junction from Anuradhapura via the 87 bus if you are coming from that direction!
If you wish to travel in a bit more luxury, PickMe and Uber are available from Negombo to Wilpattu costing around 15,000-17,000Rp (~£40.00) and taking around 3.5 hours. Though you will have to rely on the bus or arrange a Tuktuk with your hotel when leaving Wilpattu as there are unlikely to be any drivers operating in the area.
Where to Stay…
Our safari and stay was with Dolosmahe Guesthouse which is located right on the doorstep of Wilpattu – literally 200m from the entrance. Susil was an amazing host and so passionate about the wildlife there, spending hours sharing stories with us about his life living alongside the park and its animals. The total cost of the safari was 24,000Rp (£65) per person for the full day 5am – 5pm with breakfast and lunch included.
He also helped us to photograph a pair of hornbills and a palm civet that visit his garden, putting out some fruit for them and setting up a seat to sit and wait for the intriguing visitors to come along. See below for the hornbill shot!
If you want a bonus Sri Lankan wildlife destination not too far from Wilpattu National Park, please check out our guide on how to see slender loris’ at Popham’s Arboretum in Dambulla.
Yala National Park
Renowned as one of the best places in Sri Lanka to spot leopards, Yala National Park is Sri Lanka’s most popular safari destination, and for good reason – it is full of diverse wildlife and beautiful landscapes! It is also easily accessible and on the main backpacking and travel routes, with most people staying in the nearby town of Tissamaharama.
Yala National Park’s safaris transverse through diverse landscapes of expansive open grassland, dense forest, rocky crags and stunning lagoons, all of which boast their own unique wildlife and ecology. The abundance and diversity of life here is incredible, and you have a great chance to spot many of the most sought after animals in Sri Lanka at Yala.
With common sightings of popular Sri Lankan wildlife including many leopards, elephants, sloth bears, jackals, water buffalo, crocodiles and peacocks, it is a magnificent place for wildlife lovers to explore.
You will most likely see more wildlife on your Yala safari compared with Wilpattu. However, Yala’s beauty does come with a price – it is definitely unsustainably overcrowded. With a more than 1000% increase in visitors over the past 20 years and an estimated ~40% of tourists in Sri Lanka visiting Yala, the number of jeeps and traffic in the park is excessive. With hundreds of jeeps operating in the park, the news of leopard sightings is often met with a mass rush of vehicles all desperate to see the animal, causing traffic jams as they converge on a single point competing for the best view.
This makes it vital that you choose a reputable safari guide that has the animals and their welfare at heart, rather than one trying to achieve the best views without consideration of their impact on the wildlife. Our personal recommendation is Janaka Safari, especially with the amazing guide we had named Sudu. We are both zoologists and ecologists, and so we try to be hyper-mindful of minimising our impact on animals and their welfare when wildlife-viewing. So seeing the way Sudu approached his job was brilliant.
Best Time to Visit…
Yala is best to visit during the dry season between February and July, where water levels are dropping and animals tend to congregate around the remaining watering holes. Ideally, between May and July is best when vegetation is becoming much less dense and animals are much easier to spot around the remaining waterholes.
The park is then closed between September and mid-October for maintenance and to give the park a rest from the dry, harsh and dusty conditions. The Northeast monsoon season arrives around mid-October and runs through to January, seeing heavy rains and the growth of a lush green oasis.
How to Get There…
Yala is quite remote in its location and most easily accessible via the nearest town of Tissamaharama. Most visitors tend to stay here and the majority of safari operators pick their guests up from the various hotels and homestays around here. The bus is the most affordable way to travel in Sri Lanka and is fairly simple despite Google Maps not really showing many of the routes.
From Ella: If catching the bus from Ella in the north, you have to first catch a bus to Wellawaya, and from there you can change and catch another bus from Wellawaya to Tissamaharama.
From locations along the South / West coast: If you are coming from the other direction, the 32 bus runs all the way along the coast from Colombo to Tissamaharama.
Beginning in Colombo, the bus stops off at many popular beachside locations such as Hikkaduwa, Galle, Unawatuna, Mirissa, Tangalle, and many more, so is a great option for any budget travellers wishing to visit Yala.
Udawalawe National Park
Home to a thriving population of elephants, Udawalawe National Park is without doubt one of the best places to observe Asian Elephants in their natural habitat. Established in 1972, primarily as a refuge for the many wild elephants in the area, Udawalawe is a park of around 30,800 hectares of lush grassy plains and enormous water bodies, particularly the Udawalawe reservoir.
With an estimated 250 resident elephants, they are undoubtedly the primary attraction of Udawalawe, but there are many other animals that call it home including leopards, rusted-spotted cats, fishing cats, sloth bears, golden jackals and the many deer species. However, sightings of leopards are relatively rare compared with other parks such as Yala and Wilpattu.
Best Time to Visit…
Udawalawe is best visited during the dry season when the elephants congregate around the remaining water sources. However, if you are to visit during the rainy season during November and March, you have a great opportunity for birdwatching when many migrant birds come to the park.
How to Get There…
Udawalawe is accessible via Sri Lanka’s vast and extremely affordable bus network from many of the most popular destinations.
From Colombo: Take the 122 bus which travels directly between Colombo Fort and Udawalawa Junction.
From Ella: The journey from Ella to Udawalawe requires two buses, taking from 2-5 hours. First, catch the bus from Ella to Wellawaya, and from there you can catch the bus to Udawalawe.
Minneriya National Park
If you love elephants and want to experience one of Sri Lanka’s most cherished natural wonders, then Minneriya National Park is the place for you! In a remarkable event known as “The Gathering”, each year Minneriya National Park sees the gathering of hundreds of Asian elephants around the precious Minneriya Tank.
During the height of Sri Lanka’s dry season, as many of its water bodies have dried out, the gigantic reservoir known as the Minneriya Tank provides a rare and vital water resource for a whole host of Sri Lankan wildlife. Here, up to 300 wild elephants gather each year, creating an unforgettable spectacle for this Sri Lanka safari.
Best Time to Visit…
The dry season in Minneriya occurs between May and October, so this is the primary time to witness “The Gathering”. Elephant numbers peak at the height of the dry season between August and September, so this would be your best time to visit!
How to Get There…
Minneriya is best accessed from the adjacent village of Habarana, but can also be easily accessed from Sigiriya or Dambulla which are slightly further out. Most safari operators run from Habarana, but will usually offer pickup from hotels in Habarana, Sigiriya, Dambulla and other nearby areas.
Habarana is a great place to stay if you are looking at embarking on a safari at any of the main elephant-viewing parks of Minneriya National Park, Kaudulla National Park or Hurulu Eco Park. And it is accessible by bus!
From Colombo: Catch a bus from Colombo to Anuradhapura, then Anuradhapura to Dambulla, and from there you can catch a tuk-tuk to your homestay in Habarana. This should take between 4 and 7 hours depending on traffic and weather conditions.
Hurulu Eco Park
Also located in the heart of Sri Lanka’s cultural triangle, alongside Minneriya and Kaudulla National Parks, Hurulu Eco Park offers an alternative and cheaper Sri Lanka safari to witness the wonder of Sri Lankan elephants. As it doesn’t include the same level of large government fees as the other designated national parks, you can find much cheaper safaris here.
Forming an important habitat connecting with other key elephant reserves such as Kaudulla and Minneriya National Parks, it is a brilliant place to go on an elephant safari. With enormous landscapes and hundreds of elephants calling it home, it is definitely worth a visit if you are nearby in Anuradhapura or Sigiriya. We booked our safari through our wonderful and super-friendly homestay at Lathika Homes in Sigiriya, which cost around 11,000 Rp (£28) per person for the full day safari.
You can also book your Habarana Safari online via GetYourGuide if that is a more convenient option for you.
Best Time to Visit…
Huluru is best to visit between November and June, with peak elephant migration through the park occurring in December and January. As the rains come back and the previously dry water bodies begin to refill, the elephants begin to leave the haven of Minneriya in search of more food, where they venture through Kaudulla and Hurulu.
How to Get There…
Hurulu Eco Park is located right beside Habarana, so is the most easily accessible of these elephant-watching safaris.
From Colombo: Catch a bus from Colombo to Anuradhapura, then Anuradhapura to Dambulla, and from there you can catch a tuk-tuk to your homestay in Habarana. This should take between 4 and 7 hours depending on traffic and weather conditions.
Booking Your Sri Lanka Safari
When it comes to booking your Sri Lanka safari, things can get a little confusing. There are primarily three ways of booking a safari: 1) directly through a tour operator; 2) through your accommodation or 3) online through a third-party booking company.
We opted for booking directly through a tour operator to save money and so that we had more choice over who our guide would be and could make sure they were reputable. However, many accommodations can also offer some great safaris.
If you want more wildlife guides from around the world… Check out our other guides on: How to swim with wild turtles in Bali; Where to see koalas on Australia’s East Coast; A Guide to Jhalana Leopard Safari in India and much more!
Conclusion
Sri Lanka is fast becoming one of the world’s most captivating safari destinations outside of Africa – and for good reason – it is home to some of the most incredible populations of Big Game on the planet.
From adrenaline-rushing encounters with leopards, to serene moments observing families of elephants in their natural habitat, Sri Lanka safaris provide an incredible range of wildlife experiences. Whether you’re an obsessive wildlife enthusiast like us, or an adventurous traveller wishing to connect with nature, Sri Lanka’s wildlife destinations are not to be missed.
If you want the full safari experience with good chances of seeing the entire range of Sri Lankan wildlife, then we recommend Wilpattu National Park and Yala National Park. Both of these remarkable places are home to good populations of leopards, sloth bears, elephants, jackals, and the whole range of bucket-list creatures.
Alternatively, whilst the other parks don’t provide the same chances of seeing leopards and sloth bears, Minneriya, Hurulu and Udawalawe all offer near guaranteed chances of spotting elephants.
If you are interested in exploring more of Sri Lanka’s wildlife and uncovering some more hidden gems, check out our other Sri Lanka wildlife blog posts on Sri Lanka’s wildlife destinations!
