Sri Lanka Honeymoon
Overview
- Duration: 10 days / 9 nights
- Departures: Private, any date
- Group size: Private, from 2 travellers
- Accommodation: Comfortable 4★ hotels and boutique stays with views, and a beach hotel on the south coast
- Country: Sri Lanka
A relaxed honeymoon in Sri Lanka: Kandy’s temples and gardens, the train to the tea hills around Ella, and four unhurried nights on the coast near Galle.
This ten-day route is planned for couples who want variety in Sri Lanka without a crowded timetable: a little culture, cool tea country and four slow nights by the sea. It works well straight after a wedding, when the last thing you want is an early start every day.
You arrive in Colombo and head up to Kandy for two nights, with the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic and the gardens at Peradeniya. The train then carries you through tea estates to Ella, where the days are about sunrise walks, tea and long views. The trip ends with four nights on the coast near Galle, mixing the old fort with beach days that are entirely your own.
We choose hotels with character for this kind of trip: rooms with a view in the hills and a beach hotel on the south coast. Tell us what matters to you, whether that is a pool, a quiet location or a special dinner, and we plan around it.
Two honest notes. The drive from Ella to the coast is long and winding, around four to five hours. And the train, while lovely, is slow and often busy, so reserved seats depend on availability. December to March brings the best weather on this route; from about May to September the south-west monsoon brings rain to the coast, and we can suggest an east-coast beach instead.
Day-by-day itinerary
Your driver meets you off the plane for the hour’s drive into Colombo. After a rest, spend the evening by the sea: Galle Face Green fills with families, kite-flyers and snack stalls as the light fades, and a rooftop or seafront dinner is an easy way to mark the start of your trip together.
Overnight: Colombo
Drive inland to Kandy, about three to four hours, as the flat coast gives way to rubber plantations and green hills. Settle into a hotel with views over the valley. At dusk, walk together to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic for the evening ritual of drums, flowers and lamps, dressed with shoulders and knees covered.
Overnight: Kandy · Meals: Breakfast
Spend a relaxed morning in the Royal Botanic Gardens at Peradeniya, where shaded lawns, giant bamboo and an orchid house make for a pleasant few hours on foot. Have lunch in town, then walk the path around Kandy Lake. The rest of the day is free; a massage at your hotel is a good way to slow down.
Overnight: Kandy · Meals: Breakfast
Board the hill-country train for the long, slow climb through tea plantations, waterfalls and misty ridges. It takes much of the day, so bring snacks and a book for the quieter stretches. Reserved seats depend on availability; your driver carries your bags by road and meets you at Ella station for the short ride to your hotel.
Overnight: Ella · Meals: Breakfast
Set an early alarm for Little Adam’s Peak, a gentle walk through tea bushes to a viewpoint where the sun rises over the hills. After breakfast, stroll to the Nine Arches Bridge to see a train pass, then take the afternoon off. A tea-tasting session at a nearby estate, or simply a hammock with a view, fills the rest of the day.
Overnight: Ella · Meals: Breakfast
Wind down out of the highlands past Ravana Falls, then cross the southern lowlands to the coast, a drive of about four to five hours. Your beach hotel near Galle is your base for the last four nights. Unpack properly, kick off your shoes, and watch the sun go down over the Indian Ocean.
Overnight: Galle · Meals: Breakfast
Explore Galle Fort in the cooler morning with a local guide, through streets of low colonial villas, small churches and a whitewashed mosque within the old walls. Linger in the boutiques and galleries, stop for a long lunch in a shaded courtyard, and come back to the ramparts in the evening for sunset by the lighthouse.
Overnight: Galle · Meals: Breakfast
No plans and no driver today. Swim, read and nap, following local advice on where the sea is calm enough to swim. If you want an outing, the coast has gentle snorkelling spots in season, and between about November and April you can book a whale-watching boat from Mirissa, though sightings are never guaranteed.
Overnight: Galle · Meals: Breakfast
Choose how to spend your last full day. You could learn a few Sri Lankan curries in a home cooking class, cycle along quiet village lanes behind the coast, or visit a cinnamon estate to see the bark peeled by hand. Or keep the day completely free for the beach. Ask us to arrange a private dinner on the sand.
Overnight: Galle · Meals: Breakfast
Enjoy a final unhurried breakfast before your driver takes you to the international airport, about two and a half to three hours by road via the expressway. If your flight leaves late in the evening, we can keep your room for the afternoon where the hotel allows it.
Overnight: — · Meals: Breakfast
What’s included
- Accommodation for 9 nights with breakfast
- Private airport and hotel transfers
- Private car and driver for road journeys and sightseeing
- Local English-speaking guides in Kandy and Galle Fort
- Reserved seats on the Kandy–Ella train, subject to availability
- Entrance fees to sights in the itinerary
- 24/7 support during your trip
Not included
- International flights
- Visas
- Travel insurance
- Meals not listed
- Tips
- Personal expenses
- Optional activities such as whale watching, cooking classes, massages and private dinners
Good to know
Sample itinerary: we adapt the route, hotels and dates to you and confirm everything in your written quote. Best December–March.
A private car and driver take you from Colombo to Kandy, about three to four hours, and from Ella down to the coast near Galle, about four to five hours. Between Kandy and Ella you ride the hill-country train, with reserved seats subject to availability; your driver meets you at Ella with the luggage. The final transfer to the airport is about two and a half to three hours.
Frequently asked questions
From about May to September, rain affects the west and south coasts. The hill country stays green and pleasant, but for beach days we would usually move your seaside nights to the east coast, which is drier at that time.
Yes, many couples do. The flight from Colombo to Malé in the Maldives is short, and we can replace one or two of the Galle nights with several island nights at the end.
No. The longest walk is the easy climb to Little Adam’s Peak, and every day has free time built in. You can skip any sightseeing and simply enjoy your hotel.
We can request things like a room upgrade, a private dinner or a spa treatment when we book, and confirm in your quote what each hotel can offer. These are usually paid locally or listed as extras.
