‘We have had an increasing number of clients asking about Sri Lanka so when the opportunity arose to increase our knowledge it made sense to make the relatively short hop from Malaysia,’ says Michelle Rowe, operations manager of Travel Advocates. ‘An added bonus is that Sri Lanka is a dream destination for me and the other agents who have come along.’
The group’s first stop, Negombo is a popular stopover after arriving at Bandaranaike International Airport. Just 20 minutes drive, the coastal village has hotels that line the golden sand beach (on a stretch known appropriately as ‘Hotel Road’). Most people don’t stay long but national tourist guide lecturer Ranindu Lakmal Kalubowila (working for Aitken Spence Travels) notes that clients travelling from Australasia sometimes add an extra night to recuperate before heading off to explore the country.
Buddika Dias, assistant manager at Jetwing Beach Hotel where the Travel Advocates Group stayed a night, says travellers with time on their hands could easily spend three nights in the area.
‘We always encourage people to stay longer – not only for the beach but also city tours, religious tours, the fish market (second largest in Sri Lanka), and catamaran or boat tours.’
An early highlight for the group was a trip into Sri Lanka’s largest National Park, Wilpattu where they quickly spotted painted storks, a large croc and buffalo in one setting. Other sightings included a large python slithering throught the grass, stork kingfishers, serpentine falcon, mullabah pied hornbills, samba deer and (for some half the group) the big prize – a leopard running in front of the jeep across a dirt road.
Guide Lakmal notes that Sri Lanka has a recorded population of 700 to 900 leopards, about 300 of them in Wilpattu – a place that gets its name from the many and often picturesque natural lakes (willus) dotted through the park.
After a night at The Lake Forest Hotel the group headed to Hiriwadunna Village. This is a tourist attraction but not of the ‘sit in a circle and watch a staged show’ type – it is a functioning community where visitors can get a taste (literally with a rice and curry lunch) of rural life in Sri Lanka. Watching food being prepared and sampling local forms of transport (bullock cart, kayak and tuk tuk) that are all used in Sri Lankan villages are among the highlights.
The Travel Advocates famil is continuing through Sri Lanka until early next week.
Travel Advocates on safari in Sri Lanka… Andrew Phillips, Sasha Marshall, Rachel Rhind
Andrew Phillips - have tuk tuk will travel
In Hiriwadunna Village… Salveen Kumar, Michelle Rowe, Rachel Rhind, all Travel Advocates
