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We would like to do this trip in 2026 for husbands retirement. Not been to either before. We are thinking end of Feb beginning of March. Would have to be under 3 weeks in total as I will still be working. We are not big drinkers but considering all inclusive in the maldives. Not too fussed about beaches in Sri Lanka as will probably do maldives at the end. Hoping to use virgin upgrade voucher for the 2 of us to fly to India then on to colombo. How easy is Sri Lanka to do DIY. Has anyone done the viceroy train as that was tempting. Will use 2nd virgin voucher for return or ba 2 for 1. Any tips or advice on where to start most welcome. Thanks
I’d suggest flying to BLR, a new route for Virgin from this spring, instead of DEL or BOM if possible. DEL often has smog problems. BLR is a small airport and easy to connect. Also has quite a few sightseeing options, is less humid and good hotels, if you’d like to take a break. Availability on upper class should also be good given it’s a new route.
You can obviously use avios on Srilankan but Indigo is a good low cost airline and cost of extras such as spacious seat or baggage are reasonable.Strickers is the srilanka expert.
Sri Lanka is extremely easy as DIY holiday especially if you use the Driver/guide that he used. We have been twice – once backpacking doing it all on public transport and last year doing a combination of @strickers driver then drivers from place to place at the end as we were staying a few days in each and didn’t need excursions.
Hi @ClaireF, there are a couple of Maldives threads here with discussions on the merits of AL v other options and which are the best islands to visit. Also the vagaries of getting avios seats to/from MLE at T-355! Sounds like a lovely trip to be planning!
We’re doing 10 days in Sri Lanka in March. We’ve just booked hotels in the areas we want to visit, and will be getting the hotels to arrange transfers between them to get around. I can let you know if we experience any unforeseen challenges when we’re there, but I doubt it!
Our itinerary is
Day 1: CMB > Hatton (3-4 hrs drive)
Day 3: Hatton > Ella (by train, approx. 4 hrs)
Day 4 Ella > Yala (2-3 hrs drive)
Day 8: Yala > Colombo (~4 hrs drive)Will be 10 hours of driving (at least), but I think it will be worth it to see more of the island! Some people also visit Sigirya north of Kandy, but I’ve seen a lot of ruins and don’t think it’s worth adding two extra days of 2-3 hour drives. Kandy also seems to be receiving mixed reviews, so we’re skipping that. Our key activities on the trip will be travelling through the hill country and then on to safaris in Yala, and we’re also not prioritising beaches.
Looks like the Viceroy train is not bookable anywhere – might be charter only (in which case you have to use a tour company), or they might have gone out of business. I know there used to be another upscale tourist train as well that no longer exists. The regular train looks ok but nothing fancy, we’re taking it for the journey from Hatton to Ella.
Here is my trip report from a year ago, a few people have used Nandika and all as far as I’m aware have had positive experiences. If you need any other advice then I’ll try and answer otherwise WhatsApp Nandika.
https://www.headforpoints.com/forums/topic/sl-maldives-india-trip-report/
Many thanks for all the tips and advice I am bookmarking this thread and will take a look at all the suggestions.
Here is my trip report from a year ago, a few people have used Nandika and all as far as I’m aware have had positive experiences. If you need any other advice then I’ll try and answer otherwise WhatsApp Nandika.
https://www.headforpoints.com/forums/topic/sl-maldives-india-trip-report/
We’re off to Sri Lanka on Saturday (Avios ex-DUB-DOH-CMB as Qatar had 4 Business seats) but meeting Nandika on Sunday morning for a 6 day trip around. Thanks for recommending him, his pre-trip comms by WhatsApp has been excellent and he seems happy with my google maps route and self-booked hotels. Will report back.
Is there anything we could take him as a gift? Obvs we’ll give him money too, but just wondered if anything in particular. Have got Percy Pigs for the kids.. hopefully dental appts are easier to come by in SL 🙂
Presents for Nandika – I can’t remember exactly but he has two boys, both teenagers I think but one of whom has special needs. We did bring a few gifts for them including sweets which he said he would have to ration as the boy with special needs would eat them all at once! He does enjoy gifts as he talked about various gifts regulars brought.
Cash of course was welcome as medical costs for his son were high.
Presents for Nandika
Cash of course was welcome as medical costs for his son were high.Thank you, that’s very helpful.
A nice tip for medication, otherwise he’s a very humble man and would be happy with anything.
Update from Ella in the hill country of Sri Lanka which is our last night with Nandika, the @strickers recommended guide.
Nandika has been a dream, from pre-trip communication to daily trip plans. I asked for a fairly spacious air-con van for the four of us to spread out in so Nandika hired a van which comes with a driver (Donald) who is excellent.
Over the years we’ve had shared van experiences where the other guests can be irritating so latterly have been booking ‘private’ tours with a guide. Sometimes the guide then becomes the irritant (my brother’s shop type visits, not making sure we have enough water for a strenuous climb etc). Nandika has responded to any requests and where possible picked good, quieter, places to visit/stop.
We explained that we’re unlikely to be buying arts, crafts, gems etc and find it a bit embarrassing to leave without buying, so he’s skipped those places in the main, although they also tend to be the places for a good tourist bathroom.
We’ve had 6 nights on tour, will write it up when on the beach in our airbnb villa next week.
One point worth considering is that I booked all the hotels myself. If Nandika had booked the hotels, then he and Donald the driver would get free accommodation; because I booked, they’ve mostly had to find their own accom.
I explained that I – like many on HfP/flyertalk – enjoy the planning of trips, so Nandika’s suggestion is that if I’d told him the route and hotels but also the price of hotels, he would have tried his travel agent rate (which he believes is cheaper) so a win-win if that were the case. He’s also happy to come up with complete itineraries if the client doesn’t enjoy the planning.
In short, thanks @strickers, an excellent choice which I wholeheartedly endorse!
@Metty It’s great to hear, I didn’t know about the hotel situation. I actually booked a tour and Nandika was provided as the guide but will book direct next time, probably heading back late next year to do a few things we missed. I would be interested to know the details of your AirBnB as we are hoping also to do a tour and then relax on or close to the beach.
It’s a bit long and waffly, but….
https://www.headforpoints.com/forums/topic/trip-report-sri-lanka-feb-24/
I guess any questions best here in this thread or we end up all over the place?
We’ve just bagged 2 CW seats to Male next March. As per OP, we’re planning on doing Sri Lanka too, at the end, and then fly back via Bengalaru as there is loads of CW availability. I’ve read all the trip reports and other comments, thanks all, very useful. We’re not really interested in temples or tea plantations, much more interested in wildlife, scenery, food and history so any suggestions to cover these areas well in 7-8 nights would be very helpful. We also like the idea of using Strickers’ contact Nandika. On the subject of the Maldives, I have seen, what looks like, a very good deal at the ‘Standard’ hotel via Secret Escapes, does anyone have any experience of that hotel? I have looked at tripadvisor and other guides but I figure that HfP is much more reliable as advice goes. Thanks again.
Sri Lanka is extremely easy as DIY holiday especially if you use the Driver/guide that he used. We have been twice – once backpacking doing it all on public transport and last year doing a combination of @strickers driver then drivers from place to place at the end as we were staying a few days in each and didn’t need excursions.
@qc hi, can you let me know how and where did you book the individual drivers to take you place to place? Thank you! We just managed to bag club seats back from the Maldives which has made this trip far easier than 15 hours overnight trip in Y on Qatar!We loved the Ceylon Tea Trails (Resplendent Ceylon) bungalows. Beautiful scenery near Hatton, wonderful service and fantastic food. There are five bungalows each with about 4/5 rooms, so the service is very personalised. We will definitely be returning.
We loved the Ceylon Tea Trails (Resplendent Ceylon) bungalows. Beautiful scenery near Hatton, wonderful service and fantastic food. There are five bungalows each with about 4/5 rooms, so the service is very personalised. We will definitely be returning.
Looks beautiful. What’s the best time of the year to visit? Assume spring or autumn?
Best time is between Christmas and Easter.
I’d suggest flying to BLR, a new route for Virgin from this spring, instead of DEL or BOM if possible. DEL often has smog problems. BLR is a small airport and easy to connect. Also has quite a few sightseeing options, is less humid and good hotels, if you’d like to take a break. Availability on upper class should also be good given it’s a new route.
You can obviously use avios on Srilankan but Indigo is a good low cost airline and cost of extras such as spacious seat or baggage are reasonable.Strickers is the srilanka expert.
If the OP wants to connect in India rather than stay, Virgin’s BLR flight lands at a grim 0245 and the BLR flight at 0855. There is a Vistara flight from BOM at 1225 which is more than enough time to collect bags and go back through immigration. Indigo flies from BLR 1130 which obviously works time wise, but is a long time to wait.
Here’s my thoughts on the connection – https://www.headforpoints.com/forums/topic/trip-report-maldives-via-mumbai-redemption-and-destination2/
Sri Lanka is extremely easy as DIY holiday especially if you use the Driver/guide that he used. We have been twice – once backpacking doing it all on public transport and last year doing a combination of @strickers driver then drivers from place to place at the end as we were staying a few days in each and didn’t need excursions.
@qc hi, can you let me know how and where did you book the individual drivers to take you place to place? Thank you! We just managed to bag club seats back from the Maldives which has made this trip far easier than 15 hours overnight trip in Y on Qatar!I just searched Tripadvisor for recommendations – each area has a list of taxi firms etc – they were fine but nowhere near as good as Nandika and in one case the driver we booked sent his cousin instead which I wasn’t happy about!
Thank you!
We’re doing Maldives and Sri Lanka next March but we’re using Sri Lanka de-luxe travels for an organised tour of Sri Lanka which is unlike us, we’d normally DIY, but this time we wanted low risk. We’re flying back via Bengaluru, where we have about 36 hours, staying at the Taj at the airport. If anyone has any suggestions for a sightseeing trip from the airport, please let me know.
We’re doing Maldives and Sri Lanka next March but we’re using Sri Lanka de-luxe travels for an organised tour of Sri Lanka which is unlike us, we’d normally DIY, but this time we wanted low risk. We’re flying back via Bengaluru, where we have about 36 hours, staying at the Taj at the airport. If anyone has any suggestions for a sightseeing trip from the airport, please let me know.
Bengaluru is ‘famous’ for traffic and you can be stuck on the road for long times. Best to choose one or two places to visit based on your likes and focus on those, stopping for food on the way to airport.
Mysore palace is highly recommended , but it’s a 3-4 hours from BLR, so budget plenty of time if you want to do it.Thanks BBbetter
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