Excursion Overview
Just over 5km to the west of Kandy sits the Royal Botanical Gardens in Peradeniya. These striking and historic gardens started off as pleasure gardens for Sinhalese royalty, before being turned into a botanical garden by the British. It’s the largest botanical garden in Sri Lanka and arguably one of the finest in the subcontinent, with an incredible selection of orchids and a stately avenue of royal palms. The Cannonball Tree is of particular interest as in 1901 it was planted by King George V and Queen Mary. As part of your half-day tour you will also visit the spice gardens in nearby Matale; here a knowledgeable and friendly guide will take you through the gardens explaining how the various spices and medicinal herbs are grown. You are likely to see nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves being grown. The gardens were also Lord Mountbatten supreme headquarters during World War 2 so they are of huge historic importance too. We highly recommend visiting.
Excursion type:
- Outdoor
- Active
- History
- Nature/wildlife
“
Lisa Jankus-Scott organised a very diverse itinerary for our visit to Sri Lanka. We visited temples, tea plantations, a couple of safaris, a street food experience, Sri Lanka food cookery class and many beautiful rural boutique hotels. Our driver guide Alaine looked after us so well and was very informative, he loved the fact that my husband shared his interest in birds. Will definitely use Holiday Architects again.
Valerie Mortiboys,
”
“
Rebecca at Holiday Architects put together a wonderful trip to Sri Lanka for us. She listened carefully to everything we did and didn’t want and asked all the right questions. This resulted in a perfect itinerary right from the beginning. The holiday itself was as good as promised; an excellent driver-guide, wonderful hotels and an itinerary that delivered everything we wanted.
Patricia Smith,
”
Meet our Sri Lanka experts
We offer tailor-made holidays to suit a wide range of tastes. Our experts Dawn, Lisa and Rebecca are dedicated to all things Sri Lanka and are here to help you plan your perfect trip.
Dawn Smith
Destination Manager
From its tea-covered hills to its colourful towns, endless beaches and magic people, our Dawn’s head over heels with Sri Lanka and she knows exactly how to help you fall in love with it, too.
Lisa Jankus-Scott
Destination Manager
Sri Lanka sparked Lisa’s lifelong love for Asia, and it remains one of her favourite places to visit. She’s all about combining cultural highlights, beautiful landscapes and proper local flavour into every itinerary, and Sri Lanka is the place to do just that.
Rebecca Dodds
Destination Manager
Few places have a hold on Rebecca’s heart like Sri Lanka. It’s the mix of culture, landscapes, unmatched food and magic people that gets her, alongside the closeness of the Maldives! And she’d love nothing more than helping you experience it all.
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