Wild Sri Lanka Traveller Reviews

This was a three week tour of Sri Lanka; It started at a boutique hotel called the Notary's House in the Gampaha region where we relaxed after our flight enjoying the vistas and sounds of the surrounding countryside and relaxing by the pool; we moved on to stay it the Mudhouse near Anamaduwa where we explored the area, enjoyed birdwatching safari's and walking tours. Staying in a small villa near Sigiriya amongst a small collection of villas served as an perfect base for visits to Sigiriya, a national ECO game park, Polonnaruwa, the Dambulla Cave temples as well as doing an ETG exclusive visit to a village and farm tour including lunch with a local family. Moving to Kandy we saw the Temple of the Tooth, the Royal Botanical gardens, a spice garden with herbal remedies, and local crafts including wood carving and batik manufacture. Touring through the tea growing areas in the Hill Country we joined a train to take us from Nanu Oya to Ella through the most interesting and beautiful countryside. Close tp Ella with stayed at Amba Tea Estate where we trekked through the scenic landscape, seeing arable farming, tea growing and superb views of the countryside , waterfalls and the Ella Gap. We then transferred to Tree Tops Jungle Lodge near Buttala as a base for local walking safaris and birdwatching, and jeep safaris in Yala where we saw leopards and elephants and a wide variety of birdlife - superb sightings. We moved to a cabana on the beach on the south coast for 4 days relaxation where we experienced superb food, company and a lovely setting before our final transfer to Galle to stay at Fort Printers, an 18th century mansion, in the mist of Galle. We ambience of Galle and a fascinating walking tour of the fort was the culmination of our wonderful experience and insight into Sri Lanka

Our tour operator did an excellent job. Their knowledge of Sri Lanka is superb. ETG listened to our requirements and made suggestions which ranged from sight seeing to understanding the local culture, customs and crafts, to seeing ancient cities and tea plantations, and having wildlife safaris on foot and in jeeps. ETG provided a range of accommodation for each location to suit our needs from which we could select. They were mostly remote, quiet and close to nature. We had a driver guide on ETG's recommendation who was extremely knowledgeable about Sri Lanka's history , culture, flora and fauna. He contributed to our enjoyment of our holiday. All the arrangements planned in detailed discussion with us worked out perfectly and we experienced everything we expected and hoped we might see. All in all ETG arranged and delivered a holiday of a lifetime. ETG had a close link with a local tour operator , Magical Isle Holidays , who ensured the holiday ran completely smoothly and dealt with any last minute changes to our itinerary.

A bespoke tour of Sri Lanka

Experience Travel arranged a tour that went seamlessly and exceeded expectations.

An attempt to see and experience as wide a view of Sri Lanka as we could. A range of accommodation ranging from Mud House to 5 Star. Taking in some of the most important Religeous and Historical sites in the process.

Professional from the outset, supported by a locally based contact who proved invaluable.

Spent 18 days in Sri Lanka - 14 days with a chauffeur guide. Visited so many fascinating sites and places. Had some memorable and unexpected experiences. Got a real 'feel' for this beautiful country and delightful people - its history, its present and its culture. Cant wait to return.

Tour operator - Experience Travel Group. Efficient and helpful in planning stage. Local knowledge was obvious and made for a really great time. They aim to give people memorable experiences and they certainly did that. Great attention to detail and anticipation of our needs. Had every confidence in their client care and service. Our Chauffeur Guide was brilliant - so well trained and made our holiday a huge success.

8 nights in Sri Lanka visiting two national parks and Colombo.

We booked our tour through Experience Travel Group and Becky was our contact. From the very beginning their attention to detail was outstanding and they really made me feel like we were the only tour they were working on. I would definitely use them again for another trip.

A holiday to remember. Temples, wildlife, beautiful mountain views and sandy beaches are just some of the things that will remain in our memory for ever. The hotels and the friendly staff are exceptional and the food is of high quality and plentiful. Our guide Sudarshan always took time to point out hidden gems and wildlife and found great places to eat with the locals. A great way to discover Sri Lanka.

From the start to finish our intereaction with ETG was great. The planning of the holiday was straight forward and all our queries and ideas were dealt with within 24 hours. The detailed itinery gave us comfort that we would see a lot of the Coountry and the way ETG structured the holiday so that we had 10 days of exploring and the final four days at the beech worked really well.

We had the most amazing two weeks in Sri Lanka and thanks to ET it was perfect and just what we wanted. So many wonderful experiences, climbing Sigiriya Rock, Camping with a day Safari (we saw a leopard!!!) Dambulla Caves, and many more fabulous places. We stayed in amazing boutique style hotels some of which had truly fabulous views and they really couldn't do enough to make our stay just right. Both my daughter and husband had birthdays while out there and both were given birthday cakes and even a birthday banner! Food was outstanding! Throughout our trip we had the most amazing driver, Kapi! he really did make our holiday and became part of our family for that time. He certainly made sure we experienced Sri lanka at its best and we felt so safe with him. Would love to return to this beautiful country one day, we had the most perfect holiday.

Everything from the start of our holiday planning to being out there to coming home was great. ET really do care and take the time to find out exactly what you want out of your holiday. They are always on the end of the phone or email to answer any questions you have however small. Sara really did deliver EVERYTHING we asked for and far far more. Thank you for a holiday of a lifetime. We are now saving for the next one!!

An amazing trip around central and northern Sri Lanka experiencing the wonderful people; food; wildlife and scenery.

Experience Travel Group is excellent. Our consultant (Becky Grainger) had wonderful local knowledge and delivered a perfect schedule within our budget. The quality of guides and hotels were first class. The people; food; wildlife and scenery of Sri Lanka were second to none which led to us having a truly memorable holiday. ETG has a wonderful ethos and does tourism the right way - supporting the country and worthwhile causes and steering customers away from experiences which may be harming the local people and wildlife.

We really liked the large range of bird life, the elephants, the creatures in the jungle and the whales. in addition we enjoyed staying in some great small hotels with lovely staff and great local food.

They helped is create a wonderful itinerary and through a local company gave us great support

We had a wonderful "Taster" of this beautiful country in the 15 short days we were there. We saw stunning scenery, historic locations, wonderful religious ceremonies and a way of life where time seems to have stopped still. There cannot be a more welcoming, warm people anywhere, they made our holiday so very special. We went from mountain tops where we hovered almost above the clouds to the Indian Ocean and beaches just for ourselves. We learnt the history of this land and came to u defeat do how important tourism is to their continuing growth and well being It's a land of gentleness, wonderful weather, interesting food and challenging itineraries! We loved every minute of it and hope dearly to return one day

Becky was patient, understanding of our concerns, informative ( having travelled there herself) and worked to the confines of our budget- nothing was too much trouble for her