Dambulla
The 12-roomed Lake Lodge lacks the scale of the big Kandalama resorts, but makes up for it with personalised service. Rooms are fresh and modern, with the upper-storey deluxe rooms boasting fine sunset views over the forest canopy. The hotel is French-run, so the coffee and food are good, with romantic candlelit dinners by the pool a highlight.
Discounts of up to 50% are often available in low season.
22.48 MILES
Part of Parakramabahu I’s northern monastery, Gal Vihara is a group of beautiful Buddha images that probably marks the high point of Sinhalese rock…
21.98 MILES
A short stroll north of the Royal Palace ruins, the area known as the Quadrangle is literally that – a compact group of ruins in a raised-up area bounded…
26.26 MILES
The steep ornamental staircase of this dramatic rock fortress is perhaps its finest feature, and once led to the Temple of the Tooth. One of the lions…
3.08 MILES
The beautiful Royal Rock Temple complex sits about 160m above the road in the southern part of Dambulla. Five separate caves contain about 150 absolutely…
7.42 MILES
The spectacular terraced summit of the rock covers 1.6 hectares. This is thought to be the site chosen by King Kasyapa for his fortified capital after he…
22.34 MILES
One of the most evocative structures in Polonnaruwa, the Lankatilaka temple was built by Parakramabahu I and later restored by Vijayabahu IV. This massive…
26.89 MILES
The primary attraction at this Buddhist temple is the golden standing Buddha statue in the main cave called the Pahala Vihara (Lower Temple), which also…
7.42 MILES
Halfway up the Sigiriya rock an open-air spiral stairway leads to a long, sheltered gallery in the sheer rock face. The paintings of the buxom, wasp…
2.71 MILES
Even if you’re not looking to buy a truckload of bananas, this huge wholesale market south of the centre offers a fascinating look at the vast range of…
2.9 MILES
Hire a bike and head out to this little-visited ruined monastery. Trails take you past a stupa, the standing monolithic stones of a prayer hall, several…
2.94 MILES
The English-language displays here are a good primer on Sri Lankan wall art – from cave paintings to 18th-century frescoes – but the poor reproductions…
2.95 MILES
At the foot of the cave temples hill stands this modern temple, a kitschy structure and Buddhist museum completed in 2000 using Japanese donations. On top…
3.08 MILES
The beautiful Royal Rock Temple complex sits about 160m above the road in the southern part of Dambulla. Five separate caves contain about 150 absolutely…
3.08 MILES
The first cave, the Temple of the King of the Gods, has a 15m-long reclining Buddha. Ananda, the Buddha’s loyal disciple, and other seated Buddhas are…
8. Cave II (Maharaja Viharaya)
3.09 MILES
The Temple of the Great King is arguably the most spectacular of the caves. It measures 52m from east to west and 23m from the entrance to the back wall;…