Ella is a small town in the Badulla District of Uva Province, Sri Lanka governed by an Urban Council. It is approximately 200 kilometres east of Colombo and is situated at an elevation of 1,041 metres above sea level.
Ella is a paradise like highland village set on southern edge of Uva Province of Sri Lanka. Ella village of salubrious climate nestles amidst hill after hill of tea plantations bringing in panoramic views of the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka. The finest view is afforded through a cleft in green hills, popularly called Ella Gap. Ella gap drop down nearly 1000 meters over the ridge of Central Highlands to bring in a telescopic view of the Great Plains as far as the southern coast of Sri Lanka.
6 km down the spectacular road from Ella to Wellawaya is Bambaragama Falls, also called Ravana Ella Falls that tumbles down 90 meters over the valley wall. On the way to the Ravana Ella Falls well known for the discovery of fossils of "Homosapiens Balangodenis".
Ella is trekker's dreamland: waterfalls, rock cliffs, caves, plantations, villages, railway track and woods that abound with birdlife, provide ample opportunities for hiking, trekking and cycling.
Restaurants at Ella serve good food at decent prices: with its cultivation of vegetables and fruits, Ella is a fine village to enjoy plateful after plateful of Sinhalese rice and curry cooked with garden fresh vegetables.
Badulla is the capital of Uva Province in Sri Lanka. Badulla is located on the southeast of Kandy, almost encircled by the Badulu Oya River, about 680 meters (2200 ft) above sea level and is surrounded by tea plantations. The town is overshadowed by the Namunukula range of mountains. Badulla is about 230km away from Colombo towards the eastern slopes of central hills of Sri Lanka.
Badulla and surroundings are highly recommended for eco-tourists as Horton Plains National Park and the Knuckles mountains are few hours away.
The Uva Province is Sri Lanka's second least populated province, with 1,187,335 people, created in 1896. It consists of two districts called Badulla and Moneragala The provincial capital is Badulla. Uva is bordered by Eastern, Southern and Central provinces. Its major tourist attractions are Dunhinda Falls, Diyaluma Falls, Rawana Falls, the Yala National Park (lying partly in the Southern and Eastern Provinces) and Gal Oya National Park (lying partly in the Eastern Province). The Gal Oya hills and the Central Mountains are the main uplands, while the Mahaweli and Menik rivers and the huge Senanayake Samudraya and Maduru Oya Reservoirs are the major waterways in Uva province.
