Ceylon Endearment (26 Days)

Explore the Galle Fort, one of the best-preserved fortifications in Asia, built up by the Portuguese and later the Dutch. See the fort's museums and lighthouse, and walk the cobblestoned streets with their Dutch names.

Also known as the Virgin White Tea Factory, this is where the famous Virgin White Tea is plucked and processed without being touched by hand. Learn the history of the tea, join a tasting session with tea and chocolate cake, and buy tea leaves as a souvenir.

A hill three kilometres east of Galle, topped by a white Buddhist dagoba and known as a landmark of Unuwatuna beach. It is one of five Sri Lankan sites said to have fallen from Hanuman's flight carrying the Dronagiri hill, and is also linked in legend to Sita's stay on the island.

Watch fishermen perched on stilts in the waters along the coast of Koggala, a craft practised here for generations, and hear from the fishermen themselves how it developed and how it is done.

A crescent-shaped beach at the eastern end of Weligama Bay, where the curve of the sand gives the sense of being on a secluded, palm-covered island. Spend both days here at a leisurely pace.

A coastal area notably bare of trees due to its serpentine rock, which contains toxic heavy metals that only certain small plants can tolerate. Local legend also links its bareness to Hanuman's burning tail and to King Ravana's use of the plateau as an airfield for his chariot.

A full-day safari in the island's second-largest national park, on the south-eastern coast, with the chance to see Sri Lankan leopards, wild water buffalo, sloth bears and elephant herds, alongside many other mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians.

An ancient Buddhist temple complex of seven statues from the 10th century, belonging to the Mahayana school. The largest Buddha figure still shows traces of its original stuccoed robe and painted colour, and one of the flanking figures is thought to represent the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara.

Walk through tea fields and rocky terrain for views of Little Adam's Peak, cross the Nine Arches Bridge, and finish at Demodara Railway Station with its distinctive loop-over track.

A train journey from Haputale to Nuwara Eliya through tea country, past waterfalls, misty villages and forest, with dramatic drops close to the track along the way.

A highland town that was the main holiday resort for the British in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with cottages, villas and mansions from that period. Walk its streets, visit the old red-brick post office, and relax at Queen Victoria Park or Lake Gregory.

The country's 11th-tallest waterfall, seen alongside a guided visit to the Mackwoods Tea Estate to learn about tea varieties and processing, and a walk through the Hakgala Botanical Gardens and along Lake Gregory.

An hour-long show of traditional Sri Lankan performing arts, including fire dancers, sword dancers and Kandyan dancers performing to drumming.

A UNESCO World Heritage Site built in the 16th century to house and protect the sacred tooth relic of the Buddha. Walk through its painted halls in red, cream and black, past carved pillars and golden statues.

The Royal Botanical Gardens of Peradeniya, laid out in the early 19th century and home to over 4,000 plant species, including orchids, spices and medicinal plants, a cannonball tree, a suspension bridge and hedge mazes.

A lake near Elkaduwa formed from natural spring water, believed locally to be 30 to 40 feet deep, with a natural spring-fed swimming pool alongside it.

A guided tour of a spice and herbal garden covering coriander, chilli, cinnamon, cardamom and nutmeg and their uses, with a traditional cooking demonstration showing how to make roti or curry powder from scratch.

The 5th-century rock fortress of King Kasyapa, entered through an opening framed by giant lion's paws. Climb past the famous frescoes to terraced gardens, still-working cisterns and the palace ruins at the summit.

A look at traditional village life near Sigiriya, with an oxen cart ride, a catamaran safari on a village lake, a walk through paddy fields, a cooking demonstration and a home-cooked lunch served on lotus leaves.

A three-hour safari in Minneriya, known for the Great Elephant Gathering between May and October when over 150 elephants congregate in one place, alongside other mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians.

The ruins of Sri Lanka's second major capital, which flourished from the 10th to 13th centuries. See the Gal Vihara, the Vatadage, the lotus bath, the Lankathilaka Temple and the statue linked to King Parakramabahu.

The Golden Temple of Dambulla, dating to the 1st century BC, with murals depicting the life of the Buddha and hundreds of Buddha and deity figures across its five main caves, plus a large golden Buddha statue outside.

An ancient temple praised by Indian poet-saints, with a cave shrine dating back to 1580 BC and a main temple developed later, around 400 AD, its murals telling the site's history.

Originally built by the Portuguese in 1624, using stones taken from the Koneswaram Temple which they had destroyed, and later dismantled and rebuilt by the Dutch.

A beach of golden sand, palms and clear water, considered among Sri Lanka's best, with a 10th-century Tamil inscription nearby recording that the land was granted to the Koneswaram Temple.

A five-hour trip with a chance to see blue whales, sperm whales and fin whales, with a qualified naturalist on hand to help identify species.

A pair of islands with a surrounding coral reef, home to breeding rock pigeons and a range of coral types and marine life.

A village, now called Thiriyai, once a centre of Tamil Buddhism, home to the Girihadu Seya Stupa said to mark where the Buddha gave hair relics to two traders, and the ruins of a fortress of one of the last Vanniyar chiefs.

The city and peninsula at the island's northern tip, with ancient Hindu temples such as Nallur, Nainativu and Mavittapuram, the Dutch Fort, war memorials, the Saraswathy Mahal Library, the Nagadeepa Vihara and the palace site of Jaffna's last king, Cankili I.

Known to the Sinhalese as Nagadeepa and in ancient times as Manipallavam, this island north of Jaffna is linked to the Naga people and their snake worship, reflected in the Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple and the Nagadeepa Purana Vihara.

A Hindu temple with a history of at least two millennia, recorded by Ptolemy, built in Dravidian style with four Gopurams, several mandapams and temple chariots, and counted among only 64 Shakthi Peedams worldwide.

The capital of Sri Lanka for over a millennium until the 10th century AD, with pagodas, monastic buildings and ponds spread across a vast archaeological site. Visit the Jetavanarama, once one of the tallest buildings in the ancient world, the Sri Maha Bodhi, and the ruins of the Abhayagiri Monastery.

A tour of the capital's landmarks, including the Old Lighthouse, the Old Parliament, the Galle Face Hotel and Galle Face Green, the Gangarama Temple and the National Museum, along with its malls, boutique shops and designer stores.

Time to experience Colombo's lively side, with beachside parties, cocktails, casinos and boutique restaurants staying open late.

A beach town on the western coast with a long-standing fishing industry, golden sand, water sports, diving among coral and marine life, and a 50-year-old shipwreck just offshore.