Sri Lanka and the Maldives in 2 weeks: ruins, tea hills, Galle and Maafushi

Days 1–3: Colombo, the Dambulla caves and Sigiriya

Day 1, Colombo. Bandaranaike International Airport lies at Katunayake, 35 km north of Colombo and 6 km from Negombo. TaxiGo's fixed fare to Colombo Fort is LKR 6,580 for its smallest car, about 45 minutes, with the driver, fuel and tolls. The night is at Fairway Colombo in Colombo Fort. If you land in time, walk to Galle Face Green as the light goes, the seafront that is Colombo's playground for kottu or wade. If you land very late, spend the first night at a hotel in Negombo, near the airport, to save the drive into Colombo.

Day 2, north to the Sigiriya area. Sigiriya lies 169 km from Colombo; TaxiGo's fixed fare is LKR 27,150 for about 3 hours 40 minutes. Break the drive in the town of Dambulla at the cave temple: five caves under a rock with more than 150 Buddha statues and murals dating back 2,000 years. The four entrances climb long flights of granite steps, and foreign visitors buy the ticket, USD 10, at the office near the golden temple. The night is at Tranquil Trails Sigiriya, about 3 km from the rock.

Day 3, the rock. The rock rises 200 m above the remains of gardens and reservoirs, with the ruins of a palace on its summit; on the way up you pass the frescoes and the Mirror Wall with its ancient graffiti. The Central Cultural Fund's ticket counters open at 07:00, so be there then and climb before the heat. A full foreign ticket costs USD 35 (LKR 11,760 at the Fund's rate), and the museum outside the main entrance, which takes about an hour, is included. Carry water, because drinks are sold only at the tourist exit. Our Sigiriya and Dambulla guide has the e-ticket and the sunrise climb of Pidurangala.

If you would rather not arrange day 3 yourself, a Sigiriya and Dambulla day with a driver and guide starts from Sigiriya (see the tours below); skip the Dambulla stop on day 2 if you book it.

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

Days 4–5: Kandy and the Temple of the Tooth

Day 4, Sigiriya to Kandy. TaxiGo's smallest car costs LKR 19,290 for 89 km, about 2 hours 30 minutes. The night is at The Golden Crown Hotel on Ampitiya Road, in Kandy but away from the city hustle, among paddy fields; the lake and the temple are a ride away, not a walk. Spend the late afternoon on Kandy Lake, which lies south of the temple.

Day 5, the temple and the gardens. The Temple of the Tooth enshrines the left tooth of Gautama Buddha and became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1988; its building is decorated with carvings in gold, silver, bronze and ivory. It is open every day from 5.30 a.m. to 8.00 p.m., and a foreign visitor pays LKR 3,000 (LKR 2,500 for visitors from SAARC countries, Thailand and Myanmar). Shorts, sleeveless and body-revealing clothing are not permitted. In the afternoon, take a tuk-tuk to the Royal Botanic Gardens at Peradeniya, less than 5.5 km away on the Colombo Road: 147 acres with more than 4,000 plant species and an orchid collection, at LKR 3,540 for a foreign adult. Our Kandy guide has the temple's service times and the dance shows.

A full-day Kandy tour that starts in the town covers the temple and the gardens with transport, if you prefer a guide for the day (see the tours below).

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

Days 6–7: the hill train to Ella

Day 6, Kandy to Ella. The hill line has been reopening in sections since Cyclone Ditwah damaged it in November 2025. Trains have run between Nanu Oya and Badulla, through Ella, since 20 June 2026, while in October 2026 trains from Colombo ran only as far as Peradeniya and Gampola, because a bridge over the Mahaweli before Kandy was still under repair. So go by car to Nanu Oya and take the train from there: TaxiGo's fixed fare from Kandy to Nanu Oya railway station is LKR 20,350 for its smallest car, 79 km and about 2 hours 40 minutes. Departures have changed with each reopening, so search your date on the railway's booking site first, then set the time you leave Kandy from the departure it shows. On the railway's June 2026 timetable the ride from Nanu Oya to Ella took about 2 hours 20 to 2 hours 30 minutes, in first-class air-conditioned and second-class reserved compartments.

Seats go on sale 30 days before the date of travel and until 2 hours before departure, on the railway's own site, seatreservation.railway.gov.lk. You need an account and the passport number of every passenger, the system allocates the seats, and a 5% convenience fee is added. Without a seat, take the car the whole way: TaxiGo's car from Kandy to Ella town costs LKR 24,900 for 135 km, about 3 hours 40 minutes, and the 10% buffer in the budget covers the difference. Our Kandy to Ella train guide has the classes, the view side and the cancellation rules.

The night is at Ella Flower Garden Resort, at the 3rd Mile Post on Passara Road near Little Adam's Peak. In the late afternoon, walk 10 to 15 minutes from Ella station to the Nine Arch Bridge, built in the 1920s of brick and cement, without steel, and wait for a train to cross. It is a working railway, so keep off the track.

Day 7, Little Adam's Peak and the tea. Climb Little Adam's Peak at dawn, 2.5 km from the town, for a 360-degree view, then spend the late morning at the Uva Halpewatte Tea Factory, which is best in the morning while it is working and ends with a tasting. Our Ella guide has the longer walks and the waterfalls.

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

Days 8–9: Galle Fort

Day 8, Ella to Galle. This is the longest drive of the trip: TaxiGo's smallest car costs LKR 30,300 for 198 km, about 3 hours 15 minutes. The night is at Galle Holiday Inn, outside the Fort walls, five minutes from the Fort. Be on the ramparts before sunset, when locals and visitors gather at Flag Rock to watch the sun go down into the Indian Ocean.

Day 9, the Fort. Galle Fort's ramparts of coral and granite run for about 3 km around the peninsula, with fourteen bastions. Inside them stand the Dutch Reformed Church of 1755, the oldest Protestant church still in use in Sri Lanka, the National Maritime Museum in a Dutch warehouse, a lighthouse built by the British in 1939 on the site of a Dutch one, and lanes of houses, galleries and cafés. A walking tour with a resident starts inside the Fort (see the tours below). Our Galle guide has the museums and the coast train.

If whales matter more to you than the Fort, swap Galle for two nights in Mirissa, whose harbour the whale boats usually leave at dawn from November to April; our south coast beaches guide has the operators.

For wild elephants, swap one Galle night for Udawalawe National Park, which lies on the way down from the hills. It is the best place in Sri Lanka to see wild Asian elephants all year, with about 500 in the park, often in herds of up to 100, on open plains and marsh around a reservoir. Drive from Ella to the park on day 8 (TaxiGo: LKR 18,800 for 91 km, about 2 hours), sleep at a lodge near the gate, go out on a jeep safari at first light on day 9, then drive on to Galle Fort (LKR 19,080 for 132 km, about 2 hours) for one night there. A foreign adult pays USD 25 for a daytime visit in the tourist season and USD 20 in the rest of the year, plus USD 10 per vehicle and taxes; the jeep is a separate private charge, and this swap is not in the budget below. Our Udawalawe guide has the online permit and the safari hours.

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

Day 10: from Galle to Malé, and the boat to Maafushi

Leave Galle by about 08:00: TaxiGo's smallest car from Galle to Bandaranaike International Airport costs LKR 21,600 for 150 km, about 2 hours, on the expressways, which leaves the rest of the morning for check-in. SriLankan Airlines flies from Colombo to Malé three times a day, due at Velana at 08:15 (UL 101), 14:25 (UL 115) and 19:45 (UL 103), and its own route page showed economy returns from LKR 148,736 for January 2027. Book the midday UL 115. Kaani's shared speedboat leaves the airport for Maafushi at 09:15, 11:00, 13:30, 15:00 and 18:00; after a 14:25 landing, immigration and the 30 minutes the boat asks for at the counter, the 18:00 boat, the last of the day, is the one to plan on.

At Velana you walk to the immigration halls on the ground floor, where the officer checks your passport, your arrival declaration and your booking (see the entry section below). Kaani's meeting point is counter E12 in Terminal 2, 30 minutes before departure; the crossing takes 35 minutes, and the fare, USD 25 per person each way, is in the package. If your flight lands after the last boat, a private speedboat costs about USD 150–300 for the whole boat, plus taxes, or you can sleep near the airport; our Malé and Hulhumalé guide covers the hotels there.

The night is at Kaani Village & Spa, a 20-room guesthouse around a courtyard pool, a short walk from Maafushi's bikini beach. The cheap way across is the public ferry from Malé's Vilingili Ferry Terminal: about USD 3 per person and 90 minutes, leaving Malé at 15:00, with an extra 10:00 sailing on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and none on Fridays; from the airport, take the airport ferry to Malé first. Our Maldives transport guide has the other boats.

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

Days 11–14: Maafushi, its reefs and the flight home

Maafushi is a working island of about 2,400 people in South Malé Atoll, 27 km from the capital, with sandy lanes, a harbour full of dive and excursion boats on its west shore, and beachfront hotels at its northern tip around the bikini beach. Kaani Village's four-night Reset & Wander package, USD 883 for two in a Deluxe Double Room with Pool View, includes breakfast, the return speedboat, one candlelight dinner, one night-fishing trip and one full-day tour, with taxes and the service charge; Kaani's booking terms add the government green tax of USD 6 per person per night, paid at reception, and say all packages are non-refundable.

Day 11, the reefs. The package's full-day tour runs from 08:30 to 14:00: snorkelling at Biyadhoo Reef, the Coral Garden and Turtle Reef, dolphin watching and lunch on a sandbank. Turtles and dolphins are wild animals, so no trip can promise them. At 17:00 the night-fishing trip goes out with the gear provided, back at 20:00, and the catch of the night is served at dinner.

Day 12, the beach or a resort. Spend the day on the bikini beach, a strip of white sand with a shallow, pale turquoise lagoon in front. Or, outside the budget, see a resort island: Kaani sells a day visit to Fihalhohi Island Resort, 25 minutes by speedboat, from 08:00 to 17:15, with the return boat, a buffet lunch, evening tea and drinks from a selected menu, at USD 110 per person (the same page also shows it as 'from USD 125'). It is the way to have a drink with lunch, because resorts sell alcohol. Book the candlelight dinner for this evening.

Day 13, a free day. Keep it free: it absorbs a trip that the weather cancelled, and it leaves the last afternoon for a swim. Friday is the weekly day of prayer, when the public ferry between Malé and Maafushi does not sail; Kaani's timetable shows no separate Friday times, so if you cross on a Friday, ask the hotel when you book.

Day 14, home. Kaani's boats leave Maafushi for the airport at 08:00, 10:00, 12:30, 14:15 and 17:00. Boats can be cancelled in rough seas, so take a morning boat and book an afternoon or evening flight home. The Airport Development Fee and the departure tax, USD 50 each for foreign passengers in economy, are usually included in the air ticket.

Maafushi follows the rules of every inhabited island in the Maldives. No alcohol is sold, and you cannot bring it to the island; resorts sell it, and it must not leave the resort. Cover shoulders and knees in the lanes and on the public beach; swimwear is for the designated bikini beach. Nudity and topless sunbathing are banned everywhere, resorts included. Swim only where it is supervised or marked as safe, never alone, and make sure life jackets are on board the excursion boats. Our Maafushi guide has the dive sites and the other trips.

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

Maafushi or a resort for the Maldives nights

The four Maldives nights can go one of two ways. A guesthouse on an inhabited island such as Maafushi costs a fraction of a resort and puts you among the families who live there, with cafés, a mosque and a bikini beach; the price is no alcohol outside a resort day visit, covered shoulders and knees in the village, and Ramadan rules by day in Ramadan. A resort is a private island where the alcohol ban and the village dress code do not apply (topless sunbathing is still banned), with its own house reef and a bar, at several times the price. Our local islands guide compares seven guesthouse islands, and our where-to-stay guide the resorts.

This plan books Maafushi because the package holds the boat, the reef trip and two dinners at a known price, and because its speedboat ties straight to the airport. For a resort without a seaplane, take one near the airport that sends its own speedboat. Grand Park Kodhipparu in North Malé Atoll is about 20 minutes away: its advance-purchase rate starts at USD 429 a night for two with breakfast, booked 21 days ahead, plus a 10% service charge, 17% GST and green tax of USD 12 per person per night, about USD 2,300 for four nights. The resort's own shared speedboat is mandatory, at USD 140 per adult return plus service charge and T-GST, about USD 360 for two, and the resort accepts no other boats. That puts the rooms and the boat about USD 1,730 above the Maafushi package for two, and the resort's meals cost more again.

Many resorts further out fly you there by seaplane, which the resort books for you. Trans Maldivian Airways flies only from sunrise to sunset and asks you to land in the Maldives by 15:30 to reach the resort the same day; on day 10, SriLankan's flight due at 14:25 fits, or spend a night near the airport first. Our Maldives in 7 days splits a week between Maafushi and Grand Park Kodhipparu.

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

What two weeks cost, all in

About USD 1,660 per person, USD 3,310 for two, for the fourteen days and thirteen nights on the ground, with every room, meal and drink, the cars with drivers, the train, the speedboats, the reef trip, the tickets, a SIM in each country and a 10% buffer.

The budget is for two adults sharing a double room in the six hotels of this plan, travelling in the second half of January, with passports that get the free Sri Lankan tourist ETA (British, German or French, for example) and the free Maldives visa on arrival. The rooms are not one tier: simple, well-placed hotels in Colombo, Sigiriya, Kandy and Galle, and a resort outside Ella, the dearest of the five. Rupees are converted at the Maldives Monetary Authority's rate of USD 1 = LKR 331.7 and pounds at GBP 1 = USD 1.3473 (4 November 2026).

• Rooms: about USD 1,730 for two. One night at Fairway Colombo in a Superior King Room from USD 52 a night; two nights at Tranquil Trails Sigiriya at USD 50 a night with taxes and breakfast; two Deluxe Room nights at The Golden Crown Hotel from LKR 14,500 a night; two nights at Ella Flower Garden Resort at about USD 258 a night, KAYAK's average January rate for the resort; two Deluxe Double nights at Galle Holiday Inn at LKR 6,500 a night with breakfast; and Kaani Village's Reset & Wander package at USD 883, plus USD 48 for green tax of USD 6 per person per night, which Kaani's booking terms collect at reception. Kaani's checkout says green tax is included, while its booking terms collect it at reception; do not add green tax again when the invoice already includes it.
• Food and drinks: about USD 610 for two. In Sri Lanka, about LKR 7,000 per person a day for three meals, water, tea and juice, from menus on the route: rice and curry at LKR 650 and string hoppers at LKR 400 at Balaji Dosai in Kandy, and rice and curry of the day at LKR 1,700 plus a 10% service charge at Cafe Chill in Ella, with room left for a hotel dinner. On Maafushi, breakfast, the sandbank lunch, the night-fishing dinner and the candlelight dinner are in the package; the other two lunches and two dinners are about USD 23 per person each, from Arena Beach's USD 18 half-board supplement on the same island with service charge and 17% tourism GST, plus about USD 5 a day for water and soft drinks.
• Getting around: about USD 430 for two. Six TaxiGo cars at their fixed fares (airport to Colombo Fort LKR 6,580, Colombo to Sigiriya 27,150, Sigiriya to Kandy 19,290, Kandy to Nanu Oya 20,350, Ella to Galle 30,300 and Galle to the airport 21,600), two reserved second-class seats from Nanu Oya to Ella at about LKR 1,200 each on the railway's seat-price table plus the 5% fee, and about LKR 15,000 of tuk-tuks for the short rides. Kaani's speedboat is in the package.
• Sights: about USD 130 for two. Sigiriya (USD 35), the Dambulla cave temple (USD 10), the Temple of the Tooth (LKR 3,000) and Peradeniya (LKR 3,540) for each of you. Galle's ramparts and Maafushi's beach are free, and the reef trip is in the package.
• SIMs: about USD 120 for two. An SLT-Mobitel 30-day tourist SIM each (LKR 1,540) and a Dhiraagu Traveler Premium SIM each in the Maldives (USD 50 plus 8% GST).
• Buffer: about USD 300 for two. The 10% buffer covers tips, snacks and price changes.
• Flights: allow about USD 450 per person for the Colombo–Malé flight, SriLankan's lowest return fare for January 2027 on its own page, because one-way fares are not listed there. For the long-haul legs, Etihad's own pages showed January 2027 economy returns from GBP 555 between London and Colombo and from GBP 597 between London and Malé; allow about GBP 600–900 (USD 810–1,210) per person for a ticket into Colombo and home from Malé. With all flights, about USD 2,910–3,320 per person.

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

Visas, arrival forms and customs between the two countries

Sri Lanka. Almost every foreign visitor needs an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) before arriving; apply only on the Department of Immigration and Emigration's site, eta.gov.lk. Since 25 May 2026 the 30-day tourist ETA is free for passport holders of 40 countries, among them Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, and for children under 12 of any nationality; most other nationalities pay USD 50 online (USD 20 for SAARC countries) or USD 60 on arrival (USD 25 for SAARC). Bring a passport valid for at least six months from the date of arrival, a confirmed return ticket and enough money for the stay; the immigration department asks for a return ticket, so carry both the Colombo–Malé booking and your flight home from Malé. Our Sri Lanka entry guide has the full country list.

The Maldives. Tourists get the visa on arrival at the airport, with no approval needed before you travel. Maldives Immigration asks for a passport with at least one month's validity, confirmed return tickets, a prepaid confirmed booking at a registered guesthouse, hotel or resort, and enough money for the stay. Every traveller, children included, must submit a Traveller Declaration on the IMUGA portal, imuga.immigration.gov.mv, within 96 hours before the flight lands; it is free, so ignore sites that charge for it. Since 15 April 2025, entry is not granted on Israeli passports, although Sri Lanka's free ETA list includes Israel. Our Maldives entry guide has the details.

What not to carry from Colombo to Malé. The Maldives prohibits importing alcohol without prior approval, and alcohol bought on the flight or at duty-free shops on the way is confiscated on arrival. Idols for worship are prohibited too: a Buddha statue bought in Kandy or Galle can be left at a counter at the airport against a receipt and collected when you leave. Pork and pork products are restricted in the same way as alcohol, and since 15 January 2026 meat, poultry, fish and egg products need an import health certificate.

Prices and times checked 5 November 2026

The months that suit both countries

The two monsoons do not line up. In Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Tourism names November to April as the best time for sun and sea on the south-west coast, where Galle lies, and January to April as the cool, relatively dry months in the central highlands; the German Foreign Office puts the north-east rainy season broadly from December to March and warns that heavy rain can fall in any region at any time of year. In the Maldives, the Meteorological Service counts January to March as the dry north-east monsoon, December and April as transition months, and mid-May to November as the normal span of the wetter south-west monsoon.

That leaves January to March as the window that suits the whole route, with December and April at its edges. Sri Lanka's peak seasons are mid-December to mid-January and March to April, so the second half of January and early February are the easiest weeks to book. Ramadan follows the lunar calendar and is expected from about 8 February to 9 March 2027; during it, do not eat, drink or smoke in public in the daytime outside the resorts, and expect restaurants outside hotels to close by day. On Maafushi, that makes the late-January weeks the better choice, or a resort for a trip in February. From June to October the rain sits on Sri Lanka's south-west coast and the Maldives is in its wet monsoon, so this route does not suit those months. Our best-time guide for Sri Lanka and the Maldives best-time guide go through the months one by one.