Bird Watching in Sri Lanka

Overview

Experience the Cheerfulness of Twirling and Cherry Sri Lankan Birds

Sri Lanka is well-known for its avian diversity, including about 26 endemic birds of Sri Lanka. This tour is designed for bird-watchers to target endemic birds of Sri Lanka like blue magpie Sri Lanka and the Red-faced Malkoha in the Sinharaja Forest Reserve. Sri Lanka familiarises the guests with the most known Sri Lankan Whistling Thrush and Dull-blue Flycatcher. We then stop at Bundala National Park, which is famous for its variety and number of water birds. Also drive through some of the most fascinating landscapes of this island country.

Trip Highlights

Visit the magnificent Kelani Valley Forest Reserve
Photographing the endemic birds at Sinharaja Forest Reserve
A short trip to Udawalawe National Park
Stopping at Bundala National Park Park for an overwhelming bird watching experience
This is a customized trip for you and your group. So you can request us to increase or decrease the number of days as per your requirements. If you have some target species in mind, reach out to us and we will make a customized plan for that
You need to be reasonably fit through there as there is some walking involved

ITINERARY - 11 Days

Day 1	Arrival at Colombo Airport The amazing Sri Lankan birding tour starts from your morning arrival at the Colombo airport. After receiving you at the airport we will have a fun full drive to Kitulaga, your first two-night stay destination. We will pass through the coastal plain and foothill of the country, seeing the rubber estates and small Sri Lankan villages. After our arrival in the late afternoon, we will let you get some glimpse of some Sri Lankan birds in the Kelani River Forest Reserve.
Day 2	Visit Kelani Valley Forest Reserve Kitulgala- Kelani Valley Forest Reserve is a small attractive town located in the western part of Sri Lanka. It is one of the wettest areas in the country. Kelani Valley Forest Reserve is home to Spot-winged Thrush, Red-faced Malkoha, Yellow-fronted Barbet, and some more variety of fauna. The place also harbors several uncommon species of butterflies. A trip to Kelani Valley Forest Reserve is only completed by an adventurous jungle walk and enjoying the white-water rafting while seeing the pleasing birds and some native fishes and amphibians. You might also get a chance to see the layered striped squirrel also known as Flame-striped Squirrel- a rarely seen mammal in the area.
Day 3	Driving towards Sinharaja Forest Reserve On day three we will head towards Sinharaja Forest Reserve. The Sinharaja Forest Reserve is an undistributed rainforest and the biologically diverse lowland rainforest of Sri Lanka, located within the wet zone of the island. The forest was declared a World Heritage in 1988 by UNESCO. The word Sinharaja is the combination of two words Sinha means the Lion and Raja means the King. In the afternoon we will begin our short trip around the area of Sinharaja.
Days 4 - 5	Traversing Sinharaja Forest Reserve Sinharaja Forest Reserve serves as the magical biodiversity hotspot, being home to an abundance of species. Here one can easily see the rarest birds like Blue Magpie Sri Lanka, Red-Faced Malkoha, Sri Lankan junglefowl. What makes this forest reserve unique and offers a treat to the birdwatchers is the group of birds setting out foraging for food. These alluring birds will make anyone stop and witness their beauty for a minute. Another impressive spot to visit inside the forest reserve is the Kiruwana Ella Falls, here also you see prepossessing birds sitting near and around, allowing you to photograph them as an everlasting memory.
Day 6	Visit to Udawalawe National Park In the morning we will head towards Embilipitiya for a night stay. And in the afternoon we will visit the other famous National Park in Sri Lanka. The Udawalawe National Park is located in the provinces of Uva and Sabaragamuwa. The regularly seen species inside the national park are Oriental Darter, Woolly-necked Stroked, Barred Buttonquail. The main purpose of creating this national park was to provide refuge for the wild animals that had lost their habitat due to the construction of the Udawalawe Reservoir on the Walawe River. Apart from bird species, the national park is also known for the elephants and leopards seeing walking-roaming inside the national park.
Day 7	Trip to Bundala National Park After spending a few morning hours at UdaWalawe, we will head towards Tissamaharama for a night stay. To have someone more immensely amazing experience of bird watching we will visit Bundala National Park, located close to Tissamaharama. The Bundala National Park is globally known for its migratory aquatic birds like Purple Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, Asian Openbill, and many more endearing birds. The national park gives its guests a chance to see estuarine crocodiles and saltwater. The national park has an exceptional presence of plants, which enhances the guest attractiveness.
Day 8	Tissamaharama-Surrey Estate-eastern slope After witnessing some more alluring birds in Tissamaharama. We will head towards Surrey estate for having another pleasing experience. In Surrey estate Scotsman James Taylor started a Loolecondera Estate, the first tea estate in Sri Lanka, giving entry to the tea industry in Ceylon. This tea land provides shelter to endemic birds of Sri Lanka. In the afternoon we will head towards the Nuwara Eliya located at the eastern slope for our staying stop for the next two nights. Nuwara Eliya is also known as 'Little England,' because of its colonial-era bungalows, British country village look, and lush garden.
Day 9	Victoria Park and Horton Plains National Park: Nuwara Eliya On our ninth day at Nuwara Eliya, we will visit two known parks in the area. First, Victoria Park is the most lovely and well-maintained in Nuwara Eliya. It is always a joy to work through the manicured lawns of Victoria Park. The park is home to a variety of species of hilly-country birds like the Indian Pitta and Grey Tit. After a blissful experience at Victoria Park, head towards Horton Plains National Park, popularly known as the eco-tourism area in Sri Lanka. While trekking in Horton Plains National Park one can see the winding paths, vast hills, rivers, and various tropical plants combining to make the blue shy and fresh air more delightful. While visiting this national park guests also get an opportunity to see Sri Lankan Whistling Thrush, Sri Lanka Scaly Thrush, Dull-blue Flycatcher. In easy words, one can mostly see all kinds and variety of birds inside this national park.
Day 10	Stop at Kandy: Cultural City of Sri Lanka After having a gratifying experience at Nuwara Eliya, in the morning we will head towards Kandy, Sri Lanka's cultural capital for a night stay. Kandy still holds arts, music, craft, and dance that became popular during the era of Kandyan Kings. Kandy is a Buddhist town. It is known for the Dalada Maligawa, commonly known as the Tooth Temple. There are several temples and shrines in Kandy where one can see some unknown sculptures, wood, and stone cravings.
Day 11	Udawattekele Sanctuary: Kandy On our last day, we will visit the Udawattekele Sanctuary, located at Kandy. Udawattekele Sanctuary is a beautiful place where sun rays peek across the canopy of the forest. Allowing you to see the radiant birds hidden inside the leaves of trees, some standing next to you, and some seeing you from the highest height of the tree. You can see the lovely Crimson Backed Flameback and the attractive Black-backed Dwarf Kingfisher. Not just these two, you can come across many beautiful birds during your visit. And the mesmerizing Sri Lankan bird watching tours end in the late afternoon. We will take you to the Colombo airport, near Negombo.