5 Days Tour from Ella to Colombo with the Best Train Ride

You will head to Tissamaharama today. First you should take the bus from Ella public bus station to Wellawaya for about 40 minutes with a cost of LKR60 per person. Then connect the bus from Wellawaya to Wirawila. When you get on the bus, please tell the driver to remind you get off at Tissamaharama, as there is no stations announcement on all the buses and trains in Sri Lanka. This part of the bus takes about 1 hour and the ticket is LKR80 per person. 

Tissamaharama is the gateway to Yala National Park. Wander leisurely in this small town with a long history dated back to the 3rd century B.C. Most people here believe in Buddihism devotionally and they respect life. That’s why there are large number of various animals lived here. You could see almost all kinds of wild animals of Sri Lanka in Yala National Park. The beautiful Tissamaharama Lake is a highlight of this small town. The water in the lake changes to be crimson when sun sets in the evening. It is so charming. The scenery around the lake is also very fascinating. There are many egrets perching on around the lake, which looks like a tree in blossom of white flowers from a distance. You could stay in the best hotel in Tissamaharama - The Safari Hotel to enjoy the sunrise the next morning.

Yala National Park is divided into five areas and only two of them are open for the tourists. One is called Ruhuna National Park, which is mainly for leopard and elephant and the other part is Kumana National Park, mainly for various birds. Have a morning safari in the park. In the afternoon, take the public bus No. 334-1 from Tissamaharama Bus Stand to Matara, which takes about 5 hours with a ticket of LKR135 per person. In Matara, please connect the public bus No. 350 from Matara Bodhiya to Udupila and then walk about 20 minutes, you will get to Mirissa. The bus No. 350 takes about 1 hour with a fee of LKR70 per person. Mirissa is a sunny beach town. You could find a guesthouse near the beach. At night, enjoy the view of the Indian Ocean. The perfect location is the Kandavahari Temple on Harbour Road, where you could see the view of Weligama Bay and Mirissa Port. 

Spend the whole day leisurely on the beach. Mirissa is also famous for its whale population. The best time to see the big blue whales is from the end of November to next March, when the whales migrate from further south. You could go to the deep blue Indian Ocean to see the whales. If you are interested, you could go surfing too. At dusk, you may see some stilt fishermen. But most of them are only for photos with a very high charge of about LKR2000. 

You could take the public bus No. 350 from Udupila to Galle, which takes about 1 hours with a ticket of LKR50 per person. In Galle, the public bus No. 370, 382, 407, 381, 378 will all stop at Galle Fort. You can enter the fort from the Main Gate and climb on to the Wall from the right side. Then visit some other sites in the fort, like Meera Mosque, Flag Rock, Sudharmalaya Temple, Dutch Church and National Maritime Museum. 

Today, your fabulous tour will come to an end. You will take the train from Galle to Colombo. The train tickets could be bought at the railway station and the second class train ticket is LKR180 per person. The train route from Galle to Colombo is said to be the best train journey in the world because some parts of the rail is very close to the Indian Ocean, when passengers are on the train, it seems like the trains runs on the ocean. If your time is limited to experience the rail on the ocean from Galle to Colombo, you could just take the train from Colombo fort station to Moratuwa, which only takes about 20 minutes with the ticket of LKR15 per person. Wish you have a good journey.