Here is your guide to spend a full day seeing the best sights in Kandy, Sri Lanka.
How to tour Kandy
My friends and I only spent two nights and one full day in Kandy, Sri Lanka, but we managed to see quite a bit! This was only possible due to the amazing tuk-tuk driver that drove us around for the entire day (9:00 am – 6 pm).
Many tuk tuks will offer this tour to tourists and you can even ask your place of stay to arrange a tour for you. The best deal I was given for the tour was 2500 rs.
A good conversion to know – about 180 rs in Sri Lanka is equal to $1 USD.
Between the three of us, this was less than $5 per person. Not a bad deal. Even if you are traveling solo, it’s a full-day tour for about $15 USD. Not too shabby.
One important thing to note though was that almost all the places we went required an entrance fee. This is something that I was not expecting and definitely felt that some things were more worth it than other places.
The entrance fees weren’t too bad but if you’re traveling on a budget it is helpful to know all the expenses.
If there was no fee, then the place may or may not expect you to make a purchase. This is something I would be careful about if you don’t expect to buy anything. If you’re really not interested in the products it’s always appreciated to at least give a tip.
The best part about having a tuk-tuk for the day is that you can tell them where you would like to go. There is no set itinerary if you do not want it.
1. Breakfast – 200-500 rs
We asked our driver to pick us up around 8:45 am and to take us to get some breakfast before we started the tour. Our driver took us to a local restaurant, where we explored some Sri Lankan dishes.
I definitely recommend trying a dosa dish. We tried the cheesy garlic and chocolate. Dosa is like a cross between a crepe and pancake which can be prepared as savory or sweet. All the dishes usually come with sauces of different savory tastes. Many made from coconut milk – yummm- or spices.
2. White Buddha – 250 rs
This is the famous statue in Kandy and proceeds many other large Buddha statues in the same area. The last statue built was 100 ft or over 33 m tall. The current one is even taller!
I thought it was so cool to see but know that this is all there is to see here.
3. Scenic view
The next stop was a quick one at a scenic view of this beautiful area that’s was filled with large boulders in the river’s path. As it was the dry season we were able to see this pretty scene but during the wet season it is usually completely covered.
4. Ceylon tea factory tour
Most people know Sri Lanka is crazy about their tea, and rightfully so!
One of the most famous tea factories in the country is Ceylon. We got a tour around the Kandy factory and learned about the tea making process. After the tour, we were taken to the ‘tea shop’ where we were able to taste 8 different types of tea.
The tour was free but we definitely felt the need to buy some tea at the end. If you’re on a budget keep this in mind, as the tea was quite expensive although we got a good deal and is delicious (of course).
5. Panoramic viewpoint
Another quick stop made by our tuk-tuk driver. A beautiful “panoramic view” of Kandy. We stopped here for a quick photo and went on our way.
6. Herb and Spice Garden
Here we took a tour of a local remedies garden. It was pretty interesting to learn all the different concoctions that some believe can be made from plants and fruits to heal nearly every health issue in human bodies.
Afterwards we were taken to their store where you were pretty much expected to buy something. Unfortunately, we didn’t find anything that was useful for us, so as thanks we gave a tip to the workers.
7. Coconut break – 80 rs
Never a bad time for a coconut stop! We asked our driver to stop at one of the fruit stands on the way to the next location. A refreshing drink and snack all in one – yummmmm.
8. Royal Botanical gardens – 2000 rs
The botanical gardens were beautiful and a great place for a nice picnic if you plan it out correctly. We nearly had 1.5 hrs here and it was almost enough! I would recommend at least 2 hrs if you want to walk around the whole place and even more, time if you plan to stop and have a picnic :).
One really cool thing about these gardens is that it contains plants from all over the world. If you enjoy learning, it was interesting to see all the trees and flowers and learning which country they came from.
8. Kandy Dance Show – 1000 rs
We attended a cultural dance performed by Sri Lankan locals taken place in a nearby hotel. The experience was very interesting to me because it gave an inside look at how people dressed and the dances they performed long ago.
Fair warning: my friends found this performance quite boring and felt like it wasn’t worth it. It’s really based on what you’re interested in. Because I like to learn about history and culture a lot, I found it entertaining.
9. Temple of Buddha Tooth Relic -2000 rs
This is the one-stop we, unfortunately, could not fit into our schedule. As it was getting late and we were hungry after this full day we decided to skip this last stop.
I think my friends and I would have much rather enjoyed the temple beside the natural remedy garden. But it was still a very enjoyable day 🙂
In conclusion…
If you only have a day or two in Kandy I would recommend seeing all the sites this way. If you wanted to go slower and take a tuk-tuk or taxi to each place, keep in mind that all these places are near one another. This being said I think it would be more affordable the way we did it and was a memorable part of our Sri Lanka trip.
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