Locals and tourists fall in love with this small mountain town in the central highlands of Sri Lanka. You can get to this interesting hideout by train, bus, hire car or by requesting your travel agent to arrange a tour covering this beautiful back packers town.

For starters there are lots of interesting hiking trails. Little Adam's peak and Ella Gap are the most common trails. The trek to Horton planes and world's end is mesmerising. 
The scenic train ride from Nuwara Eliya to Ella is the most interesting train journey you should not miss. Treks are best done in the early mornings and you can trek by yourself. You really don't need a guide. As there are quite a few fellow travellers you will pal up with while you hike.

There are around 350 0r more waterfalls in Sri Lanka. In Ella you can visit Ravana Water falls, Bomburu Ella waterfalls, Bambaragama, Diyaluma and Dumhinda waterfalls. If you are a nature lover and one that likes hikes then visiting as many waterfalls in Nuwara Eliya and Matale districts will attract your attention.

The nine arch bridge known commonly as the bridge in the sky is a reminder of colonial era construction. Many tourists and locals flock to this place to admire the beauty and surroundings. A good picturesque location.

For tours and tailor made itineraries you can always rely on Leisure Travel Sri Lanka. We can put together an itinerary to suit your budget. Mail to: reg@leisuretravelsrilanka.com
or CALL +61 421 705 852

Marriot is said to be releasing a new loyalty program called Bonvoy which is soon to replace the existing loyalty program. It is envisaged members will have more benefits with this new look launch. Customers wishing to book into the Marriot Sri Lanka can start taking advantage of this new benefit by signing up for membership.
Leisure Travel Sri Lanka will be will include in their itineraries a couple of days stay at the Marriot Beach Resort in Sri Lanka. Email your inquiry to reg@leisuretravelsrilanka.com

Planned for October 2018/19, in partnership with the Sri Lanka Tourism Bureau, as the host Country, Leisure World Tours Mr. Reg de Livera (MD), is keen to organise the Gran Fondo World Series 2018 Road Race for the first major event of its kind outside Australia and Europe. Placing Sri Lanka on the Gran Fondo World Series Calendar for 2018 is his greatest dream.

​He is relying heavily on Sri Lanka Tourism Authorities to come to the table for a serious discussion in the coming months. Preliminary discussions have already taken place with the Management Team of Lanka Sportreizen. We are awaiting the finer details to submit a formal proposal to the Directors of the Sri Lanka Tourism Board. Lanka Sportrreizen has already demonstrated their expertise in organising UCI events whihc was successfully held as recently as April this year with UCI official supervision.

Inspired by this prestigious event, Reg de Livera sees this opportunity as an ambitious plan to promote Sri Lanka to the wide world.
This race is undoubtedly seen as an event that provides several days of the world’s best cycling, delivering high excitement and intense competition.

It is estimated that 500 of professional riders and amateur cyclists from around the world will join Sri Lankan riders in this event, making it the best ever promotion for Sri Lanka's tourism sector.

Meanwhile, there are many prominent Travel agents in Sri Lanka who have expressed interest in giving this event a jump start with sponsorships and logistics handling propositions.

Several Travel and tourism sector personnel have shown keen enthusiasm for such an event to be immensely helpful in boosting tourism in Sri Lanka. 
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​This event is a start of a plan to continue Sri Lanka's growth in to the future as a destination ideal for sporting events.

Reg de Livera believes that the world is now aware that Sri Lanka is a peaceful nation and a World Cycling event will boost confidence in those travellers who are still cautious about travel to Sri Lanka.

And then we got to Jaffna and I have written plenty below most of the photos in my FB pages. Point Pedro, Causarina Beach, Thurkai Amman Temple in Tellipalai, Keerimalai, Nallur are some of the places we covered. Things happen because they are meant to happen as they did today. Our plan today was to visit Thurkai Amman Temple and keep moving and yet we ended up having a lovely lunch at the temple. We visited the temple as we planned and were invited to join them later for lunch. Still we were not sure but we moved on to visit my ancestral home and then Keerimalai. After Keerimalai we resolved to go back to the temple and join them for lunch. What a good decision it was.
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The riders of Sri Lanka’s premier mountain biking challenge, Sri Lankan Holidays’ Rumble in the Jungle 2016, rode through the challenging terrains of Haputale during Day 2 of their tour.
It was flagged off on 14 June from Kuda Oya in the Moneragala district.
Almost 40 riders representing 14 countries – Nepal, UK, Germany, Australia, Austria, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, and the United States, will be battling it out through mountain roads and off-road trails for a podium finish on 17 June in Kandy.
The race that was flagged off from Kuda Oya trailed along to Haputale and from thereon to Kalupahana, Horton Plains, Nuwara Eliya and Ramboda to be wound off in Kandy on 17 June.
Rumble in the Jungle 2016 is organised by international mountain bike race organizer The Yak Attack, in association with title sponsor, the national carrier’s leisure arm, Sri Lankan Holidays and Sri Lanka’s best known professional adventure sports promoter Lanka Sportreizen.
Pix by Lucia Griggi

Any organisation interested in such events in Sri Lanka can make an enquiry HERE.
We will do the hard work for you.

Source:ft.lk

Jetwing-MMBL spearhead northern revival with Rs. 1 b hotel
Sunday 3 April was a landmark for the historic city of Jaffna, as well as for Sri Lanka tourism. In the wake of cool breeze blowing across the nearby Jaffna Lagoon, President Maithripala Sirisena declared open Jetwing Jaffna, a 55-room star class hotel that has changed the skyline of Jaffna.
Following the grand opening, President Sirisena said that he was happy to take part in the ceremonial occasion, as the hotel project demonstrated the investor confidence on the Northern Province in general and Jaffna Peninsula in particular, as well as resilience of the people in the peninsula.


He was accompanied by Minister of Tourism Development and Christian Affairs John Amaratunga, Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government Faiszer Musthapha, State Minister of Finance Lakshman Yapa Abeywardhana and MMBL-Pathfinder Group of Companies Founder Milinda Moragoda. Among others who graced the occasion were Governor of the Northern Province Reginald Cooray, MP Wijayakala Maheswaran and Jaffna Divisional Secretary K. Ganesh.
The state-of-the-art Jetwing Jaffna with its 55 standard and family rooms will be a welcome addition to Jaffna, which is displaying its vibrancy and taking commendable strides to regain it's former glory as the capital of Tamil culture. The hotel, consisting of eight floors and a basement, boasts of an air-conditioned restaurant on its second level that could accommodate over 100 guests and a rooftop sky lounge from where guests could have a bird’s eye view of the fast developing city, from the Kilali Lagoon in the east to the islands in the west and host of other buildings of religious and cultural significance.


Jetwing Jaffna stands tall in the heart of the city on the Clock Tower Road and will provide comfortable and modern accommodation facilities to visitors to the northern peninsula. In addition to accommodation for visitors, the hotel is also designed to provide banquet and meeting facilities to satisfy the needs of the local population as well as visitors to Jaffna.
Marshaling investment of over Rs. 1 billion for Jaffna is a commendable achievement by the Jetwing Hotels, MMBL-Pathfinder Group, Regency Teas and several others, who had placed their confidence in the project. Among the institutional investors is Leon Holdings, headed by a Sri Lankan expatriate hailing from Jaffna, who is a partner of a successful business venture in Europe. The project has also succeeded in providing employment for over 80 youths from Jaffna, who were provided with training in hospitality industry by Jetwing Hotels.
It has been a long and arduous journey for Yarl Hotels Ltd. to witness the successful culmination of the project. The land on which the hotel was constructed had been purchased in 1975 by late Deshamanya N.U. Jayawardena, the first Sri Lankan Governor of the Central Bank and entrepreneur, who realised the potential of Jaffna over 40 years ago. Jetwing Hotels and MMBL-Pathfinder Group took the policy decision to go ahead with the project in July 2010 and former Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne laid the foundation stone for the hotel in February 2012. It took four years for the project to come to fruition, overcoming numerous obstacles.
Speaking at the event Amaratunga said that there were others interested in investing in Jaffna and that the Ministry of Tourism Development was planning to open a hotel school in the peninsula. Jetwing Hotels Chairman Hiran Cooray and Governor Reginald Cooray invited the Tamil Diaspora to return to Sri Lanka and make use of the investment opportunities in the Northern Province. The Jetwing Hotels Chairman highlighted that it was a long and a difficult journey to realise the dream of having a Jetwing operated hotel in Jaffna.
“Despite initial difficulties we faced, I was convinced that Jaffna was ready for a modern hotel and youth in the peninsula would be eager to choose hospitality industry as a career option,” said Cooray.
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Ireland is a country with a population of just under six million and a tremendous appetite for travel. According to economic experts, the country is coming out of recession and now with the recent arrival of large American conglomerates to the country due to tax incentives, unemployment is down and people have disposable income to spend on holidays.  

The Holiday World Show, now in its 25th year, provided a cost-effective opportunity to connect with travel and trade consumers to promote Sri Lanka’s travel and tourism products across Ireland. 

Since attending the event in January 2015, Sri Lanka Tourism recorded a 15.6% growth in the Irish market with 5,970 visitors coming to the country in 2015. 

This year Sri Lanka Tourism’s representative in London attended the Holiday World Show for consumers and trade in Dublin, Ireland for the third consecutive time to showcase its tourist attractions.Attending the Dublin Consumer Fair enabled Sri Lanka Tourism to reach more than 41,000 potential Irish consumers to create awareness about the destination. The exhibition was attended by almost 775 travel and tourism professionals, representing more than 103 different countries. 

This year’s Holiday Show attracted 41,900 visitors and 541 exhibitors. 

Eoghan Corry, an Irish journalist and author regarded as the most extensively journeyed travel writer in Ireland who visited Sri Lanka in 2015 under a special journalist program, in a two-page article in Travel Extra magazine, highlighted the cultural side of Sri Lanka through images of dancers walking across hot coals in Kandy, people on top of Sigiriya, a turtle sanctuary and an elephant bath at Pinnawala. A copy of the magazine was given to all those who came to the show. 

During the four-day show, the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Board managed to have meetings with large numbers of trade partners and journalists. Meetings were held with journalists with the view of arranging individual trips or media familiarisation trips to gain the maximum publicity for the destination in the Irish market.


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Sri Lanka’s first Safari Park at Ridiyagama in Hambantota in the Southern Province opened Monday (28 March) for the local as well as foreign tourists. The 500-acre park provides an environment for the animals to roam freely within the park.

Minister of Sustainable Development and Wildlife Gamini Jayawickrema Perera accompanied by Housing and Construction Sajith Premadasa, Deputy Minister Sumedha Jayasena and Hambantota district parliamentarian Chamal Rajapaksa declared open the park for the public.

The construction work at the first Safari Park in the island started in 2008 under the direction of The National Zoological Department. The park, being built under two phases, covers an expanse of about 500 acres. It also contains a public entertainment zone extending to about 69 acres. Four of the park’s six zones will be reserved for carnivorous animals while the remaining two zones will be set apart for the herbivores. Two zones of the carnivore section will be exclusively reserved for the dangerous animals such as lions, tigers, and leopards. The first phase with the African Lion Zone, Sri Lanka Elephant Zone and World Zone was opened today. The Lions were released to the African Zone Saturday. The animals can move freely in the park.

African, Asian, Australian Zones and a small animal kingdom will be built under the second phase.

A special bus service will be available for the tourists to move around the park. The park consists of all facilities such as animal hospitals, internal road network and vehicle parks. Waste disposal methodologies have been introduced to protect the environment.

The Safari Park constructed at a cost of Rs. 1.6 billion is seen as an avenue to attract more tourists to the island and a boom to the tourism industry.

Wildlife Tours Sri Lanka
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FPearl Fishers Opera in Australia is famous amongst many tourists around the world. Pearl Fishers Opera is famous for the duet which has been performed by many world renowned opera singers such as Placido Domingo and Andrea Boccelli.
A promotional campaign arranged by Sri Lanka Tourism in collaboration with the Consulate General for Sri Lanka in Sydney was successfully completed at the Joan Sutherland Theatre of the Sydney Opera House on 12 March during the final performance of Pearl Fishers Opera which was played to a packed house of 1,500 patrons.
A thousand packs of Ceylon Tea gifted by Dilmah Tea together with the Sri Lanka Tourism brochures were handed out to the patrons by the staff of the Sydney Opera House. The Pearl Fishers teaser was shown on widescreen TVs in the lobbies of the Opera House which too was a great promotion for Sri Lanka as a destination as the back drop of this opera was of Ceylon and the cast wore colourful saris and costumes of ancient Ceylon.
The Sydney Opera House staff and that of the Consulate General for Sri Lanka in Sydney carried out the promotion with precision. The logistics involved were arduous and the stringent requirements of the Opera House management were met very satisfactorily. The Pearl Fishers Opera will be performed in Melbourne in May.
Australia is a key market for tourism and in the 12 months to Dec 2015 tourist arrivals were at 57,940 which was 7% increase year-on-year.
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For tours on Sri Lanka go Here
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For those who want to explore the beauty of Sri Lanka, Google Maps now offer a virtual tour along the main roads of the island from North to South and East to West.
In a blog post titled “Ayubowan Sri Lanka!”, Nishant Nair, Program Manager, Google’s APAC Street View Operations, says to capture the island’s imagery, the Google team drove close to 50,000 kilometers across every state and province so that the viewer can virtually explore this beautiful landscape from coast to coast.
Nair writes that Sri Lanka has become an increasingly popular travel destination, especially for those who want to explore the country’s rich history and natural beauty and now even more people around the world will be able to discover some of the jewels that this fine island has to offer with Google’s Street View.
The virtual tour is also available on the iOS and Android systems.
When the explorer Marco Polo visited Sri Lanka in 1265, he described it as “the finest island of its size in all the world.” Tourists from around the world agree, as it’s become an increasingly popular travel destination, especially for those who want to explore the country’s rich history and natural beauty. Now even more people around the world will be able to discover some of the jewels that this fine island has to offer — minus the treacherous sea voyage — with Street View. From the hustle and bustle of downtown Colombo, to the cool tea plantation hills, and onwards to the sandy white beaches, Sri Lanka is as beautiful as it is diverse. To capture this imagery, we drove close to 50,000 kilometers across every state and province so that you can virtually explore this beautiful landscape from coast to coast.
Start your tour — perhaps with a cup of Ceylon tea in hand — on the winding Beragala-Hali Ela Highway. Home to many of the world’s best brews, you’ll be able to see people growing, picking and packing tea among the lush rolling hills along the way. For even more majestic jungle and some mountain views, take a tour along the country’s first modern highway — the Colombo-Kandy road. Starting in Sri Lanka’s biggest city, you will journey through some spectacular scenery as you head inland to Kandy where you can see the relic of the tooth of Buddha. You can then take virtual leap across the island to the Kandy-Jaffna highway, which heads out to the coast and down to the Elephant Pass Causeway. While you may not see any elephants, this stretch of road connecting North and South Sri Lanka gives you a 360 degree view of the Indian Ocean on either side of the road.
While you’re on the coast why not check out Arugum Bay? This popular surfing spot in the country’s southeast is renowned for its amazing point break. If you prefer spending time on the sand rather than on a board, the sleepy little fishing village of Point Pedro on the northern tip of the island has some pristine beaches to explore.
Once you’ve taken in Sri Lanka’s natural beauty, you might be ready to take in some culture. Head north to Anuradhapura, and catch a glimpse of the ancient Ruwanwelisaya Stupa. Believed to have been visited by the Buddha himself, it was built in 140 B.C. and today remains one of the world’s tallest monuments, standing at over 100 meters.
Why not complete your tour by heading back to Colombo where you can see Old Parliament House. Built during the British colonial era, it is home to the first democratic parliament, and the Independence Memorial Hall which commemorates Sri Lanka’s independence from British rule 1948. We hope that visiting Sri Lanka with Google Maps (available on iOS and Android) will inspire a deeper appreciation for the beauty and history of this beautiful country. Whether you continue your journey in Google Maps or are inspired to visit in person, we invite you to enjoy the Land of Lions.

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Many tourists from all over the world visit Sri Lanka to witness  cultural and religious parades each month due to its unique traditional dances, costumes, instruments and music providing an important glimpse in to Sri Lanka's rich culture and heritage. The Navam Perahera is a celebration of sights, sounds, colours and music with numerous historical, cultural and traditional aspects featured during this elegant religious cultural parade.
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Guided tours by Francesco, a friendly and professional guide. Francesco will take you through the historical cities as Pisa and Lucca. You will pass through the beautiful hill towns of Versilia Riviera,  Liguria Cinque Terre, Mount Marcello, fishing villages of Portovenere and Lerici. 


Admire the beautiful architecture ofTuscany and  get to know all the secrets of the wonderful towns on our Hills!. Relax and enjoy the tour and even taste a wonderful Gelato/ice cream. There are many favourite bars where you can stop for a snack and admire the panoramic views of the terrain. 


Contact your cycling guide Francesco Bartalini of Italy. Phone: 39+3293340959

For more information please email: info@leisuretravelsrilanka.com

All tours leave from Versilia Riviera on an average of 70 km with a slope of 5% - 7%

PACKAGE 01:
NIGHTS: 3
MEALS: HALFBOARD PER PERSON
ACCOMMODATION: 3 STAR
START: FRI/SAT/SUN
COST: EURO 290 PER PERSON

PACKAGE 02:
NIGHTS: 4
MEALS: HALFBOARD PER PERSON
ACCOMMODATION: 3 STAR
START: THU/FRI/SAT/SUN
COST: EURO 390 PER PERSON

PACKAGE 03:
NIGHTS: 5
MEALS: HALFBOARD PER PERSON
ACCOMMODATION: 3 STAR
START: WED/THU/FRI/SAT/SUN
COST: EURO 484 PER PERSON

PACKAGE 04:
NIGHTS: 6
MEALS: HALFBOARD PER PERSON
ACCOMMODATION: 3 STAR
START: TUE/WED/THU/FRI/SAT/SUN
COST: EURO 575 PER PERSON

Borneo is an exotic & exciting tropical Island - a nature adventure destination not to be missed if your travel takes you there. This place is popular for its wildlife attractions, rainforests, beach resorts on white sandy beaches, crystal clear waters and friendly locals. What more would you want. Seek and you shall find places of interest and activities that will satisfy your appetite.

This is a favourite place among travellers. Definitely not to be missed when you visit Borneo. This mountain is sacred to locals and is famous around the world for trekking to its peak. At the foot of the mountain is the national park where you will see most of the rare flora and fauna.

This is a good adventure series. Mountain runners from around the world come here for this great event – Mount Kinabalu international climbathon. There are two routes to choose from. Option 1: 23 km run starts from Kinabalu Park to the summit trail of Layang, down to Mesilau and ending at Kundasang township. Option 2: Start at Kinabalu Park, go all the way to the summit and finish at Kundasang. Casual climbers might take a day to scale the mountain. In contrast professional runners can finish up in as little as 4 hours. If you feel up to it get into the excitement and register for a run. This  annual international climbathon will be held on October 18-19th 2014.

See more in this link:
http://www.sabahtourism.com/events/28th-mt-kinabalu-international-climbathon-adventure-series

Watch This Climbathon Video courtesy of Sabah Tourism Board

Most travellers to Malaysia would have visited the Orangutan rehabilitation centre in Sepilok. Visitors can come in close contact with these amazing animals. This is a successful and exciting conservation program where captured orang-utans are trained to fend for themselves before being released into the wild. It is amazing to watch how these orphaned animals are taught to climb and how they come to feed on meals of milk and bananas. This is an opportunity not to be missed when you are in Borneo.

Nature lovers will love this destination. This Valley is a peaceful place nestled deep in the rainforest of Borneo. The surroundings are very pristine and as you travel deeper into the forest you will come to a magical place called the Borneo Rainforest Lodge, which overlooks the majestic setting of the Segama river and the surrounding hill ranges. Danum valley is the place to visit if you want to see wildlife and the rare Sumatran rhino, Orangutans, elephant, monkeys and more species of birds.

Take a boat ride to this park. There are 5 beautiful Islands well known for its peace and tranquillity. The white sandy beaches are ideal for relaxing and tanning. The water is fantastic and crystal clear. Snorkelling around the coral reefs is amazing. Facilities for a barbecue or a picnic are available. Windsurfing, fishing, kayaking and bird watching are possible here.

Enjoy a challenging game of golf and take in the picturesque mountain landscapes and the splendour of the scenic drive along the seacoast. Professionals and amateurs alike will enjoy a game or two of golf in Sabah.

A true adventure seeker will love will love to experience an adrenaline pump on the thrills of white water rafting down the Padas river (grade three). Enjoy the breath taking views as you meander and negotiate the rapids on a 5-kilometre drift down the river.

Off northeast Borneo lies a marine eco system in the tiny Island at Sipadan idela for diving. This is a pristine Coral Sea on the floor of the Sulawesi Sea. It is a well-known spot for divers from around the world as no other spot has more marine life as this place.

"Let not even a drop of rain water go to the sea without benefiting man".
By Parakramabahu – The Great
1153–1186 AD

This great city remained the political and religious capital of Sri Lanka for 1300 years. Ranking alongside Nineveh and Babylon, Anuradhapura stood still in its colossal proportions with its four walls, 16 miles long and enclosing an area of 256 sq. miles. 

Chola  & Pandyan Invasions

This period of history marked by frequent invasions and battles with the Chola & Pandyan dynasties meant the city lost its royal glory. Monasteries were robbed of their valuables such as gold images and precious gems which were accumulated for centuries. Continuous rebellion to protect the kingdom and keep the throne resulted in Anuradhapura being eventually beseiged by the chola kings & their armies for a short period.  Anuradhapura was gradually abandoned as a kingdom, making way for Polonnaruwa to take its place of governance after the Cholas were finally defeated in battle.

Today this abandoned city is UNESCO heritage listed and rightfully so. It is now a historic site where tourists and pilgrims flock here to see the huge bell shaped stupas, temples and granite sculptures of the Buddha. Most of the damaged dagobas and viharas have now been restored to its ancient splendor. Complex irrigation systems supposedly considered the best in the world and oldest surviving reservoirs are still in use today. 

Mihintale

Nearly 8 miles to the east of Anuradhapura is a mountain peak called Mihintale. This is the place where a Buddhist monk called Mahinda preached buddhism to King Devanpiyatissa and his people. This king and his people became ardent followers of the Buddhist doctrine. He embraced buddhism and encouraged it as a way of life for his people.
You will see Viharas (Monasteries) and 68 caves that the King had built for buddhist monks at this site. Mihintale  is revered by buddhists who flock here during the month of poson to pay their respects to the Buddha. 

If you are passing through Mihintale it is worth stopping for a couple of hours to gain an insight into the history of this holy city.

The Chola Dynasty

The Cholas were a constant threat to the survival of the Sinhalese kingdoms of Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Ruhuna  during the period 993 BC. It was King Vijayabahu 1 who finally defeated the Cholas and took control of Polonnaruwa and reigned as King for almost a period of 50 years.. The Cholas never attempted to invade Sri Lanka again.

The defeat of the Cholas

What to see in Anuradhapura

Take a bicycle ride or hire a tuk tuk and tour the ancient city at leisure. There is much to see in this city. The ancient Bo tree – perhaps the oldest tree in the world.
There are 8 major palaces, Monasteries and monuments. There is a protective wall built by King Kirthi Sri Rajasinghe to prevent attacks by wild elephants.

Leisure Travel Sri Lanka organisers daily tours to these ancient cities. If you are interested in taking one of these tours covering the cultural triangle please make an enquiry.    

Jethavanara

The Jetavanaramaya is a stupa (a monument containing relics of the buddha) located in the ruins of Jetavana Monastery. King Mahasena (273–301 AD) started the construction of the stupa following the destruction of Mahavihara. His son Maghavanna I completed the construction.  A part of a sash or belt tied by the Buddha is believed to be the relic that is enshrined here.

The Sacred Bo Tree

Sri Maha Bodhiya (Bodhi Tree) is a large and very old sacred Fig tree that is believed to be the oldest living tree in the world. Sanghamitta Thera brought the right branch of the Bodhi Tree (under which Buddha attained enlightenment in Bodh Gaya) to Anuradhapura in 245 BC.

Lovamahapaya

Lovamahapaya, is a Palace or Lohaprasadaya, built by King Dutugemunu It was an edifice of nine storeys. The roof of Lovamahapaya was covered with tiles made of bronze. This palace became known as the Brazen Palace of Anuradhapura.

Ruwanwelisaya

Ruwanwelisaya, a popular tourist attraction, is a magnificent Stupa that is one of the world’s tallest monuments, with a height of 92 m and circumference of 292 m. Ruwanwelisaya dagoba of Anuradhapura is believed to have the perfect water bubble shape.

Thuparamaya

Thuparamaya is a dagoba (a temple of veneration) in Anuradhapura with the base diameter of 18m and 3.45m in height. Thuparamaya, located in the heart of Anuradhapura is considered to be the first dagoba built in Sri Lanka following the introduction of Buddhism.

Abayagiri Dagaba

Abhayagiri Dagaba is the largest monastery complex in the Anuradhapura kingdom. It is 108m in height is considered one of the tallest buildings of that period. The campus of Abhayagiri Dagaba is spread around 200 hectares with full components of buddhist temples and one of Sri Lanka’s finest Buddha sculpture – a Samadhi statue.

Isurumuniya

Isurumuniya is situated near Tisawewa. It was built by King Devanampiyatissa to house 500 newly ordained children of high caste. There is a viharaya in Isurumuniya connected to a cave and above is a cliff with a small stupa built on it.

Samadhi

This samadhi statue is situated at Mahamevuna Park in Anuradhapura.  This statue depicts the Buddha in the seated position of the Dhyana Mudra, the posture of meditation associated with Buddha’s first enlightenment, also called Nirvana. This is one of the best pieces of sculpture on the site. The statue is 8 feet (2.4 m) in height and made of granite. This is the posture of meditation in which the Buddha sits in a cross-legged position with upturned palms, placed one over the other on the lap.

Kuttam Pokuna

One of the best specimens of bathing tanks or pools in ancient Sri Lanka is the pair of pools known as “Kuttam Pokuna” (Twin Ponds/Pools). Kuttam Pokuna was built by the Sinhalese in the ancient kingdom of Anuradhapura. Kuttam Pokuna are considered one of the significant achievements in the field of hydrological engineering and outstanding architectural and artistic creations of the ancient Sinhalese.

Lankarama

Lankarama is a stupa built by King Valagamba, in a place at Galhebakada in Anuradhapura. Nothing is known about the ancient form of this stupa. This stupa has been restored recently.

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