World Destinations

Leopards, birds and beaches of Sri Lanka
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12 - 23 March 2004 (ex Auckland/Auckland)*

On this tour we spend five nights at the Yala Safari Game Lodge in the south of Sri Lanka and explore the nearby Yala National Park - leopard, elephant, sloth bear, crocodile and deer; birds in a wide variety of habitats; we also visit the Sithulpahuwa ancient hermitage. The tour concludes with three nights at the Blue Water beachside resort hotel at Wadduwa on the Southwest coast - a chance to unwind totally - surf-washed beaches, Kodduwa Island, temples and gardens, and the Sinharaja Rainforest Reserve.

Your NZ Tour Leaders will be Chris Gaskin and Karen Baird. Dharmin Samarajeewa , a specialist Sri Lankan birding and wildlife guide will accompany us throughout our tour in Sri Lanka. We will also be joined by resident naturalists at some of the hotels we stay at on tour.

Painted storks	Legges flowerpecker	Tree nymph butterfly

Itinerary in brief

• 12 March Depart Auckland for Singapore. Overnight Singapore.
  
• 13 March Fly to Sri Lanka, arrive in Colombo and transferred to Tropical Villas Beruwela for one night. En route do a city tour of Colombo.
  
• 14 March After breakfast leave for Yala Safari Game Lodge for five nights. Afternoon at leisure / dip in the pool / take a beach combing walk.
  
• 15 MarchMorning take a walk in the hotel's nature trail with your Naturalist. The trail goes through a mixture of habitats, which comprise of sea, lagoon, mud flats & shrub jungle resulting in a fantastic diversity of birds. The hotel's checklist stands at an impressive 150 species of birds, which include Great Thick-knee, White-rumped Shama and Indian Pitta. Afternoon, safari to Yala National Park. According to the Leopard Research sponsored by Yala Safari Game Lodge, under the Jetwing Research Initiative Yala Block 1 has one of the highest densities of Leopards in the world. Yala therefore offers one of the best chances in Asia to see Leopards. Other large animals you may see include Elephant, Sloth Bear, Mugger Crocodile, Spotted Deer, Sambhur, Barking Deer, Wild Boar, Wild Buffalo, Jackal, Grey Langur, Mongoose. Birding highlights include Malabar Pied Hornbill, Painted Stork, Lesser Adjutant and Black-necked Stork. Evening take a journey in the coach for Indian and Jerdon's Nightjars.

• Yala Safari Game Lodge

  16 Mar ch At 6.00 a.m. wildlife safari to Yala National Park in search of Leopards. Afternoon, visit Sithulpahuwa ancient hermitage to see ancient stupas set amidst a rock strewn scrub jungle landscape, beautiful scenery. Sithulpahuwa is also fantastic for birders and we look for Blue Rock Thrush, Red-rumped Swallow and Coppersmith Barbet.
  
• 17 March Morning visit Debarawewa wetland for birding. Take an easy paced birding walk on the footpath encircling the wetland, which is full of water lilies of different shades of colour and many species of birds. We look for Black-crowned Night Heron, Great Cormorant and Yellow Bittern. We may also look for the scarce White-naped Woodpecker. Afternoon, safari to Yala National Park for Leopards.
  

• Blue Water Hotel, Wadduwa

  18 March Morning visit Palatupana Saltpans for shorebirds. Highlights include Pacific Golden Plover, Greater Sand Plover and Marsh Sandpiper. Afternoon, safari to Yala National Park for Leopards.
• 19 March Leave for Blue Water, Wadduwa, which is a four-star beach hotel for three nights.
  
• 20 March Beach stay. Day excursion to Sinharaja Rainforest Reserve
  
• 21 March Beach stay. Day excursion.
  
• 22 March Departure, fly to and overnight in Singapore
• 23 March Fly Singapore to Auckland
  
  

For the full itinerary and further details please contact us.

Jetwing's hotels are renowned for their excellent quest service, tasteful environment, relaxing atmosphere, attention to detail and impeccable facilities.

Costs: NZ$6,650 per person, twin share (ex Auckland / Auckland).

Please note, this price includes international airfares (NZ to Sri Lanka via Singapore). If you are joining the tour from somewhere other than New Zealand, then ask us about alternative flight arrangements. Or, we can subtract the price of airfares if you wish to make your own flight arrangements.

THE ABOVE PRICES INCLUDE:

• International airfares (including stopover accommodation in Singapore)
  
• Accommodation
  
• All meals (except in Singapore)
  
• Transportation in an A/C Mini Bus 7-12 PAX
  
• All applicable entrance fees to places of interest for the number of visits included in the itineraries
  
• Sri Lankan naturalist guide
  
• Jeep hire for all safaris (where mentioned).

THE ABOVE PRICES EXCLUDES:

• Expenses of a personal nature
  
• Embarkation tax on departure
  
• Tips and porterage
  
• Video permits.

Contact us for more details.

The pictures on this website page were taken by Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne © 2002.

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