Features

Picture: Image Bank

If there’s one place in the world your clients are guaranteed to see elephants, it’s Sri Lanka. The island’s most famous religious event is the Esala Perahera Festival. Held in Kandy each July, thousands of tourists flock to see a mighty old tusker, draped in gold costumes and carrying a sacred tooth relic – believed to have belonged to Buddha himself – amble through the streets.

According to Sri Lanka Tourist Board UK director Charmarie Maelge, elephants have been part of the fabric of island life for thousands of years, both as working animals and spiritual icons. "Very special elephants get to participate in religious processions," she said.

Unsurprisingly, the country’s most popular tourist attraction also involves elephants. The elephant orphanage at Pinnewala is home to 70 or so jumbo elephants rescued from the wild, mostly because their parents have been killed by poachers. Thomas Cook product manager Jill Thomson said: "Because they’re used to human contact you can get really close. Feeding and bathing times are particularly fun."

Major operators including Somak, Hayes and Jarvis and Kuoni offer day excursions to the orphanage, or include a visit as part of a longer cultural tour. Thomson Worldwide’s eight-day Ceylon Sapphires tour leads in at £1,400 per person, including flights, and takes in the orphanage along with stops at the ancient cities of Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya, and the tea plantations near Nuwara Eliya.

For a wilder experience, clients can book a jeep safari in one of Sri Lanka’s game parks. Uda Walawe and Yala parks are especially popular. Amathus Holidays’ seven-night Highlights of Sri Lanka tour visits Yala. Products and contracts manager Darren Eade said: "The park borders the Lahugala Elephant Sanctuary, so it’s great for elephant watching."

The tour leads in at £970, including flights.

Luckier holidaymakers might even wake to find an over-friendly pachyderm wandering past their bedroom at the new Elephant Corridor Hotel near the Kandalama Hills.

Kuoni UK product director Francis Torrilla said: "The hotel is located on the edge of a national park on an elephant migration route."

Five nights in a deluxe suite with plunge pool costs from £961 per person, including flights. A great way to see elephants in this region is on horseback.

At the other end of the luxury scale, the simple mud huts at Tree Tops Lodge in the Weliara rainforest are only for the most hardy holidaymakers. Suranjan Cooray, business development manager for Sri Lanka specialist Travel and Tours Anywhere, said: "Clients must be prepared to rough it, but the reward is the opportunity to see wild elephants in their natural jungle habitat." A 10-day trip leads in at £1,399 per person, including flights.

Clients wanting a truly memorable experience can involve one of these gentle giants in their wedding ceremony. Sri Lanka is Manos Holiday’s most popular long-haul destination for weddings. Head of marketing Owen Whitehead said: "Along with a cake and some Kandyan dancers, the deluxe wedding package includes the Sri Lankan tradition of leaving the ceremony on a ‘going away’ elephant." This package costs £599 per person.

For serious elephant fans, Magic of the Orient’s Elephants in Focus tour covers just about everything, including the elephant orphanage, several game parks and an elephant ride in the jungle. The land-only cost is £622 per person and includes the services of a specialist tracker and guide.

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