While in Weligama, we decided that rather than lugging all of our stuff up to Udawalawe, we take a hit on the accommodation and just travel up there for a couple of nights while keeping our Weligama house.
This safari was my favourite part of the trip so far. Every place we go to I try and plan which animals we can see in their natural habitat or ethical environment. To me it is the most exciting part of travelling and I love the kids to see animals where they are supposed to be (which I know they are extremely fortunate to be able to do).
We were contacted an app – Pikanite to collaborate with them and choose some accommodation for a small discount. We opted for a rustic looking guest house called La Jade and it was great. We were treated to a four course breakfast every morning, home cooked curries and they arranged our safari for us. This was all done quite last minute so there is no panic to book ahead before you leave home. I find booking ahead can often be way more expensive.
Also note that the internet is pretty much non-existent in these parts. Our accommodation had a router which was the same as we’d had everywhere else but there was just no signal. I assume this is the same for most places in the area. So if you need it then double check with the venue.
As we noticed with a lot of attraction in Sri Lanka, kids go free if they are under 12 or so. Also a tip to remember, there are only bathrooms at the entrance. There is nowhere to stop on the way around so ensure everyone has used them before you go in as the full trip takes about three hours. There were a couple of people selling hats and water but that was about it so go prepared. We were also advised by our host to go in the afternoon. Everyone wants to go in the morning and apparently the park is packed and you have to queue for ages to get in. He even had an app that he showed us which showed the number of trucks in the park. I was really glad we listened to him as we went straight in and weren’t fighting with so many others as we drove around.
It was our hosts brother that arrived in a huge open-sided (but with a roof) safari truck and the kids (and us!) were very excited. Nate especially, as he let him sit in the front and pretend to drive before we left. I was slightly concerned that he might try and jump out in the middle of the safari but actually it was fine.
Our guest house was on the perimeter of the national park pretty near the entrance and so we saw some elephants standing by the fence and having a scratch up against a tree before we’d even started. Our driver was great and knew exactly where to take us. Altogether we saw tons of gorgeous elephants big and small, a family of monkeys, painted storks amongst other amazing birds, crocodiles which were very exciting to see in the wild, buffalo and water buffalo. With the help of binoculars we were also lucky enough to see a nesting eagle which I assume is a pretty rare sight.
All in all this was an incredible experience and I won’t forget it in a hurry.
