Sri Lanka with kids: what works, what to skip

Families are among the happiest travellers we send home, and also the ones who ask the most questions beforehand. Fair enough: a long flight, a hot country, a lot of driving, unfamiliar food. Here is what we have learned from the families we have travelled with, including the mistakes.

The short version

Sri Lanka works with children because it is small, warm, kind to kids, and full of things that are exciting at child height: elephants, monkeys, tuk-tuks, a rock with a lion's paws at the bottom, a train you can wave from, a sea that is bath-warm in season. What makes or breaks it is pace. Plan half as much as you would for yourselves and the trip will be twice as good.

Pace and drives

Roads are slow. A two-hour drive on the map is a two-and-a-half-hour drive with a stop, and a stop is not optional with a five-year-old. Our rule for families: no drive over about three hours without a proper break, nothing before seven in the morning except the things worth it (a safari, the rock), and two nights at every base where the route allows. The last night should be near the airport or on the expressway, not seven hours away in the hills.

A private car with a driver-guide makes all of this possible. Children get the window seats, the air-conditioning works, there is water in the car, and when someone needs a loo in the next ten minutes, the driver knows where one is. We fit child seats on request; please tell us ages and heights when you enquire.

What works

Wild elephants, seen from a jeep. Udawalawe is the park for families: open grassland, so children can see a long way; herds you can see on almost every drive, all year round; and drives of two to three hours, which is as long as most children last. Minneriya and Kaudulla near Habarana are the alternative from about July to September, when hundreds of elephants gather on the drying lake beds (the "Gathering"). The peak shifts a little with the rains each year. The jeeps are open-sided, you stay seated, and the trackers are good with kids.

Pinnawala, with eyes open. The elephant orphanage on the Kandy road is an easy stop and small children love watching the herd bathe in the river. It is a managed setting rather than the wild, and some families prefer to skip it for that reason. We will tell you honestly what to expect and let you choose; our Pinnawala page says more.

Sigiriya, as a quest. Children from about six upwards climb it with a hand on the railing and a parent behind. Go at opening time, make it a game (find the paws, count the paintings, spot the pool from the top), and take it slowly on the exposed stairs. If one child is not keen, one adult waits in the water gardens, which are full of monkeys.

The best part of the train. The full Kandy to Ella line is six hours and too long for most children. We usually book Nanu Oya to Ella instead: about three hours through the tunnels and tea country, the prettiest stretch of the line. Bring snacks and a game, and the driver-guide meets the train in Ella with the car.

A village afternoon. Near Sigiriya and Habarana, a bullock-cart ride, a catamaran across a lake and lunch cooked on a wood fire by a family. It is touristy in the best sense and children talk about it for the rest of the trip.

Beaches with calm water, in season. Bentota from December to March, the east coast (Nilaveli, Pasikuda) from May to September. We never plan beach days on a coast in its monsoon; the sea is rough and the lifeguards are not always there.

Rice and curry, mild. Sri Lankan food is easy for children if you ask: rice, dhal, mild chicken curry, coconut sambol on the side, hoppers for breakfast, fruit everywhere. Hotels do plain pasta, omelettes and chips without blinking. Tell us about allergies and we brief every stay before you arrive.

What to skip, or do differently

Long temple days. One temple at the right hour (the drummers at Kandy's evening puja; Dambulla's caves in the late afternoon) is wonderful. Three in a day is a mutiny. Shoes off, shoulders and knees covered for everyone, including children, and bring socks: the stone gets hot.

Yala with very young children. Leopards need patience and quiet, both in short supply under six. Save it for when they are older and give the first safari to Udawalawe.

Horton Plains and big hikes. A nine-kilometre walk at altitude in the cold at dawn is a hard sell. Little Adam's Peak in Ella is the family version: forty minutes up, a view, a snack.

Changing hotel every night. The single biggest cause of grumpy children (and grumpy parents). Two nights minimum, three if you can.

Peak-season crowds at Sigiriya and the Nine Arch Bridge. Both are busiest from mid-morning. Early is calmer and cooler; your driver-guide will get you there before the buses.

Practical bits

• Health. Bring the usual: sun cream, insect repellent, rehydration sachets, any regular medicines. Pharmacies are everywhere and well-stocked. We share up-to-date local advice before you travel. For vaccinations, please follow your own country's travel-health guidance.
• Water. Bottled or filtered; most hotels provide it.
• Sun. Strong and early. Hats, long sleeves for the climb.
• Nappies and formula. Available in towns; bring what you need for the first days.
• Connectivity. A local SIM or eSIM at the airport means maps and messaging throughout, and a tablet full of downloads is a parent's friend on the longer drives.
• Money. Cards in hotels and cities; cash for ice cream, tuk-tuks and tips.

A sample week

Our Little Explorers draft is the shape we would start from for children of primary-school age with one week in the European winter: a night by the sea near the airport, two nights near Sigiriya for the rock, a village afternoon and an elephant safari, one night in Kandy for the drummers, a train from Nanu Oya to Ella on the way to Udawalawe, and two nights at Bentota to finish. Longer holidays in July and August go to the east coast instead; our Winter Sun Flagship is the two-week version for December to March.

Tell us the ages and how your family travels, and we will send a first plan within a day. Grandparents welcome.

Sath and Dan