Group Yoga tour: 2/20/2021- 3/2/2021

Welcome to Sri Lanka! Meet your group at the airport and get to know the other participants of this wellness journey.

Your yoga teacher, Amel Lamloum, welcomes you & presents the tour. This yoga enthusiast discovered yoga as an expat living in Sri Lanka, loved it and made it her profession to share the practice with others.

Explore this bustling coastal city. You could go to the Dutch fort district and the Dutch Museum. Discover Pettah District, with its bazaar and its mosque. Check out the City Hall District with its colonial buildings. Stroll around Beira Laketo and discover the Buddhist temple and Gangarama Hindu Temple. Dinner and overnight.

Take the early morning train from Colombo to Kandy (seats subject to availability) and watch some of the most beautiful landscapes in Asia unfold before your eyes. Your driver will pick you up at the station. Visit Kandy, home of the country's last kingdom. Explore the city on your own. Discover the sacred, Buddhist Temple of the Tooth. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is richly decorated and houses the relic of Buddha's tooth. Take a stroll around the tree- lined lake (about 4km). You could then explore the lively vegetable market not far from the lake, worth the visit for its diversity of products and atmosphere.

Come back and settle into your room at the beautiful ecolodge in the jungle. Enjoy your first yoga session at the hotel's yoga shala overlooking Victoria Reservoir- a real moment of peace & well-being in the heart of nature. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Enjoy a sunrise yoga session with Amel as your guide. Awaken your senses and energize your day.

Set off on a mindful walk through the jungle & small villages. Walk through little villages to the Kandyan Forest Gardens, an agrarian system where large trees are used to enrich the soil and protect crops from climatic hazards. Watch and help local vllagers prepare Kitul syrup, a sweet delicacy made from tree sap comparable to maple syrup. Then, a botany lesson given by your guide will teach you about the local trees you see, like mango, passion fruit, and banana trees. Walk through rice paddies still cultivated today with the help of buffalo. Stop in Naranpanawa for a swim in the river once swum in by Kandyan Kings. Enjoy the rest of the day at your leisure at your magnificent ecolodge. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Today's hike includes several picturesque villages, temples, a jungle and tea plantations. Enjoy beautiful scenery as well as scenes of rural Sri Lankan life, including the "line houses" of the tea pickers. Climb to the foot of Knuckles Mountains and find yourself at a natural swimming hole created by waterfalls. Take a break and enjoy a refreshing swim (water temperature: approx. 18°C). You have the option of taking the local bus from here, or you can hike another 4 km through the forest to a modern tea factory, and take public transport back from here. This 18 km hike is rather strenuous and requires good shoes and a hat to protect yourself from the sun.

Restful and relaxing yoga session at the end of the day. Release your fatigue and prepare your body and mind for a good night's sleep! Dinner and overnight at the ecolodge.

Drive to the "Cultural Triangle". Visit a spice & medicinal plant garden on the way and take the opportunity to take a course in local cuisine. Learn about local plants, their culinary uses and medicinal virtues. Learn how to prepare rice and curry, beginning with extracting coconut milk. "Rap" a coconut to crack it open and extract its rich coconut milk- an essential ingredient for this sumptious national dish. Sit down to enjoy the fruits of your hard work. Yum! The next stop is Dambulla, named a UNESCO World Heritage site for its Buddhist caves perched at the top of a hill. It's worth the climb to see the 5 caves, filled with colorful religious statues and paintings. An added bonus is the beautiful panoramic view that you get of the surrounding area. Afterwards, take a stroll through Dambulla Market and discover new fruits and vegetables. Settle in at your hotel, dinner and overnight.

We recommend climbing Pidurangala rock, adjacent to the famous "Lion Rock" of Sigiriya. Enjoye breathtaking views of Sigiriya and the nearby Minneriya National Park. Pidurangala rock itself boasts its own ruins of a monastery, statues of Buddha, and caves, making for a special off-the-beaten path hike.

Around 3:00pm leave for a jeep safari through Minneriya National Park, famous for its elephant population of about 400 individuals. Look also for other wild animals such as crocodiles, buffalo, deer, lizards, cormorants, pelicans and a multitude of other birds. The park is also interesting for its landscapes of swamps, lakes and mountains on the horizon. Return to your hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Get ready for a dramatic change of scenery as we drive from the jungles of Digana to Kalpitiya's wonderful and wild peninsula. Located on the west coast, Kalpitya is ideal for enjoying the Indian Ocean in a quiet setting. Check in to your bungalow and enjoy views of the lagoon. Restful and relaxing yoga session at the end of the day.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

3-day stay in Kalpitiya Lagoon dedicated to yoga and your well-being. Enjoy 2 yoga classes each day with Amel, on the beach or in the seaside yoga shala. Amel will also give a lecture on Ayurveda- the ancient Indian medicine also practiced in Sri Lanka.

Go dolphin watching very early one morning. We suggest snorkeling on the well preserved Bar Reef another morning.

Your new Mantra-Life is good in Kalpitiya! Enjoy a relaxing day with two yoga classes and a beach break.

We recommend visiting Sainte Anne Church today.

Carpe Diem! Make the most of your last full day in Sri Lanka, recharge your batteries and focus on yourself.

We recommend taking a boat tour to explore Kalpitya's northern islands.

Enjoy your last day in Negombo. Located on the west coast, this beautiful seaside resort is nicknamed "Little Rome" for its numerous churches. Visit the city to see the churches, and visit the beaches where fish is dried in the sun. Immerse yourself in the local vegetable and seafood markets- some of the largest in the country. Take a walk along the Dutch canal in the evening and enjoy a magnificent sunset. Your transfer to Colombo Bandaranaike Airport is organized so that your departure is worry-free. We wish you a good trip and a safe flight! We hope Amel's yoga tour has reguvinated your spirit and that you have great memories of your stay with us in Sri Lanka.