Udawalawe Safari: Explore Elephant Sanctuary

Embark on a private safari in Udawalawe National Park, home to a large elephant population. Visit the Elephant Transit Home, a sanctuary where young elephants are nurtured before being released into the park.

Duration: 4 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Udawalawe National Park - Udawalawe is undoubtedly one of the best places in Sri Lanka to see wild Asian Elephants throughout the year. Usually, you will have a better chance to spot herds of elephants if you choose morning departure. There are about 500 elephants in the park and they often roam in herds of up to 100. Udawalawe National Park is…
What's Included
  • Experienced Driver (Also your tracker).
  • All taxes and service charges.
  • One Mineral Water Bottle Per Person.
  • All Entrance Fees (If you select “Jeep with Tickets”)
  • Elephant Transit Home Visit
  • 4x4 Safari Jeep (Maximum of 6 Passengers per jeep).
  • Free Pickup/Drop off from/to any location within the radius of 5KM from the Park Gate and Udawalawe.
What's Not Included
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off if outside of 5km of the park entrance gate.
  • Expenses of personal nature.
  • Food and drinks.
  • Gratuities.
Additional Information

Udawalawe National Park, the sixth largest wildlife sanctuary in Sri Lanka, is situated 112 miles (180 km) from Colombo in the south-central region of the island. This park is renowned for its significant elephant population. The Elephant Transit Home, one of the island’s largest animal sanctuaries, provides care for young elephants before they are reintroduced into the park.

Location
Udawalawe National Park
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.7
(7 Ratings)
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Unforgettablee2024
May 9, 2024
Udawalawa National Park - Explore the rich biodiversity of Udawalawa National Park. Keep your eyes peeled for leopards, sloth bears, crocodiles, and a variety of bird species
Review provided by Tripadvisor
V4018txirist
May 29, 2022
Amazing safari! - A friend of mine recommended me to contact Lahiru for a tour in the Nationalpark and we were not disappointed. Lahiru was the best guide we could imagine for our safari. Everything was perfectly organised from beginning to end. It is incredible how he can spot even the smallest animals from a distance - i still don't know how he does it. Even though he knows a lot about the animals, he gives you time to enjoy and "inhale" the experience and silence. We took paths in which we almost never crossed other jeeps. He was respecting the moods of the animals and never pushed too hard. Like that, we saw a ton lot of animals from very close. Wow, I'm still stunned by the experience! Strong recommendation!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Hectorious62
Mar 22, 2022
Lahiru - a great guide - Lahiru was a wonderful guide for our three hour safari. He is so knowledgeable with bundles of enthusiasm and an eye like a hawk. He spotted eagles, kingfishers, bee eaters, crocodiles and a well-camouflaged vine snake but the real thrill was his understanding of the elephants. He does not follow the other jeeps around but trusts his instincts to find the elephants and observe them close up. We had a bull elephant washing himself just a few feet away from our jeep, a juvenile trying to poke his trunk in to see what we were about and then our grand finale was the family he found just before leaving. Lahiru took some great photos for us too. His driver was fantastic and negotiated his way through the mud so well. Lahiru was good company, funny and informative but he also gave us time and space to enjoy the animals on our own. We could not recommend him more- he made our safari an absolute highlight of our Sri Lanka holiday.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Orlink2022
Feb 17, 2022
Very nice - We had a very pleasant trip trough the park with Lahiru. The park is huge, we could see many animals, a lot of elefants, birds, reptiles etc. He arranged transportation form/to Tangalle for us, small breakfast and water. Everything top, can recommend for sure.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Matthewwu3149ik
Dec 21, 2019
Excellent. - Great 1/2 day trip. Interesting guide with a keen spotting eye. Lots of elephants. Highly recommended.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
70jimk
Mar 13, 2019
Lahiru – good animal spotting, poor customer service - Last week, we took a safari with Lahiru. He gets 5 stars for the safari itself and 1 star for the way he handled things start to finish. We booked a month in advance for a full day safari, which to us, meant early in the morning through park close, although we did not specify exact times, but based on the price, it was consistent with that from other info we read online. Two weeks out, we confirmed. Two days before we reached out via WhatsApp and were told we could start at 2pm because of expected bad weather, which looked perfectly clear. He said we would still get in 5 hours. Asked for a price in line with a half day and he immediately agreed which told us that he had likely double booked, nothing to do with the weather. Day of, he asks if we would be okay sharing with another person. I said our price was for private and we would like a discount for sharing. He says we’ll stay private. He shows up, asks again if we’ll share. We reluctantly agree and with no apparent communication with anyone, he picks up a woman waiting, so he clearly wasn’t waiting on our agreement. When our hotel asked when we’d be back, he said we’d be gone 3 hours. We protested that he’d said five hours and ‘oh, the park closes at 6pm’ so five hours wasn’t even possible. Ultimately we saw lots of animals, he was good at spotting them and we were away from other vehicles for the most part. So from that perspective, we were quite happy. That said, he was messaging on his phone the whole time, likely at least some with other guides, but we suspect his business has picked up more than he’s able to manage and quality has gone down. If you ask questions about the park and animals, he knows his stuff, but not in the least proactive in explaining. He was very pleased with himself every time he spotted an animal and let you know that ‘I showed you that’. It became a bit old. Overall, if you set up a safari with expectations in line, you will likely have a good experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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up to 6 guests
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October 2024
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