Sinharaja Rainforest in Sri Lanka

Description and Is It Worth Visiting

Sinharaja Forest Reserve is located in the south of Sri Lanka (Sinharaja Forest on the map). It's not as popular among tourists as Yala National Park, but it's no less interesting and definitely more unique. It is one of two natural reserves in Sri Lanka included in the UNESCO World Heritage List (see UNESCO attractions in Sri Lanka). Translated from Sinhalese, Sinharaja means "Lion King". This place has been revered and respected by locals since ancient times.

The park area is small compared to other national parks in the country, only 88.64 square kilometers. But this area preserves a unique biosphere, as it is one of the few remaining places on the planet where primary rainforests survive.

It is home to many rare animal species and plants, many of which are listed in the Red Book. Many of the species are found only here. You can encounter wild elephants (but it's better not to, they are dangerous), many species of monkeys, wild boars, leopards, various reptiles, and insects.

Tips and Important Info for Visiting Sinharaja Rainforest

The simplest form of excursion into the forest involves a trip to one of the official park entrances, from where you'll be offered a 2-3 hour walk along an eco-trail with a guide. Visiting eco-trails without a guide is prohibited.

But you might not always see something truly interesting during such a walk; a lot depends on the guides. They are often accused of laziness and unwillingness to take tourists on difficult trails, but it's a matter of luck. You can be persistent and suggest or demand to take certain trails yourself.

If you want to be sure to see all the local beauty, you need to come to Sinharaja with an overnight stay and stay at a camp to start a long route early in the morning. One of the most interesting routes includes climbing the highest peak of the national park.

Here are a few tips:

• The best time to visit is the dry season from November to March.
• Access to tourist eco-routes in the park is through several official entrances.
• Each entrance may offer several routes, including those with significant elevation changes. Information about the route length and elevation change is provided on information boards at the entrances. Honestly assess your strength and choose a suitable route. For reference: a fit person can easily handle an elevation gain of over 500 meters, while for an unfit tourist, 300 meters can already be a challenge, especially in the heat.
• If you want to see animals, you need to start your walk early in the morning when the park opens at 7:00 AM.
• There are many land leeches in the forest. They are not like our leeches: they are small and their bites are not felt. They are said to even jump on victims from trees. The best protection against them is thick clothing. After the walk, it's best to check your entire body, as they can crawl into the most unexpected places. More about land leeches and how to protect yourself.
• Wear sports or trekking shoes, preferably as closed as possible to protect against land leeches.
• Clothing should also be as closed as possible, sportswear. Also bring rain protection (raincoat, windbreaker).
• At the trail entrances, they sell shoe covers to protect against leeches; it's better to buy them.
• Use repellents and ointments to protect against insects.
• And also, for safety reasons, do not seek encounters with wild elephants.

How to Get There and How to Visit

You can get to Sinharaja National Park with tours or independently. More details on each method:

• With Tours

  This is the easiest and most convenient way if you don't have much experience with independent travel and aren't ready to rent transport. Tours are usually offered from resorts in the south and southwest (Unawatuna, Hikkaduwa, Mirissa, Weligama, Bentota). Most often, it's an individual trip by tuk-tuk or car with a driver who will simply take you to the start of one of the routes and hand you over to a guide. Price from 50 US dollars per person.

• Independently

  Sinharaja is difficult to reach by public transport, so it's best to get here with a rental vehicle. You can rent a scooter at almost any resort. It's more complicated with a car, so usually, you hire a car with a driver. More details about all transport rental options in Sri Lanka we covered in a separate guide, read it here.

  It's best to go from resorts on the south and southwest coasts. In theory, you can also get there from the center (Kandy), as well as from Negombo, Colombo, or Trincomalee, but it will be a long and expensive trip.

  Access to the routes is through official entrances (also marked on maps as eco-centers or eco-lodges). There are several of them, each offering several different route options of varying difficulty and duration. If you don't know which one to choose and aren't ready to study all the route details, we suggest simply choosing the entrance most convenient for driving from your resort. Here are the entrances available:

  • MorningSite (entrance on the map). This is one of the most popular entrances to the national park. One of the routes involves visiting Mount Mulawella, 735 meters high. Route reviews here.
  • Lankagama (entrance on the map). This route features several waterfalls. Route reviews here.
  • Wathugala (entrance on the map). Route reviews here.
  • Pitadeniya (entrance on the map). Route reviews here.
  • Kudawa (entrance on the map). Route reviews here.
  • Kurulugala (entrance on the map). Route reviews here.

  If you decide to go to the forest independently, you can use one of several entrances, but you can't drive directly into the forest with your own vehicle through all of them. Our experience (the site authors) has shown that you can enter by scooter, at least from the Neluwa side (this is the road to Dooli Ella waterfall). Taking this route, you can see the waterfall, and then continue along the road towards the Lankagama and Pitadeniya eco-centers, making stops for independent walks in the jungle or at the eco-centers. The road there is very bad in places, so your speed will be very low. It's better to return the same way.

  

  

  From the side of the town of Pallegama, you can get right up to the Pitadeniya eco-center, bypassing Dooli Ella. There are several waterfalls here (at least five) and decent trails. Guides are available.

  You can also drive right up to the forest via the town of Deniyaya (Morning side entrance), where you can leave your vehicle, and then proceed into the forest independently or with a guide. You can't drive a scooter into the forest here; the trail is too narrow.

  From the north, the entrance is usually via the town of Kudawa.

  Near each entrance, there is an option to stay at a camp (similar to a tourist base) overnight to start a longer route early in the morning.

  Entrance Fee

  Entry to the national park for foreign tourists, depending on the route, costs from 750 rupees (2.24 USD) to 1500 rupees (4.49 USD). The fee is collected at the checkpoints at the eco-centers.

  Guides are also available here; their accompaniment will cost from 1000 rupees per group (2.99 USD) to several thousand, with prices also varying on different routes.

  The cost of a trip to the forest with a tour from Unawatuna, Hikkaduwa, and other Sri Lankan resorts starts from $50 per person.

Photos from Sinharaja Forest