Kandy
The historic city of Kandy possesses both a strategic and picturesque location, nestled amid the peaks of Sri Lanka’s central highlands and in pre-colonial times was the island’s capital and seat of the Sinhalese kings. Today the town remains the most prestigious site for Sri Lankan Buddhists and is justifiably one of the island’s most popular destinations for overseas visitors. Here’s our brief rundown on the best (or rather our favourite) things to see and do in Kandy.
The Cultural Triangle with the World Heritage Sites, Sigiriya, Dambulla and Polonnaruwa lies a short drive to the north, Nuwara Eliya and the tea country spread out to the south culminating in Ella and the Horton Plains – beyond which, on the lowlands, are popular Yala and Udawalawe National Parks and the resort towns of the south coast while the present-day capital Colombo lies to the west. Note that, while we’ve seen rather impractical day trips to all those destinations on see and do in Kandy lists, we are limiting our own suggestions to the town and immediate area.
Kandy Lake with the Queen’s Hotel See and do in Kandy Town
The Royal Palace and Temple of the Tooth
The sprawling collection of UNESCO-listed, historic buildings situated on the northern side of Kandy Lake includes the ancient royal palace, museum and the highly prestigious Temple of the Tooth. There’s a lot to take in and you probably won’t see every part up close but the highlight is undoubtedly the ceremony which allows the public, including tourists, to get a glimpse of, and make offerings to, the highly venerated relic. (Claimed to be one of Buddha’s teeth, if you hadn’t already guessed). The ceremony is held thrice daily, early morning, morning and afternoon.
The Temple of the Tooth Kandy Lake
A walk around picturesque Kandy Lake is a must, not only for the views of the town and its historic buildings but also for the surprisingly bountiful wildlife you’ll encounter on your stroll. Many of the lakeside trees are home to egrets, herons, cormorants and kites while certain house large colonies of spectacular giant fruit bats. Look out also for very large water monitor lizards basking on the bank. It’s an hour or an hour and a half and particularly recommended for early morning or late afternoon.
Arthur’s Seat
The name given to a popular summit viewpoint on a hill situated southwest of the lake, which affords the best panoramic views of town. Wonderful view of the lake, Royal Palace complex and Temple of the Tooth as well as the surrounding hills. Needless to say, early and late times of the day are best but the view is worth it at any hour. (Note, if you don’t have transport, then hire a tuk-tuk as it’s a very steep climb!)
The viewpoint is apparently named after a British plantation owner of that name who regularly admired the view from a stone seat located outside of his bungalow. (Alas, the original seat is no more.)
Kandyan traditional dance Kandyan Traditional Dance
Those who know us are probably aware we’re not usually big fans of traditional dance shows. They all too often involve lines of coaches in a large hotel carpark, followed by a dubious buffet dinner and kitsch pastiches of traditional costumes, but we confess to thoroughly enjoying this one in Kandy. It was a well-produced, simple but spectacular, no-frills dance show with enthusiastic performers and credible costumes. (Restored our faith in traditional dance shows.)
See and do in Kandy – outside of town
Peradeniya Botanical Gardens
The delightful Peradeniya Botanical Gardens, situated in a valley a short drive southwest of town, were originally established back in 1843 to house a collection of local plants, trees and flowers along with specimens transported from Kew Gardens. The gardens today are said to contain over 4000 different plant species and cover some 150 acres. They’re also home to macaques, squirrels, more giant fruit bats and numerous bird species. One of our favourite botanical gardens in Asia and not to be missed.
Tea factory tour Tea Factory
Kandy and the region stretching south towards Nuwara Eliya comprise the centre of Sri Lanka’s prime quality tea producing area with (according to Wiki), the country listed as the 4th largest world producer and the largest exporter. A visit to a tea plantation, and or factory is then pretty much de rigeur. Many offer guided tours but our choice is the Kadugannawa Tea Factory with a very convenient location southwest of town, just past the Peradeniya Gardens. We’ll have already seen plenty of plantation-covered hillsides further south so our visit is to the factory itself which, with a remarkable collection of restored, and still functioning, 19th-century machinery, is a fascinating one. Our guided tour was excellent – neither too brief nor too lengthy – and was followed by a generous, free tasting with little or no push to make any purchases. (Which is certainly not the case for every plantation visit.)
The Royal Palace complex Kandy on our tours
Both of our Sri Lanka small group tours, as well as our Sri Lanka Family option, include 2 night stays in Kandy. (Accommodation will be either of the lakeside heritage hotels, Queen’s Hotel or Suisse Hotel). Depending upon the time of year, (due to weather patterns, one itinerary visits the island clockwise, the other anti-clockwise), we’ll either arrive by train from Nuwara Eliya or by road from Matale with an afternoon at leisure, day tour and departure on day 3.
Our afternoon suggestion is a walk around the scenic lake, perhaps followed by a refreshing chilled beverage at the excellent and aptly named The Pub, before finishing with a local-style dinner. The following morning our Kandy day tour kicks off with a stop at Arthur’s seat for a great overview of the town before heading down to the Temple of the Tooth to join the morning ceremony. (The morning one sees more locals and fewer overseas visitors than the afternoon and, to our minds, is the best one to join.)
A tour of the town’s central market is followed by lunch and a short drive out of town to the Gardens and tea factory. The traditional dance show is then an option for this second evening and your guide can arrange transport and book tickets should you so desire.
Day 3 then, is either a drive north to Dambulla, via a Matale spice garden or the scenic train ride south to Nuwara Eliya.
