From the coast to the forest
Pickup from your hotel on the south coast at dawn for the drive inland to the reserve. It is a long day, and the early start is what makes it work.
Walking the reserve
Every visitor to Sinharaja walks with a licensed guide assigned at the gate: that is the reserve’s rule, and we arrange it. Routes range from the 3 km Research Loop at Kudawa to longer walks into the interior; we choose one to suit your group and the weather. Watch for the Sri Lanka blue magpie, the rare red-faced malkoha and the endemic birdwing butterfly.
Back to the beach
After the walk, the drive back to your hotel on the coast.
Read more in our Sinharaja guide. Another southern rainforest: Kanneliya.
Card photo: A.Savin, Wikimedia Commons, Free Art License.
On every trip
- Private: just your group and your guide, at your pace.
- Led by an SLTDA-licensed guide, who knows the route and the conditions on the day.
- Pickup and drop-off on the south coast; ask us about other bases.
- Leech socks are provided. You will get wet feet: bring a rain layer in any season.
Bring walking shoes with good grip, a rain jacket, water and sun protection. If weather makes a trail unsafe, we’ll move your day. See the packing list.
When to go
Sinharaja gets rain all year; the question is how much. The drier windows are January to March and August to September. Leeches are heaviest from May to November.
