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Wilpattu National Park

and you’ll miss dawn, which is the best time
for seeing animals.

Omeesha Beach Hotel HUT $$
(%072 787 8782; Alankuda beach; huts with/with-
out air-con US$75/65; aW) Situated right un-
der a giant wind turbine (and we mean right
under), the rooms here are in rough-walled
huts. Though dark and gloomy, the price
makes them more interesting than most
other choices. The bathrooms (cold water
only in the non-air-con rooms) are open-
plan affairs. Breakfast is included.

Sethawadiya Dolphin
View Eco-Lodge HUT $$
(Kalpitiya; full-board r €38-78; W) Down a maze
of confused tracks from Kalpitiya town,
this place, which is very popular with long-
staying kitesurfers, has rustic and rather
basic palm-thatch huts of varying quality.
The cheapest ones have shared bathrooms
and are very basic indeed, while the pricier
ones are fairly comfortable.
Big pluses are the warm staff, sociable
restaurant area, and lagoon-front location
with good kiting on tap.

Rosaanne Beach Resort HUT $$$
(%072 251 3224; http://www.rosaanne-kalpitiya.
com; Alankuda beach; huts with/without air-con
US$100/90; W) Probably the best bet around
Alankuda beach, this very friendly and help-
ful family-run place has five whitewashed,
thatched cottages huddled under the palms.
No hot water in the non-air-con rooms.

8 Getting There & Away

There are frequent buses to Negombo from
Kalpitiya (Rs 180, three hours). Buses between
Alankuda and Kalpitiya cost Rs 50.

Wilpattu National Park

Wilpattu means ‘natural lakes’ in Sinhala and
‘10 lakes’ in Tamil and lakes are exactly what
you’ll find at Wilpattu National Park, which
at 1085 sq km is Sri Lanka’s largest national
park. As well as lakes you’ll also find huge
swaths of dense, dry country woodland, mass-
es of birds and, with a little luck, an impressive
array of wildlife including leopards (this is the
second-best park after Yala for leopards), sloth
bears, spotted deer, wild pigs and crocodiles.
A safari in Wilpattu is very different from
any of the other major national parks. Visitor
numbers remain very low and even in high
season it’s common for there to be no more

than a handful of tourist jeeps in the park at

any one time. This gives Wilpattu a wonder-

ful, and genuine, wilderness feeling. On the

flipside though, the dense forest and general

skittishness of the animals means that actu-

ally sighting wildlife is less of a sure thing

than in the country’s more visited parks. This

is truly a place for the more dedicated safari-

goer. Birders in particular will love Wilpattu

with its abundance of dry forest, water and

even coastal birds.

4 leeping & EatingS

There’s an increasing array of accommo-

dation in the vicinity of the park, although

most are a good 15- to 20-minute drive from

the entrance. All sleeping options provide

meals.

Uthpalawanna

Holiday Resort g UESTHoUSE $

(%072 432 2085, 075 510 2159; Saliyawewa; s/d Rs

2500/3000) Rooms in this family home are

tidy and simple, but the welcome is grand.

Palpatha Eco Lodge LoDgE $$$

(%077 031 0310, 077 360 0710; http://www.palpatha.

com; Saliyawewa; half-board s/d €81/162, tents

from €70) (^) S First, a warning. If you don’t
like camping or open-air living, you won’t
like this place. If, however, the idea of sleep-
ing on a raised platform with nothing but a
mosquito net and a thatch roof between you
and the forest appeals, then you will adore
this camp.
There are three open-air ‘chalets’ as well
as a safari tent, which offers a little more
protection, but lacks the romance. All have
open-air bathrooms with showers coming
out of tree trunks. The shady grounds are
full of birds, squirrels and monkeys, the
staff are fabulous and the food is good. The
only real downside is the bugle call from
the nearby army camp at some ungodly
hour in the morning.
Mahoora Safari Camp LoDgE $$$
(%Colombo 011-583 0833; http://www.mahoora.lk; full-
board s US$622-869, d US$814-1134) (^) S This is sa-
fari the old-fashioned, decadent way. Mahoora
offers a ‘mobile’ camp on the edge of Wilpat-
tu Park. In reality the camp doesn’t actually
move, but the type of accommodation can
be changed depending on customer needs.
Whatever safari tent type you opt for, you can
expect a bush-chic luxury stay and quality sa-
fari jeeps and guides. Full board includes all
activities for one night and two days.