Travel Tips to Visit Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka – Have a Chilled Out Time

Nuwara Eliya is a picturesque city located in Sri Lanka's central province. It is primarily hill country turf and the climate here is cooler than anywhere else on the island, averaging at around fifteen degrees Celsius depending on the weather and on the time of year that you visit. It is said to have a quaint English town sort of feel to it, and so in the past popularly went by names such as 'Little England'. The landscape here is as lush as lush can be, with the verdant greenery of tea plantations, fields and the English rose gardens that some houses still possess to this day. In colonial times, Nuwara Eliya was often frequented by high-ranking officials who retreated here to try and beat the heat and humidity of the tropics. Even today, this town is a popular tourist attraction both among tourists and Sri Lankans who head to the many Nuwara Eliya holiday bungalows and the like, for a cooling getaway.

No matter where you are travelling from within Sri Lanka, the town of Nuwara Eliya has good train and bus links that you can make use of to get to it. Alternatively, you can also opt for more private, albeit costly options; hire a car (and chauffeur if you would like) to get there, or catch a domestic flight which would provide scenic birds-eye views of the terrain during your journey. Within the town itself, there are several modes of transport that you can choose from in order to get from one place to another. Ride comfortably in a private taxi, ride cost-effectively via a bus or have an adventure in a tuk-tuk as the cool wind whips through your hair through the sides. Or, if you have rented out a private car, take it out for a leisurely spin and drive yourself where ever you want to go.

Although it is not counted among the most traditional or usual of activities to engage in here, it is nevertheless worth a try seeing if you can gain access to a strawberry field to admire the beauty of the place and maybe even sample a few of these crimson delicacies. Nuwara Eliya is the main source of strawberry cultivation in the land and many big names in local strawberry production such as Jagro, have farms in the region. If you are staying at a hotel, try asking the helpdesk to see if they can be of any help in this matter with regards to you visiting a strawberry field. Or if you are lodging at one of the local bungalows such as The Cottage by Jetwing or any other, ask the local staff who will be around to help run the residence. Who knows, perhaps you might even score yourself a round of strawberry picking at the heart of a tropical island! A wonderful story to be able to tell to friends back home, to be certain, this opportunity would also make for some excellent selfies!

Due to its cool climate that brings with it cold rains and chilly breezes, in this part of the country, it is necessary to carry at least a light sweater or jacket with you. While to the everyday Sri Lankan who is used to sweltering temperatures of around thirty degrees Celsius the weather here is positively freezing, if you hail from a cooler climate such as that of a European country, you will probably find the climate pleasantly cooling and hardly all that chilly at all, at least in normal weather. So while it is advisable to pack light jackets, sweater, socks, long sleeved shirts and the like, there's definitely no need to bring out the heavy duty winter wear. You'll just end up sweating through all of your layers and create for yourself a mini sauna-like experience. Remember, even up in the hills, Sri Lanka is still quite humid.