Colombo Trip Overview
Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya are UNESCO world heritage sites. All 2 cities are highly important tourist attractions in the cultural triangle of Sri Lanka and included in most Srilanka trip packages crafted with the cultural triangle. The duo hides some of the oldest monuments on earth E.g Ancient city of Polnnaruwa dates back to 5th century BC while Sigiriya rock dates back to 5th century AD. Visiting cultural triangle allows you to see hundreds of crumbling historical monuments dating back to 3rd century BC. The stupendous Dagobas, interacting wood and stone carvings, gigantic granite statues and centuries-old paintings are the proof of this civilization. You will encounter many dozens of cities, parks, palaces and temples in historic cities.
• Enjoy personalized attention on a private tour
• Hassle-free hotel pickup and drop-offs
• Travel comfortably in an air-conditioned vehicle with a travel guide driver
Additional Info
Duration: 2 days
Starts: Colombo, Sri Lanka
Trip Category: Cultural & Theme Tours >> Cultural Tours
Explore Colombo Promoted Experiences
What to Expect When Visiting Colombo, Western Province, Sri Lanka
Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya are UNESCO world heritage sites. All 2 cities are highly important tourist attractions in the cultural triangle of Sri Lanka and included in most Srilanka trip packages crafted with the cultural triangle. The duo hides some of the oldest monuments on earth E.g Ancient city of Polnnaruwa dates back to 5th century BC while Sigiriya rock dates back to 5th century AD. Visiting cultural triangle allows you to see hundreds of crumbling historical monuments dating back to 3rd century BC. The stupendous Dagobas, interacting wood and stone carvings, gigantic granite statues and centuries-old paintings are the proof of this civilization. You will encounter many dozens of cities, parks, palaces and temples in historic cities.
• Enjoy personalized attention on a private tour
• Hassle-free hotel pickup and drop-offs
• Travel comfortably in an air-conditioned vehicle with a travel guide driver
Itinerary
Day 1: Negombo/Colombo – Polonnaruwa
Stop At: Vejayanta Pasada,King parakramabahu, W2V2+282, Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka
On a visit to the Polonnaruwa Heritage City, the Royal Palace is a never miss attraction on the trip. This Royal Palace of the great King Parakumba (1153-1186 ) had been constructed as a seven-story building. It took the construction around seven years and seven months to be completed. Out of the 7 stories having 1000 rooms, only 3 stories with 55 rooms are remaining. The Palace had been destroyed by an invader from south Indian named “Maga’.
Duration: 1 hour
Stop At: Audience Hall, Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka
The Audience Hall is a monument having beautiful stone carved elephants alongside each of its walls. Parakramabahu I’s Audience Hall is popular for the array of elephants. All of the carved elephants look different from each another. The steps to the entrance of the Audience Hall are pretty impressive, with some beautiful lions at the top of each of the side.
Duration: 1 hour
Stop At: Vatadage – 39, W2W2+WGV, Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka
This sacred quadrangle has a number of significant sacred monuments. It is a representation of the grandest architecture of the Ancient city of Polonnaruwa during that period. The extremely eye-catching scene of the entire quadrangle is believed to be the circular Vatadage. Four large Buddha statues surround the middle of the shrine.
Duration: 1 hour
Stop At: Kiri Vehera, Polonnaruwa Sri Lanka
The term Kiri Vihara means “milk-white”. This large stupa is lying north of Lankathilaka Pilima Ge. It had been created by a queen of the great king Parakramabahu (1153-1186) named “Subadra”. The original lime plaster is in the perfect white condition even after almost 700 years of it being created. It is said to be the best-preserved unrestored dagaba of the Polonnaruwa city. The first traditional name of the stupa was “Rupavathi Stupa”. It is a part of the Ãlahana Privena and it stands at 80 feet in height today.
Duration: 1 hour
Stop At: Lankathilaka Image House, Polonnaruwa Sri Lanka
This majestic temple, a jewel in the crown of the ancient Gampola kingdom, was built atop a massive rocky stronghold as an enduring symbol of cultural supremacy. Surrounded by lush greenery in the Hiripitiya hamlet in Udunuwara, it overlooks the Hantane mountain range and is renowned for the high quality of its art and architecture. The elegantly designed image house, at the end of a short corridor featuring two large lion paintings and two facing guard figures, contains a magnificent 12ft Buddha under a beautiful Makara Thorana. The inside walls and the ceiling are richly adorned with paintings in colours of the Kandyan period.
Duration: 1 hour
Stop At: Gal Vihara, 440/225 Palm Grove State Minuwangoda road, Polonnaruwa 51000 Sri Lanka
This is a group of beautiful Buddha images that probably marks the high point of Sinhalese rock carving. They are part of Parakramabahu I’s northern monastery. The Gal Vihara consists of four separate images, all cut from one long slab of granite. At one time, each was enshrined within a separate enclosure.The standing Buddha is 7m tall and is said to be the finest of the series. The unusual crossed position of the arms and sorrowful facial expression led to the theory that it was an image of the Buddha’s disciple Ananda, grieving for his master’s departure for nirvana, since the reclining image is next to it. The reclining Buddha depicted entering parinirvana (nirvana-after-death) is 14m long
Duration: 1 hour
Stop At: Samudra Parakrama, Polonnaruwa Sri Lanka
The tank is believed to be an ancient reservoir of water for the city. The country of Sri Lanka is full of a variety of tanks. The ancient city of Polonnaruwa is situated on the banks of the Topa Tank. The tank is a beautiful location for sightseeing. The tank is raised up from the town so one only see it if one walks towards it.
Duration: 1 hour
Meals included:
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight stay in a 3 star hotel in Polonnaruwa
Day 2: Polonnaruwa – Sigiriya – Negombo/Colombo
Stop At: Sigiriya The Ancient Rock Fortress, Sigiriya 21120 Sri Lanka
Sigiriya is a must visit for every tourists. The natural rock column has been inhabited by humans (as a monastery, mainly) since the 3rd Century BC, but its most famous inhabitant was King Kashyapa in 477 AD. We’ll get to all that later. Sigiriya is 60-90 minute climb but you can spend a lot longer there. The terraced top has beautiful views and it’s a great pleasure to imagine all the ancients who hung out there. The Sigiriya rock itself is a volcanic plug. This essentially means that it’s the core of an extinct volcano. Magma hardened inside a volcano, essentially stopping it up. Then the mountain around it eroded over millions of years, leaving this. In modern times, Sigiriya is a big part of the Sri Lankan psyche. It’s probably our most prominent monument, in our minds and in the minds of many tourists.
Duration: 4 hours
Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
No accommodation included on this day.
