Udawalawe is a small town located in the southern part of the Ratnapura District and Lies on the boundary of Sabaragamuwa and Uva Provinces, in Sri Lanka. Udawalawe is one of major attraction destination. The main highlight is the Udawalawe National Park, the Uda Walawe National Park is one of the world’s best places to see wild elephants. Largely comprised of grasslands and bush forest, it’s also one of the best national parks in Sri Lanka for game spotting. There are about 500 elephants in the park and they often roam in herds of up to 100. Udawalawe National Park is unique in terms of consistency in numbers of elephants roaming the park: it has no a seasonal variation in herds of elephants. The best hours to visit the park are in the mornings and evenings. Late evening also affords the photographic opportunities in the backdrop of loveliest sunsets.
There are 3 safari options are available for travelers;
- Morning Safari Session (06.00am until 09.00am)
- Evening Safari Session ( 02.30pm until 06.00pm)
- Full Days Safari Session (06.00am until 06.00pm)
We arrange Day excursions from Colombo, Negombo, Bentota, Galle, Tangalle & Hikkaduwa to Udawalawe National park. Also we add an overnight stay in Udawalawe during your round tour with us. There are few star category hotels & Tented camps near to the National Park.
Elephant Transit Home (Ath Athuru Sevana), Udawalawe
A home to orphaned elephants in Sri Lanka which is established by Department of Wildlife Conservation. Situated in the western border of the 33,000 hectares of Udawalawe National Park, ETH (Elephant Transit Home) is adjacent to the “Udawalawe reservoir”. The elephant calves have no boundaries in the area and have freedom to roam wherever they want. Similarly wild elephants also visit the ETH premises. Seasonal fluctuating water level of the reservoir creates a diverse environment for both the baby elephants and wild elephants.
The first orphaned baby elephant taken care of at the Ath Athuru Sevana was a one year old female. She was found wandering alone in the forest near Meegalawa area in the Anuradhapura District. Dr. Nandana Atapattu, took in the baby elephant to ETH and registered her as the first resident – naming her “Komali”. Since then to date, more than 250 elephants have been taken care of at the ETH. All these orphaned wild elephants are re-introduced to the wild to their natural habitats at the age of five, when they are able to take care of themselves.
