Central Province
Nuwara Eliya
Little England in the clouds
At 1,868 metres above sea level, Nuwara Eliya is Sri Lanka's highest city and one of its most unusual — a British colonial hill station where Victorian architecture, a working racecourse, a golf club and rose gardens sit improbably among some of the world's finest tea estates. The British called it "Little England" and the nickname has stuck, though the city is thoroughly, warmly Sri Lankan in character beneath its colonial surface.
The surrounding landscape is extraordinary — rolling hills of emerald tea bush, misty valleys, waterfalls, and the highland plateau of Horton Plains above. The air here is cool, sometimes cold — a remarkable contrast to the heat of the coast below.
Tea Country
Nuwara Eliya sits at the heart of Ceylon tea country. The estates surrounding the city produce some of the most prized high-grown teas in the world — lighter and more delicate than the lowland teas, with a distinctive floral character that tea experts prize highly.
Several estates offer tours where you can walk the tea fields with a guide, visit the factory and understand the full process from leaf to cup. The best visits happen in the morning when the light is good and the pickers are working the hillsides.
Horton Plains
Twenty kilometres south of Nuwara Eliya, the Horton Plains National Park is one of Sri Lanka's most extraordinary highland landscapes — a rolling plateau at 2,100 metres, with cloud forest, grassland, rare highland birds and, at its southern edge, World's End: a sheer escarpment dropping 870 metres to the lowland jungle below.
Visit at dawn, before 8am — after that, cloud typically covers the escarpment and the view disappears. The circuit walk takes approximately three hours.
The Colonial Town
The centre of Nuwara Eliya has a pleasantly eccentric quality — a Victorian post office, a colonial-era Grand Hotel that has been welcoming guests since 1891, a lake with rowing boats, rose-filled public gardens and the Hill Club (still operating, still serving properly pressed tablecloths). It is unlike anywhere else in Sri Lanka.
Best Time to Visit
January to April is the clearest period. The April season (around Sri Lankan New Year) brings the famous horse racing festival — accommodation fills months in advance. From May to September, the south-west monsoon brings frequent cloud and rain. October and November can be cold and wet. Come prepared for cool evenings year-round — bring layers.