Day Trips From Kandy To Sigiriya With Village Experiences

It was my solo trip. The car is cozy and clean. Explain with good English. The driver is caring. Highly recommend to everyone:)

Buddhika made a trip perfect, he took us to spices garden, Sigiriya, Pidurangala, helped to climb the big rocks, lunch and village experience was awesome, also we went to safari, Buddhika was very thoughtful and even got us water for this. From start to finish, everything was well-organized. On the way back when it was late evening already and we were tired, Buddhika asked what we are going to do with dinner, we asked to stop by the shop to get something, he waited for us and then took to the hotel what we really appreciated. Very personalized approach, if you ask for something Buddhika is trying to do his best. We couldn't have asked for a better guide. Thanks again for such a memorable day. I'd like to sincerely thank you for making our visit to Sigiriya such a fantastic experience!

A great day trip with Buddhika to 3 wonderful locations. Buddhika is a very friendly guy and i was especially impressed with his knowledge of all 3 locations and of the history related to them.

Buddhika was fabulous. Very courteous, knowledgeable, accomodating and friendly. He’s very responsive on WhatsApp and catered the tour to what we wanted. We also bumped into each other the following day and he was so kind and friendly. Highly recommend. Thanks Buddhika!

We booked Buddhika for three days of tours during our stay in Kandy and from beginning to end he proved to be invaluable. He was easy to communicate with in advance of our arrival and responded to our queries very quickly. He was also excellent at suggesting sites to visit and advise us on how we could tailor our tours. Day one began with Buddhika meeting us at the train station and conveying us to our hotel, The Trees, Kandy (see separate review). Later that day we continued with a tour around the Tooth Relic Temple followed by a cultural show. Proving incredibly knowledgeable on the subject, Buddhika guided us through the temple complex explaining in great detail the history of it while also ensuring we didn't commit any tourist faux pas. Day two kicked off with journeying to Nuwara Eliya or "Little England" that was a hill country retreat where British colonialists could escape the heat and immerse themselves in their pastimes such as fox hunting, deer hunting, polo, golf and cricket. These days it is known for its waterfalls and tea plantations and Buddhika ensured we saw both as requested whilst also chatting to us throughout the journey. Day three began with a very early 7am start but yet again Buddhika was punctual and ready & waiting for us at our hotel to take us to our next requested tour, The Elephant Freedom Project (see separate review). Incredibly friendly, Buddhika proved to be a superb guide, safe driver and brilliant conversationalist with our chats covering a wide range of topics including food, local culture, history, economics and politics. We enjoyed his company immensely and have booked him to guide us around again when we return next year. Would highly recommend him to anyone looking for a fantastic tour guide!

While browsing through Tripadvisor, I found this trip. I booked late in the night. The next morning I called Buddhika and was picked up from Kandy Central. Buddhika was warm, welcoming and knowledgeable. His knowledge about the country, Buddhism and culture was immense. Our conversation started with cricket continued till economics, history, religion and food. We had an amazing breakfast on the way to Sigiriya. Buddhika was also my tour guide for Sigiriya rock. He explained me the history as we started exploring the Sigiriya rock and surroundings. He took me a to a local rice n curry place for lunch which was fab. He was kind enough to take me to the local market on my request. Then we visited the Dambulla cave. I had to go for cricket match in Pallekele at 7 PM in the evening. He drove me and dropped near the stadium. Buddhika was a honest, humble and hospitable person as every Srilankan I met in my trip. I highly recommend this trip and Buddhika as a tour guide.

Our guide Buddhika was excellent. A great conversationalist. His intimate knowledge and pride in his culture is very apparent in every word he says. He has so much knowledge regarding the history of the places we visited with him and ensured we tried locally sourced and made goods. His knowledge regarding the Buddhist and Hindu religions was impressive and inspiring. He was so happy to let us know about all things Sri Lankan. He really puts a lot of thought and a lot of himself into his tours and it shows.

We had a lovely day trip to Sigiriya followed by a Sri Lankan traditional tour and lunch. Our guide picked us up from our hotel at Kandy right on time and drove us to Lions Rock. He was very knowledgeable about all of the history and details of Lions Rock and surrounding location. He's an experienced tour guide with knowledge of many other landmarks and tourist destinations (not just Kandy/Sigiriya) and studied it in university. He made all the details of where to go and what costs there would be clear ahead of time and was very professional. Afterwards, he joined us for the tour experience where we road in a traditional boat and bull cart, then ate (and helped a bit to prepare) a traditional meal with curries, sweets, and tea. It was one of the tastiest meals we've had in Sri Lanka! The next day he offered us to go white water rafting and canyoning, and we decided to go. It was a lovely time and again he informed us of the costs and schedule ahead of time. Buddhika was very punctual and professional, and answered all of our questions along the way. Would definitely recommend a tour with Buddhika!

We booked a last minute tour to Sigiriya with Buddhika. I was under the impression that Buddhika would have been our tour guide (and was hoping so because of all the glowing reviews). We also booked due to the very reasonable price. We did not get Buddhika but another driver (Poltee - spelling?). Our driver was very kind, professional, welcoming and patient, catering to what we wanted to do for the day. There was a language barrier though which prevented us from learning much about Sri Lanka and the places we were visiting. This is not meant to be a knock on our driver as he was excellent, just didn’t have the experience we believe we could have considering the amazing reviews of Buddhika as not only a driver but a guide as well. We opted to go to the spice garden, climb Sigiriya, do the village tour and visit the Dambulla cave temple before returning to Kandy. When you go to Sigiriya, there will be freelance guides (have certification) that offer to be your guide for the climb. If you opt for this, negotiate a price beforehand. When we asked our guide how much, he replied “as much as you want” and we left it at that. Our guide was very good and we learned a lot. At the end of the climb we gave him 5,000 LKR, which we believed was reasonable (hopefully this was reasonable and we’re not completely off base here). He said “other people give more” and then acted like he was angry for the walk back to the car. Bottom line, just lock in a price beforehand to avoid these awkward situations. The spice garden was a good experience with no obligation to buy anything. The village tour isn’t really a tour, you take an old village buggy towed by a cow, then a nice ride around a lake on a boat. The highlight was a private lunch which we were able to help prepare and learned a ton about traditional Sri Lankan dishes. The tour ends with a tuk tuk ride back to the start. $20USD per person, which we thought was worth it due to the lunch portion. The Dambulla cave temples were also very interesting. Hope this helps!

We did a private tour from Kandy to Nuwara Eliya, to avoid a 4h train ride. A friend of mine highly recommended Buddhika, and now we totally agree! He is a safe driver and told us a lot of interesting things about the island. He managed do pick us up and drop off everywhere we wanted. So we visited for example the royal botanical garden, the ambuluwawa tower and a tea factory. He also offered us a stop at a local restaurant for lunch and it was delicious! After a long but exciting day he drove us to our next accommodation in Nanu Oya. Thanks for the great day!

We had a great day with Buddhika! He was flexible to our wishes. We visited Sigirya, did the village tour with a very tasty lunch and visited Dambulla Temple, where Buddhika gave us a tour. He also drove along a road where we could see elephants. Buddhika told us lots of interesting things about the culture, country and people. A great tour and definitely recommended!

Great service. We went to Sigiriya from Kandy for one day tour and it was great, we had few additional stops in-between. Driver was waiting us all the time and was very kind and professional. I definitely recommend his service.

Buddhika is the nicest, passionate and well prepared tour guides I’ve met on my travels. Also, he is a very good and responsible driver which in Sri Lanka is not to be taken for granted.

Yesterday we booked a tour with Buddhika and is has been one of our most authentic tours taken after traveling to multiple Asian countries. As it’s a private tour, he gives you many options to tailor it based of your own preferences. Our highlight of the day after visiting the Sigiriya was visiting a traditional Sri Lankan village, which just opened to tourists at the end of January 2024. It was also the tour guide’s first time visiting this town and I have to say I am incredibly happy about the experience. In contrast to some of the other “traditional” villages in the area, this one shows everyday life. We were invited in the house where the mom had prepared an afternoon tea, followed by a swim in beautiful lake, walk around the rice fields and later on a full Sri Lankan meal. Thankful for the Sri Lankan family who welcomed us into their home. An experience that we will never forget. Thanks Buddhika for arranging this!

Buddhika was fantastic! I initially booked a day trip from Kandy to Sigiriya (via Dambulla) then on to Polonnaruwa but ended up extending another day to include the tour around Polonnaruwa and being dropped off in Negombo at the end of the second day. Organising the trip was very efficient, quick and easy via whatsapp and I was offered a good price compared to other providers. Buddhika is a great driver and spoke good English so was able to provide lots of information about the sites we went to and good local paces to eat. Plus, he knew the best places to spot wild elephants on the car journey! As a solo female traveller I felt very safe and confident in the service during the 2-day trip and would definitely recommend using Lanka Ceylon Tours!

Buddhika is an excellent driver and very knowledgeable about the different sights to see in Sri Lanka. On top of that, he is a kind individual, conscientious to ensure that you have the best experience possible.

Our guide Buddhika was a great guide, safe driver & great company. He was was very informative, not too pushy and offered a great all round trip with a night's stay in sigiriya

Had an amazing trip from Kandy to Sigiriya with Buddhika. He picked us up from our accommodation and drove us out bright and early, providing us with some really valuable information about the history of the site. Thank you again!

Buddhika did a amazing job, he did the Route like we wanted it but told us some usefull recommondations. He was very friendly, experienced and spoke very good english! 10/10 🤩

Buddhika was a fantastic guide and showed us many interesting sights on our tour. He shared his extensive knowledge about Sigiriya and Dambulla with us, which allowed us to understand the amazing history and significance of these sites. Highly recommended 😊

Buddhika is a great guide. I love to meet locals on my travels and this is a good way, not only that but it is lovely to give work to an individual instead of a bigger organisation and you get the personal touches with that too. Buddhika knows his stuff, he is very knowledgeable about his country's history, and it's present too, he knows his way around. It can be a challenge to find a tour guide travelling solo that charge a fair rate, some places will charge you for two people minimum, but Buddhika did not do that. Highly recommend this tour. Thank you Buddhika.

Buddhika does an excellent service! He’s really kind and friendly. We were a group of four and had loads of extra ideas and wishes — not as easy though! He dealt with it and did a good job. We went on a two day tour from Kandy to Dambulla over Sigiriya to Polonnaruwa and at least back to Kandy.

Very knowledgeable, well educated and helpful tour guide. He took us from Kandy to the Lion's Rock in Sigiriya then to the Cave temple in Dambula then to the tallest temple in Sri Lanka then back to Kandy. Very good day trip and reasonable price.

-Nice Guy -Very realiable -Very friendly We got a lot of information about the place and the culture. Any time again

It was a perfect day, everything was planned as we asked. The guide is very polite and friendly. The car was comfortable and had AC.

We met the perfect man in Kandy near the lake in the centre and he made our stay at Srí Lanka in an extraordinary experience! He turned out to be a great guide to all the local landmarks. We visited together many beautiful places from which we have a lot of beautiful memories and photos too and learned a lot of different interesting things. They were unforgettable days!

We travelled with Buddika from Kandy to Wasgamuwa National Park, Dambulla, Sigiriya and Colombo in a 4-day tour. Buddika was the perfect driver, guide and adviser for our trip. He is a great driver. He is very knowledgable and was our private guide for the different places we visited. He is very respectful and very easy to be around. Totally recommend Buddika and if we go back to Sri Lanka we would love to meet again.

Met Mr Buddika in Kandy where he was offering his services. me and my friend took his leaflet and decided to go with him to Colombo as we had to go to the airport. Mr Buddika was very nice, on our way to Colombo he told us many interesting facts about Sri Lanka in general. We loved the ride as we learned a lot and also we loved the fact how passionate he is about his Country :) he was a driver but gave us impression of a guide too. Would highly recommend Mr Buddika driving you around the country as he would stop anywhere you d like and also tell you everything about Sri Lanka. :)

We were happy to find this transfer service. The price is very reasonable. Our driver showed many interesting places on the way to the orphanage and was waiting to bring us back. Only one thing spoilt our adventure. We agreed with the driver to pick us up in the morning in 2 different hotels (our friends and we were living in different places) and bring to the elephant park for elephant morning feeding. Unfortunately because of traffic jam we were late and skipped the feeding. So doublecheck the time that the driver needs for the trip regarding the traffic, daytime and day if the week.

We met Buddika by chance. We were thinking of a trip to Anuradhapura, going through the temples of Dambulla and visiting Sigyria. We crossed near the lake, and he offered us his services. He gave us confidence and security. We shuffled the options provided by other conductors, and Buddika's offer was the best. The trip was fun, we liked it a lot. Very professional and friendly. Highly recommended! Thanks, Buddika!

We have just come from Kandy to Dambulla with our driver Silva and had a great time! Silva is a very friendly man who spoke great English and provided a great tour along the way, especially the Batik workshop...A must see! He was very interesting and informative, pointing things out along the way and nothing was too much trouble. His car was very clean and smart with air conditioning and as a driver he was very safe. We had a great day and would highly recommend him to anybody looking for a short or long tour...Thanks for such a nice time Silva!! Best wishes...Daniel & Chrissy.

We travelled with Buddika from Kandy to Sigiriya via Dumballa Caves. Buddika was a wonderful guide who provided fascinating insights into the caves and answered all of my questions. Buddika was reliable, considerate, punctual and had a lovely personality and sense of humour which made the day highly enjoyable. It was a delight to spend the day together.

Buddika was a great driver and guide! Bery friendly, lots of knowledge and took us for a full day to see lots of sights in and around Kandy. Would recommend to everyone visiting to use him.

We felt always safe and had a nice conversation. I can definetly recommend this driver to everybody.

Buddika is friendly and charming with good local knowledge and good English. He provided a very punctual and reliable service for our 7 hour trip from Kandy to Unawatuna with stops on the way, at a very reasonable price. He went the extra mile to accommodate our 11month old baby and to find our apartment at Dalawela beach. Buddika will respond quickly to text/whatsapp & phone calls. If this isn’t possible, you may find him at Kandy lake by the sacred tooth temple.

Buddika was a wonderful driver and guide for our family of four to go to Pidarungala and Dambulla Caves. He was very eager to give us a positive experience and offered to stop in additional places, like spice gardens. His price was very fair, and he is a friendly man. We didn’t feel rushed and enjoyed our day very much. We recommend him to others!

After a last-minute change of plans, Buddika picked us up immediately and promptly from a train station outside Kandy and drove us all the way to Mirissa. His price was excellent, and he was quite friendly - even though we slept most of the way! There were some moments when his driving wasn’t great but that also seemed to be the norm here. We were always safe and we got where we needed to go in a very timely way. Thank you for helping us when we needed to be flexible!

The driver turned up prefectly on time. A very nice and happy guy. His driving was great, the car was very clean. His English was enough and was never pushy. Unfortunately I fell ill during the trip. The driver found us a doctor, helped translate, then took me to the hospital as directed by the doctor. He then waited with my husband for 4 hours until my treatment had finished. He took my husband to get me medicine and the foods I needed. All through this event, his only concern was for my welfare. when we finally arrived in Ella, at night, he didn't want to take any extra money (like we have experienced with others) but we insisted and finally he took some money. most drivers here, drive way to fast, over taking when they should not. I must say, we felt very safe in his car. For my husband and I we were very grateful to find a genuine guy/driver. If you want speed and recklessness, this is not your man. If you want to be in safe hands, this is your guy.

We had a great experience with Buddika. He's a very polite and genuine being. He quoted a competitive price and proved an excellent service. He gave us some good insights into the places and even took us to some places (on our request) which weren't part of the package. I'd easily recommend him to anyone.

Buddika is not only a driver, but an excellent tour guide. He offered to stop many times along the way to see the views and landscapes. He is also very knowledgable about Sri Lanka and made our visit to the country more meaningful since he helped us understand the history and information of the place. When we arrived to Nuwara Eliya it was dark, raining, and our hotel was hard to find, but he worked tirelessly until we reached our destination. Would definitely call him on our next trip to Sri Lanka and we really recommend him.

The day was impeccably organised. Buddhika is a skilled driver and excellent guide; she did not hesitate to change the route to meet my needs and accompanied me on all visits, including the ascent to Pidurangala Rock, being alone. Even though the tour can be a little tiring, the day passed in an instant thanks to Buddhika's competence and friendliness. I hope to be able to return soon with my family, and I will turn to him again. Thanks again! I recommend everyone to book a day with Buddhika!