Explore Udawalawe National Park
Located 165 kilometres from Colombo in south-central sector of Sri Lanka, Udawalawe National Park is one of the world's best places to see wild Asian Elephants throughout the year, with a herd of about 250 making the park their permanent home. This dry zone was declared as a 30,821-hectare national park in 1972, with the objective of providing a sanctuary for wild animals around the Udawalawe Reservoir, as well as to protect the catchment of the reservoir. As plains of thorny-shrub jungle and grasslands dominate the topography, though there are some mountain ranges in the north and central of the park, game spotting is much easier than other parks. Visitors can often see adult and baby elephants roaming the park in large herds, bathing and playing in the water in all their playfulness. Also, expect to encounter sambar deer, wild buffalo, mongooses, jackals, spotted deer, and wild boar. Besides, Udawalawe is also a good birdwatching site with 210 species at last count, which afford excellent opportunities for photography.
