Dambulla and Sigiriya Full Day Trip From Colombo

Dambulla and Sigiriya Full Day Trip From Colombo

Visit two UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Sigiriya and Dambulla
Explore independently, at your own pace, without input from a guide
Learn about Ayurveda, herbs, and spices at an Ayurvedic garden
Relax with flexible 2-way private transfers from Colombo airport or hotels

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Golden Temple of Dambulla, Dambulla 21100 Sri Lanka

Dambulla is the largest and best-preserved cave temple complex in Sri Lanka. The rock towers 160 m over the surrounding plains. There are more than 80 documented caves in the surrounding area. Major attractions are spread over five caves, which contain statues and paintings. These paintings and statues are related to Gautama Buddha and his life. There are a total of 153 Buddha statues, three statues of Sri Lankan kings and four statues of gods and goddesses. The latter include Vishnu and the Ganesha. The murals cover an area of 2,100 square metres (23,000 sq ft). Depictions on the walls of the caves include the temptation by the demon Mara, and Buddha's first sermon.

Prehistoric Sri Lankans would have lived in these cave complexes before the arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka as there are burial sites with human skeletons about 2700 years old in this area, at Ibbankatuwa near the Dambulla cave complexes.

Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Sigiriya The Ancient Rock Fortress, Sigiriya 21120 Sri Lanka

According to the ancient Sri Lankan chronicle the Culavamsa, this site was selected by King Kashyapa (477 – 495 AD) for his new capital. He built his palace on the top of this rock and decorated its sides with colourful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway up the side of this rock he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. The name of this place is derived from this structure — Sīnhāgiri, the Lion Rock (an etymology similar to Sinhapura, the Sanskrit name of Singapore, the Lion City).

The capital and the royal palace was abandoned after the king's death. It was used as a Buddhist monastery until the 14th century.[1] Sigiriya today is a UNESCO listed World Heritage Site. It is one of the best preserved examples of ancient urban planning

Duration: 2 hours