Sri Lanka · KANDY TOURS
64 reviewed
Kandy is the lake, the Temple of the Tooth at evening puja, and the platform where the hill-country train begins. Here are the best things to do in Kandy: tuk-tuk city loops, village cooking classes, day trips out to Pinnawala and Ambuluwawa, with prices and durations so you can fit two into one day.
Ride a tuk-tuk through Kandy’s top sights, tea country, and temple viewpoints with a guide who tailors the day to you. Good value.
“Everything was super, Dilan was a perfect driver we could arrange aour trip ourselves”
From Kandy to Sigiriya by tuk-tuk: crafts, lion or pidurangala rock, and Dambulla Cave Temple, with optional safari add-ons.
“Personalised trip, everything explained really well, very friendly and safe driver, respectful and chatty guy. Would highly recommend him.”
Shop Sri Lankan ingredients at a Kandy market, cook a full village-style meal, taste it all, and add quick Kandy culture stops for $25.
“Attended this cooking class during our stay in Kandy and loved it. The experience was fun, authentic, and hands-on, starting with a visit to the local market before cooking our chosen dishes in a traditional village kitchen. Our host was warRead more”
Reserve seats on the scenic Kandy to Ella train in 2nd or 3rd class, with ticket delivery and reserved compartments, for a practical hill-country day.
“So much mark up. Yes we got first class reserved tickets but the cost was 5000 rupees and we paid the equivalent of 27,000 rupees. Talk about mark up Viator, bet the local provider was only paid a fraction of the total as mark up and the rest went to viator. Won't be using this site for any other tickets ever again. Had to chase the local provider for tickets right up until the night before after booking a month in advance. Buy in person at the station instead.”
A fast-paced Kandy day with tuk-tuk fun, big viewpoints, and real elephant time at Pinnawala, plus tea and temple stops.
“Saman was a great guide. Informative, relaxing to be with, and professional too. You can certainly personalise your tour, I opted against the Gems place and local dancing. He arrived at 8.15 for an 8.30 departure. We started with a Buddhist temple, moved on to various gorgeous viewpoints then to Pinnawala (3500 rupees) to see the elephants that were stunning. Then a coconut stop and on to Elephant feeding, riding and washing - great fun for 7500 rupees. Saman did a fabulous job taking photos for me. We then stopped at a spice garden, which was great but felt slightly pressured to buy a product, then to the tea factory…”
Kandy tuk tuk and car day tour with Ambuluwawa Tower views, tea and gardens, craft factories, temples, and the Temple of the Tooth Relic.
“Our guide, Malik, was excellent andfriendly, knowledgeable, and happy to customize our private tour around our interests. A thoughtful highlight was when he bought us fresh steamed corn to try. We highly recommend both the tour and Malik as a guide.”
Private day tour from Kandy to Sigiriya and Dambulla, with a guide, bottled water, and flexible pacing. Tickets extra.
“Great trip out. The company allowed us to change pick up times and the day programme to suit ourselves. The temples were lovely and our driver was great too. He explained the culture, religion and foods of Sri Lanka and found us a great local restaurant for lunch . I'd highly recommend this trip although it is a long way from Kandy”
Private Kandy day tour to Sigiriya Lion Rock and Dambulla caves, plus Matale and a Ranweli spice garden, with hotel pickup.
“I was impressed with how much we managed to cram into one day! It was so much fun, especially climbing Sigiriya, which is an experience I will never forget. Shout-out to Wicky, he was an enthusiastic vibe, open to any suggestion and kept our spirits high even as we got tired at the end. Ask for him by name!”
Kandy tuk-tuk tour for a small group. Temple of the Tooth, gardens, tea factory, hill views. Customize your route with an English guide.
“The tour was very nice. At first we only wanted to visit the big Buddha and the tea factory but our guide Wasana recommended to also take us to the herbal garden and to the botanical garden which were great recommendations and we had such a wonderful experience. We would definitely recommend this tour 100%! We learned a lot about Sri Lanka’s culture in one day. Wasana was a great guide who taught us a lot and made our one day on Kandy very memorable.”
A full day from Kandy to cool Nuwara Eliya with tea factory stops, Ramboda views, temples, and time around Lake Gregory.
“Chonaka was a fantastic guide, who did everything he could to make my trip special. He was always keen to make sure I was enjoying the trip and was happy to adjust the itinerary to what I wanted to do. Even the little things, like buying me a delicious fresh mango to eat as a snack on the journey, put a smile on my face. The experiences are really cool and the scenery at the waterfalls in particular is amazing. 100% recommend!”
Private day trip from Kandy to Sigiriya, Dambulla and Minneriya, with hotel pickup, a driver, cave temples, and elephant safari.
“This was a great day out, helped by a really knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide Mr. Irfan. The trip is a long day but there's lots to see and do, we left 8am and returned around 8pm so don't plan anything after. Mr Irfan talked about various as we drove past which was very interesting, and also offered a few extra stops with things to do, in addition to slowing down so we could take pictures. He seemed really proud to be able to show off the country. Although the driving may seem a bit crazy in Sri Lanka Mr Irfan was a good driver and kept us safe on the…”
A private Kandy tuk-tuk tour that hits the Sacred Tooth Relic, Bahirawakanda views, Peradeniya Gardens, tea and spice stops, plus a Kandyan dance show.
“Terans (Terence) was a great tour guide. He went into all the temples with me and had a lot of knowledge and interesting information to share. The photos he took of me, without me even asking, were amazing. He also took great care to make sure I was happy throughout the day. Even though it was raining, I didn’t get wet at all even in a TukTuk due to his great care. He even went past the 5 hours to make sure I saw extra things. Highly recommend!”
Private Kandy tuk-tuk highlights with a pro guide, UNESCO Temple of the Tooth, big Buddha, gardens, tea, and easy booking.
“Good intro to the city. I was also able to modify the tour as I wanted, which was nice. For example, I chose to skip the gem stop since it had bad reviews on Google. Botanical gardens were particularly lovely, and I also liked going up to the big Buddha statue.”
12 to 14 hours from Colombo to Kandy with Pinnawala elephants, Temple of the Tooth, gardens, tea factory, and viewpoints.
“Liked the elephant sanctuary. Be prepared for a very long day we left at 6am and didn't get back until almost 9pm.”
10-hour tuk-tuk day trip from Kandy to Sigiriya, visiting Matale Hindu Temple, UNESCO Dambulla caves, spice garden, and rock climbs.
“We had a wonderful time on our trip to Sigiriya with our guide Mangala who was also a great cameraman 😄. We were at Pidurangala rock, temples in Matale and Dambula. Everything was smooth and he was driving safely.”
