Five UNESCO-listed sites in six nights
Culture and heritage, 7 days is a private Sri Lanka tour by Majeste. It costs $694 per person for two at shoulder-season rates (for the hotels on this route, April and 1 November to 20 December), with comfort hotels, entrance tickets and your own car and English-speaking driver included, and temple-run sites paid there. Prices checked 7 Nov 2026. In its best months, Feb to Mar, Jun to Sep, it costs $677 to $753 per person for two, depending on the start date. It stops at Anuradhapura, Sigiriya (Dambulla and Habarana), Kandy, in that order. The longest drive is on day 1, from the airport to Anuradhapura, about 4 h 15 min. Nothing to pay now.
A week among the ancient capitals: two nights each at Anuradhapura, Sigiriya and Kandy, with Yapahuwa, the Avukana Buddha, Ritigala, Polonnaruwa, Dambulla and the Aluvihare rock temple on the roads between. It covers the Cultural Triangle's UNESCO sites and the Temple of the Tooth without the hills or the coast. Day 1 is long, about 4 hours 15 minutes to Anuradhapura. The sites are hot and spread out, shoes come off on hot stone, and the pace suits people who like history.
A long first day of about 4 hours 15 minutes, broken at Yapahuwa's 13th-century rock fortress and its carved stairway (30 to 45 minutes). The evening lamps at Ruwanwelisaya if you arrive in time.
From 07:00 the sacred city by bicycle with a guide: the Sri Maha Bodhi, Ruwanwelisaya, Jetavanaramaya, Abhayagiri, the Samadhi Buddha, the Twin Ponds and Isurumuniya. Carry socks for the hot stone and cover shoulders and knees. Mihintale at 15:30, 1,840 steps to the sunset.
About 1 hour 40 minutes to Sigiriya with two detours: the 12-metre Avukana Buddha and the ruined forest monastery of Ritigala. The Sigiriya museum and the water gardens in the afternoon, then Pidurangala Rock for the sunset view of the fortress.
Sigiriya Rock at the 07:00 counter opening: the frescoes, the mirror wall, the lion's paws, 2 to 3 hours. After lunch, 1 hour 25 minutes to Polonnaruwa for the museum first and then the ruins by bicycle: the Royal Palace, the Quadrangle and the Gal Vihara Buddhas. Hot and exposed; 3 to 4 hours.
Dambulla's five painted caves, then the A9 south with a stop at the Aluvihare rock temple in Matale, where the Buddhist canon was first written down. About 2 hours 45 minutes of driving. The 18:30 puja at the Temple of the Tooth, crowded and loud with drums.
The Temple of the Tooth and its museum in the quieter morning, two hours in the Peradeniya botanical gardens, and the three-temple loop of Gadaladeniya, Lankatilaka and Embekke if time allows. A Kandyan dance show at 17:00 and a cooking class in the evening.
About 3 hours 15 minutes to the airport. With a late flight there is time for the Kelaniya temple near Colombo, which adds about an hour, or a few hours in Colombo itself.
| Stop | Simple | Comfort (this tour) | Superior | Luxury |
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| Anuradhapura2 nights |
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| Sigiriya (Dambulla and Habarana)2 nights |
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| Kandy2 nights |
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| Per person for two | $602 | $694 | $834 | $1,169 |
Hotels are named as examples of the standard you will get. If a named hotel is full we book one of the same standard in the same area and tell you which. Bed and breakfast unless the itinerary says otherwise.
| When | Per person | Compared |
|---|---|---|
| June (low season) | $677 | Lowest |
| November (shoulder season) | $694 | $17 more than the lowest |
| February (peak season) | $753 | $76 more than the lowest |
| Christmas and New Year | $836 | Highest, $159 more than the lowest |
Priced for a start date in each period. Your dates may fall across two seasons, so check them in the price box. Some stops here cost more in their own busy weeks, such as mid-July to August. The Christmas and New Year price includes our estimate of any compulsory gala dinner on 24 or 31 December.
| Group | Per person | Total | Vehicle |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 adult | $1,106 | $1,106 | Car |
| 2 adults | $694 | $1,386 | Car |
| 3 adults | $694 | $2,081 | Van |
| 4 adults | $591 | $2,362 | Van |
| 6 adults | $552 | $3,307 | Large van |
| 8 adults | $516 | $4,126 | Large van |
Two adults share each room, and an odd adult has a single room at 80% of the double rate. We pick the smallest vehicle that seats the group in comfort. Per-person figures are rounded up to the dollar.
Day 1 is about 4 hours 15 minutes of driving; two nights everywhere else. Sites are hot and involve a lot of walking.
In Kandy in July or August (projected 7 to 17 August 2027, not yet announced by the Temple of the Tooth). Rooms on the route sell out months ahead and prices multiply; reserved seats are extra and we book them as soon as the dates are announced.
Your English-speaking driver drives and handles tickets and logistics. A site guide at Anuradhapura, Sigiriya or the Temple of the Tooth can be hired on the day, for a fee paid to the guide.
Seven days is enough for the ancient cities done properly, not for the whole island. Add Galle with two more days, or Jaffna with three.
At temples cover shoulders and knees, take off shoes and hats, never pose with your back to a Buddha; Buddha tattoos have led to refused entry. 7 Nov 2026.
Sigiriya is USD 35, Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura USD 30, the Temple of the Tooth LKR 3,000; a park ticket for two is USD 71.86. Checked 7 November 2026.
Majeste's Classic Sri Lanka 7-day tour is USD 866 per person for two in 3-star hotels, shoulder season, with car, driver, tickets and safaris. 7 Nov 2026.
January to March is driest on the west and south coasts, in the hills and the Cultural Triangle; May to September suits the east. Checked 7 Nov 2026.
6 days · Comfort hotels
Anuradhapura, Jaffna, Wilpattu National Park
Anuradhapura, three nights in Jaffna, Wilpattu
$666
per person for two, 6 days, comfort hotels, shoulder season, tickets included, temple-run sites paid there
4 days · Comfort hotels
Anuradhapura, Sigiriya (Dambulla and Habarana)
Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya
$402
per person for two, 4 days, comfort hotels, shoulder season, tickets included, temple-run sites paid there
3 days · Comfort hotels
Sigiriya (Dambulla and Habarana)
Sigiriya, Dambulla and an elephant safari in two nights
$348
per person for two, 3 days, comfort hotels, shoulder season, tickets included
Fees last checked 7 Nov 2026. Hotel rates last checked 7 Nov 2026. Transport rates last checked 7 Nov 2026. Activity prices last checked 7 Nov 2026. Rupee fees converted at LKR 332.5 to USD 1 (XE mid-market rate, 6 Nov 2026).
Where the figures come from
More about our photos on the credits page.
Example for 2, no date chosen
$694per person, rounded up$1,386.12 total
for 2 adults, 7 days, comfort hotels, car, shoulder season
Nothing to pay now. You pay your driver in cash when the trip starts. Plans change? Cancel free up to 24 hours before pickup. Replies within 30 minutes, 07:00 to 21:00 Sri Lanka time.
