Wonderful, first time visit to Sri Lanka! - Wow what an amazing time in Sri Lanka! I came to Sri Lanka for a conference from the U.S. My friend had visited Sri Lanka a couple months earlier and highly recommended her guide, Dhanuka with Hellow Travel, and raved about her two-week trip with Dhanuka as her guide and driver. Especially as a solo female traveler going to a new country where I don’t speak the language, I was very happy to be able to book with someone she trusted. Before my trip, I WhatsApped with Dhanuka, who created a custom itinerary for me to fit the free time I had, with a one-day tour of the ancient city of Anuradhapura with Lakshitha before my conference, and a two-night itinerary with Dhanuka to Kandy, Ella, and Galle for the days after the conference. Both Lakshitha and Dhanuka were amazing guides, and I recommend them and Hellow Travel without reservation! Both Lakshitha and Dhanuka were incredibly kind and friendly, very knowledgeable about everything we visited, and extremely patient and caring in everything they did. Hellow Travel has a fleet of very clean and comfortable hybrid cars, and both guides were excellent and safe drivers, which allowed me to just relax and see the beautiful countryside. Sri Lanka is a gorgeous country with a fascinating history and so many incredible things to see, and to be able to see the country with Dhanuka and Lakshitha was such a treat. In addition to learning about the things we visited, I loved having the opportunity to be able to ask and learn about Sri Lankan culture, the Sinhala and Tamil languages, the history and practice of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, and so much more. All this plus the fact that the tours were reasonably priced (which would have been even more reasonable had I been traveling with someone else) makes Hellow Travel a great choice, whether you are a solo traveler, couple, family, or even a group of 36 (they have vans and buses in addition to the hybrid sedans). A little more about my two tours in case it’s helpful to any travelers: My flight arrived in Colombo at 2:30am, so Lakshitha was waiting for me at my hotel at 3:30am to embark on my adventure to Anuradhapura. We drove north, on the way driving through a bird sanctuary where we saw many varieties of birds and then made our way to the remains of the ancient kingdom of Anuradhapura. We made over 15 stops (I lost count!) in the Anuradhapura area to see the remains of ancient royal dwellings, irrigation systems, frescos, reliefs, and more. We also saw some awe-inspiring Buddhist temples and religious sites, including the location where there is a tree grown from a cutting of the original Bodhi tree where Buddha attained enlightenment some 2500 years ago. We finished with a peek into an archeological dig site where they’ve found even older remains. My visit to Anuradhapura was the perfect way to start off my time in Sri Lanka. Lakshitha was an excellent tour guide and was a total rock star for his stamina — it was a nearly 20 hour day because of my late night/early morning arrival, a little mix up at the hotel that had to be resolved before we could leave, and some rain at the end of the day, and despite the long hours of driving to/from Anuradhapura and hours of explaining everything from history to Sri Lankan culture all the while battling the Sri Lankan heat, Lakshitha never gave any indication of fatigue — he was always kind and patient as ever throughout the long (but very awesome) day. Dhanuka was an equally amazing guide and driver. I had about 2.5 days after the conference, so Dhanuka picked me up from the conference and drove me to the second largest city and last kingdom, Kandy, to see a traditional cultural dance show (complete with a finale with fire breathers and walking on fiery hot coals) and then to the Tooth Relic Temple, where we made it in time to see the ceremony The next day, we took off to see Ramboda Falls, a pretty waterfall, and then to the Nanu-Oya train stop where Dhanuka saw me to my train car to take one of the most scenic train rides in the world. The train journey took us through hill country and into the clouds, making the scenery almost other worldly (hot tip: get a window seat on the left hand side looking forward for the best views). After crossing the impressive engineering feat of the Nine Arch Bridge, Dhanuka met me at my train car to take me to a beautiful, modern hotel with a breathtaking view of Ella Rock and the valley below. On the final day, we woke up early to hike up Little Adam’s Peak to catch the sunrise, then after breakfast, did another short walk to see the train cross the Nine Arch Bridge. We visited beautiful Ravana Falls and watched the many monkeys hanging out around the food stalls and looking for any food people drop or might give them. After that, it was a nice drive through the countryside with a pit stop for some delicious local fruits from a fruit stand to visit Galle Fort and its Portuguese, Dutch, and British history and the quaint town inside. And finally back to Colombo to fly home. What a great adventure! I loved seeing so much of the country and learning so much about Sri Lankan culture and history, and traveling with a private guide meant I could always go at my speed, ask all the questions I wanted, all the while feeling totally safe, secure, and well-looked after. Thank you to Dhanuka, Lakshitha, and Hellow Travel for a wonderful, memorable adventure!

Honest review of the best experience - Words cannot capture how amazing and well organized this tour was for both me and my best friend. Both the organizer Dahnuka and our personal driver/tour guide Thushara made us feel so welcomed and safe. Having traveled 24 hours from California to reach Sri Lanka it was a much appreciated warm welcome from Thushara that made us instantly feel right at home. Thushara is a wealth of knowledge that we felt very lucky to have by our side during our trip. He also was flexible for our needs making us feel well accommodated. We upgraded to the premium hotels and wow! They're just as nice or tbh nicer than most high end US hotels. We packed so much in our trip of 8 days and still my only complaint would be next time to stay longer and explore more 🤣 do yourself a favor and visit Sri Lanka with these people :) Bohoma istouti🙂

Go to Sri Lanka you will find nothing but love - We traveled to Sri Lanka with Hellow Travel. They were took the stress out of traveling. We traveled to multiple destinations and the travel arrangements by Dhanuka were beyond our expectations. He ensured we visited all sites and beyond and gave us valuable insights. Dhanuka is passionate about his work. Thank you Hello Travel for the lifetime memories.

Amazing experience - The tour was great. We visited amazing places such as Ella, Mirissa or Sigiriya. Our driver, Dhanuka, was really kind and thoughtful and always took care of us. I highly recommend the tour.

Sri Lanka 7 nights 8 days - This tour made my trip to Sri Lanka an anmazing experience. It was my time visiting Sri Lanka and it was truly unforgettable. My guide Dhanuka made the trip even more memorable he was very nice and really knowledgeable about his country. We were together the entire time he showed me around and took me to all of the attractions. I would give this tour a 10/10 if I could.

Travel to Sri Lanka - We decided to plan our holiday with Hellow Travel. We spent nearly eight days with Heshan on a tour of Sri Lanka. He has good knowledge of history and cultural places. He treated us every day with a great smile on his face. Tour planning and transport arrangements and Hotels are excellent. Hellow Travel has done a great job. We highly recommend Hellow Travel for personalized packages.

Amazing well organised trip - I have been wanting to visit Sri Lanka for a long time and this year we decided to go for Christmas. Our driver Mr Sudarshana was just amazing. He was waiting for us at the airport with flower necklaces and then we started our journey. We went straight to pinnawala elephant orphanage and from the get go we trusted him. We could leave all our bags in the car & just wander around and he was so patient. We travelled for 5 days from Negambo to Galle and we did everything we had wished for. He left us to our own devices and was there to help when we needed him. Very good driver and fantastically planned trip. Thank you for making our experience the beat possible!