Ninety days of wellness and slow travel

A wide stretch of sand north of the town; good for an evening walk after a long flight.

Geoffrey Bawa's country estate and garden on a lake, shaped over fifty years. Visits are by guided tour.

A wide stretch of golden sand south of the river mouth, with calm swimming in the dry season and water sports on the river side.

A boat trip through the mangroves and small islands of the Madu Ganga estuary at Balapitiya, with a stop at a cinnamon island.

A flat 3.4 km loop around the lake in the centre of town, best early in the morning or before the evening service.

Sri Lanka's largest botanic garden, on a bend of the Mahaweli river, known for its avenues of royal palms, orchid house and giant Javan fig tree.

The old royal forest on the hill behind the temple, with shaded trails, birdlife and monkeys a few minutes from the centre.

A granite rock rising 316 metres over Kurunegala, shaped like a crouching elephant, with a short climb to a viewpoint over the town.

A temple from the reign of Dutthagamani, near Ridigama, said to mark where the silver ore for the Ruwanwelisaya stupa was found.

A 13th-century citadel built around a granite rock rising about a hundred metres from the plain. A steep stone staircase climbs to the ruins of the temple built for the Sacred Tooth Relic.

The ruins of a capital of Sri Lanka in the mid 13th century, on the Kurunegala to Negombo road.

An hour of traditional Kandyan drumming and dance, usually staged in the early evening at halls near the lake.

A short walk across a high grassland to the edge of a steep drop known as Mini World's End, with views over the lowlands on a clear day.

A windy ridge with views over the forests of the Knuckles and down to Matale, reached by a short walk from the road.

A half-day or full-day guided hike through cloud forest and grassland ridges, with waterfalls, endemic birds and lizards, and views from the peaks.

A working tea factory a few minutes from town, with a short tour of the processing floor and tea tasting with views over the estate.

A reservoir from the British period at the edge of town, with a lakeside path and boats for hire.

A hillside garden on the road to Ella, first planted in the 1860s for cinchona trials, now known for roses and cloud-forest views.

The viewpoint where Sir Thomas Lipton is said to have surveyed his tea estates, with views far across the southern plains on a clear morning.

A 220-metre waterfall near Koslanda. A path climbs to the rock pools at the top, where you can swim when the river is low.

A Tudor-style stone country house built for Sir Thomas Lester Villiers in the 1930s, now St Benedict's Monastery, with gardens and a shop selling the monks' jams.

A working tea factory built by Thomas Lipton in 1890, with short tours of the withering lofts, rolling and sorting floors.

An easy, well-trodden walk of about 45 minutes each way through a tea estate to a grassy summit with views across Ella Gap.

The stone railway viaduct at Demodara, in a valley of tea and forest. Check the timetable if you want to see a train cross.

A 64 metre waterfall on the Badulu Oya, about 5 km from Badulla, reached on foot from the road. The spray gives it its name.

A steeper half-day hike to a cliff top above the valley. Go early with a guide or good offline map, as the paths split.

A tall waterfall beside the main road below Ella, at its best after rain.

An ancient reservoir with birdlife and a lakeside road, near the restored Tissamaharama dagoba.

A half-day jeep safari (about 06:00 to 10:00, or 14:30 to 18:00) from the Palatupana gate, looking for leopards, elephants, sloth bears and birds across scrub, lagoons and rocky outcrops.

A Ramsar wetland of lagoons and dunes west of Yala, with flamingos in winter, crocodiles and many wading birds. Quieter than Yala.

The horseshoe bay itself, with a beginner-friendly beach break, a reef break for experienced surfers and calm water for swimming on small days.

A small, sheltered cove of golden sand between rocky headlands, one of the safer swimming spots near Tangalle in season.

A cave temple complex on a steep rock, with reclining Buddhas and painted ceilings on several terraces and views over the countryside from the top.

A sea blowhole near Kudawella that sends spray high into the air when the swell is up, reached by steps down the headland.

A temple with one of the island's largest seated Buddha statues, about 50 metres tall, and a tunnel of painted scenes of the afterlife.

A choice of beach, reef and point breaks along a few kilometres of coast, with surf schools for beginners and fast reef waves for experienced surfers.

A family-run low-country estate known for its white tea, with a short factory tour and a tasting of several teas.

The grid of streets inside the walls, with the Dutch Reformed Church (Groote Kerk), old warehouses and small museums.

Finds from shipwrecks in Galle harbour, from anchors and cannon to trade ceramics, displayed in a long 17th-century Dutch warehouse near the Old Gate.

A tall standing Buddha statue facing the sea at Peraliya, built in memory of the people lost in the 2004 tsunami, when a train was swept off the line nearby.

Snorkel in the shallow, reef-protected lagoon of Hikkaduwa National Park, where green turtles often feed close to shore.

The long sandy beach south of the reef, with beginner and intermediate surf breaks, cafes and a busy evening scene.

A boat ride around the mangrove islands of Koggala Lake, with stops at a temple island and a cinnamon garden.

Natural pools cut into the flat rock shelf along the shore, best for a dip at low tide on a calm day.

The childhood home of one of the best-loved Sinhala writers, with a museum of village crafts, tools and customs in the garden.

The traditional stilt fishing poles in the shallows at Koggala. Real fishing happens at dawn and dusk; at other times the fishermen often pose for a fee.

A two-hour beginner surf lesson on Weligama's long, sandy bay, one of the gentlest breaks on the island in season.

A large standing figure carved into a rock at the western edge of Weligama, traditionally said to be a king cured of a skin disease, now thought to be a Bodhisattva.

A morning boat trip of four to six hours to look for blue whales, sperm whales and dolphins. Sightings are likely in season but never guaranteed.

The main bay, lined with cafes, with Parrot Rock reachable on foot at low tide in calm weather.

A small headland of leaning palms above the sea at the east end of the bay. Busy at sunset.

A white stupa built by Japanese monks on the top of Rumassala, with views over Galle harbour and the fort.

A curved bay with calm water in season, sheltered by a reef and lined with cafes.

A small, sheltered cove below the wooded Rumassala hill, reached on foot or by tuk-tuk, with snorkelling off the rocks.

Colombo's crowded bazaar district, organised street by street by trade, with the red-and-white Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque (1909) at its heart.

A busy Buddhist temple with an eclectic museum, and the Geoffrey Bawa-designed Seema Malaka pavilion floating on Beira Lake nearby.

A long sea-front lawn and promenade, busy with families, kite flyers and street-food stalls from late afternoon.