famous train ride due to the beautiful scenery, even though its a long ride as its the slow train. tea plantations, waterfalls, bridges, mountains, villages and kids along the way, it is very beautiful.
getting tickets is a bit difficult, locals buy in advance and hawk them to tourists for higher prices. you need to book in advance as they get snapped up quick, especially on weekends tourist agencies and companies tend to buy them and will sell on too. so if you are searching for some you can try this option, but expect to pay a lot more. .you can't buy online either except on 12Go, but again, more expensive than at the station . they go on sale 30days in advance.
12Go
- Search for available train tickets:
- I enter your preferred travel destinations in Sri Lanka or choose one of the popular destinations from the list
- Select your preferred train travel date (MUST be 37 days or more in advance
- Choose “One Way” or enter a return date if you want to take the train both ways
- Select the number of people and hit the “Find tickets” button
- Find your preferred train departure time in the list & select “Book now”
- Fill in adetails
- “Flexible” or “Not Flexible” – Flexible means that the 12Go partner will buy 2nd class tickets if the 1st class/ VIP is fully booked and refund the difference. If the 2nd class is also fully booked on this date, they will buy tickets on the next available departure on the same date. If 2nd class is also fully booked, 12Go will refund your booking immediately. With “Not Flexible,” you will get a refund if your exact tickets are sold out.
- you can get your tickets delivered ($10) or pick them up in person. (select “Colombo hotel delivery” if you are staying in Colombo, or “EMS Sri Lanka delivery” if you are staying elsewhere in Sri Lanka). Enter your hotel name, hotel address, and check-in date in the “Additional Notes” box.or you can collect hem in person from the 12Go office in Columbo
- once confirmed you will receive a pdf voucher receipt
you can also buy from and agent or go to the train station yourself. tickets for government-run trains in Sri Lanka can be issued only 10-30 days (or shorter) before departure date depending on the route. For this route, Ella/Kandy, the train tickets are put out for sale 30 days ahead. You can buy tickets at the train station right up until departure unless the train is fully booked.
Andrew tried the station first to no avail. so he then tried agent and got some for the next day, though he paid a lot and we would need to change seats half way through. the train ride is 6-7 hours. though car ride is around 2-4h. there are 3 trains a day.
08.47 arrive 3.14pm
11.10 arrive 5.11pm
12.31 arrive 6.23pm
this was back in 2020 (start of the pandemic) they have added another 2 at 3am and 10pm
there's only a few trains each day, setting off originally form the capital Columbo which would be an even longer ride, Kandy is a good mid point to set off from, with the best views and also ensuring a shorter trip 1st class has aircon but 2nd class has windows you can open and hang out off - great for photos, the 1st class doesn't.
a lot of people stop in Nuwara Eliya (station is called Nanu Oya or Nanuoya) its 2-4 hours from Ella and has some great scenic spots and hiking options, the train ride has lots of tea plantations.
You get the train from the main station in Kandy, a bright and colourful colonial train station, that's easy enough to get too especially if you go by local 3-wheelers (Bajaj) also known in Thailand as TukTuks. There's no AC on the train, just fans, no dining cart either. there are. couple stops on the journey and you can buy drinks and snacks from peddlars who carry it and serve it to passengers from outside through the window. this is expensive, more so if you get something cold, these vendors carry it all by hand, in bin baskets and ice coolers, some balancing it on their heads! So it's a good idea to prepare in advance if you don't want to spend a fortune for a sprite or packet of crisps.
We got the midday train. and headed to the station. it wasn't super busy, we met some tourists too. they had some weird fish in tanks....I don't really like fish, especially big ones. I don't mind small cute colourful tropical ones though.
anywayyy.....we boarded quickly once the train pulled in (having originated in Colombo) signalled by a large blast of the train whistle. we had basic second class seats on the right side.
the train enters the station with a blast of it's whistle, coming from Colombo originally. everyone quickly gets on and gets to their seats. there are toilets on the train but they aren't the best. it was busy. half of which were foreigners, even though it was off peak season and covid had broken out in China.
it's not super comfy but it's better than some asian trains. it's slow even though there are not many stops. there aren't any food or drinks to buy on the train however on the occasion stops locals come with baskets and sell you expensive drinks and snacks through the windows. necessary but not amazing. not cold really either, but better than nothing!
beautiful sights, rising higher, up and up into the mountains, full of tea fields, the famous Ceylon teas. small villages and farms. some times passing locals or school children shading under umbrellas as they journey home through the countryside paths
halfway through we changed our seats. still on the same side but further up, still in the same carriage which was convenient so we didn't have far to move our bags.
https://youtube.com/shorts/_1wwQmz9k3k
most people want the 2nd class carriage as its open and its better to take pictures and walk about. its famous for a romantic shoot taken over a bridge of a couple kissing with the girl hanging out of the carriage (bit too dangerous for me) they warned against this but don't have much health and safety features or protocol otherwise.
ELLA tea fields from the train : https://youtube.com/shorts/UKI2G9I0pRs?feature=share
we arrived later in the evening, some people had gotten of at the previous stop, and others were staying on. we arrived around 5, the sun still unset. we paid a fee for a tuk tuk to take us to our hotel/b&b in the hillside with our bags, it was quite steep and cold at this point. we passed an area of small shops/restaurants/cafes/bars along the way, a sort of chilled backpacker vibe to them.
we stayed at a small B&B not too far from the station, past the small village area it was a steep walk and we weren't too sure of the way hence why we got a cheap ride form one of the local drivers. the scene from our room was breathtaking, especially for the set sun sky over the mountains. the included breakfast was delicious, more fresh juices - Papaya!
SRI LANKA: ELLA train curve track. https://youtube.com/shorts/LwmbQV5Nc74?feature=share
ELLA is one of the main tourist destination in Sri Lanka due to its cooler weather, laid-back atmosphere and picturesque hiking trails. It's also the starting/end point of the famed Kandy-Ella train route - often referred to as the most scenic train ride in the world.
the next day we booked a car to take us around the area and then onto Welligama on the coast. We went first to The 9 arch bridge, a main attraction in Ella, it's also part of the train route after the Ella stop. sunrise is a recommendation for it. there were many at it. though you do need to be careful and clear the tracks as the train does come along this track several times a day. Set amongst the tea field and forests there's some nice hikes to do around it.
Ravana Falls stands close to the main road so it's relatively easy too get to, the other Diyaluma Falls is further away, an hour drive, but it's the 2nd largest in Sri Lanka at 220m tall, and you can both swim at both the top or the bottom of the falls. Bambarakanda waterfall, the biggest isn't too far either, near to the town of Haputale surrounded by forest.
other things to do in and around Ella include "Liptons Seat viewpoint" located around an hour’s drive from Ella another great sunrise watching location (yes, Liptons tea!) From here you can explore some of the many tea plantations or get something to eat / drink from the Lipton Seat restaurant. There's plenty of Tea factories to check out here too! most of which have their original buildings. such as Halpewatte Tea Factory the largest tea factory in Sri Lanka!it's a bit pricy, a tour of the tea factory costs 525 rupees/person and runs for 40 minutes. the one closest to Liptons Seat is Dambatenne Tea Factory its tour costs 250 rupees but isn't as in-depth. \\
