If you’re travelling to Sri Lanka, Ella is probably on your list. This little mountain town is a hot spot on the tourist trail, and is easily accessible from both Colombo and Kandy by train. It’s cooler climate and epic mountain views make for a great stop before heading onto Sri Lanka’s south coast beaches. We arrived in Ella from Arugam Bay, which you can read more about here.
What to do in Ella:
We found that three nights was plenty of time to spend in Ella. There’s some beautiful walks to do in the area, but be prepared for large crowds. We rented a scooter for our entire second day, which meant we could explore further afield. Here’s what we did:
Little Adams Peak
An easy 15 minute uphill hike, Little Adams Peak offers great views of the surrounding mountains. You can either walk or tuktuk to the start of the hike – we walked, it takes about an hour from Ella town. We left at 9, which meant we were climbing at 10, which was a little late in the day. It was hot and crowded. I’d recommend leaving at 7 or 8am to miss the crowds, earlier if you want to catch the sunrise. There is no entrance fee as of Mar 2019.
Nine Arch Bridge
This massive bridge is definitely worth a visiting just to take a walk in the tea fields and get a few snaps on the bridge in between the trains. The Insta-worthy blue trains only roll past twice per day, but red trains come past regularly. There’s only one toot from the horn to announce each train’s arrival, and everyone has to quickly get out of the way. The bridge is easy to walk to after visiting Little Adam’s Peak (google maps offers accurate directions), or alternatively just walk along the tracks from the Ella train station. Tuktuk drivers can also take passengers directly to the bridge. There is no entrance fee to the bridge.
Diyaluma Falls
These beautiful falls are the second highest in Sri Lanka, with three deep swimming holes at the top. The base of the falls is an hour from Ella by scooter (rent one for 1000-1500rs for the day), slightly less by car or tuktuk. Once you get to the parking area at the base (you’ll be waved down by a group of locals), you can either pay a ‘guide’ to take you on the 45 minute uphill climb (1500rs), or try to navigate the path yourself. We went with the guide and didn’t regret it – it’s expensive, but the path is not always clear and very steep at certain points. Waiting in the parking area for other travellers and sharing the cost of a guide would cut down the cost.
At the top, the pools are clean and refreshing to swim in. There’s a couple of people selling drinks and coconuts, and most people just leave their bags and belongings within sight on the rocks. At the very top, where the water splashes directly over the rocks and down into the largest pool, beware of leeches… we got bitten.
There is no entrance fee to Diyaluma falls, though getting a guide for 1500rs is money well spent.
Things we didn’t do:
Ella Rock
Hiking up Ella Rock takes ~4h and promises the best views of the surrounding area. As far as I understand, it’s a fairly straightforward ascent with a guide, though it can be done unguided as well. We didn’t make this climb because there were quite a few thunderstorms passing through Ella when we were there, and it would have been miserable to be stuck on the mountain in the pelting rain.
Lipton Tea Seat
This is one of the more popular tourist attractions in the area – a guided tour of the Lipton Tea Fields, followed by a sip or two of the tea itself. We didn’t do this because the entrance fee is 100rs/pp, and we aren’t really day-tour kind of people, but we met up with another couple at Matey Hut (see below!) who had loved their trip there.
Where to eat in Ella:
Due to the concentration of tourists in Ella, food is relatively expensive, but we still managed to find two great spots for some tasty, traditional Sri Lankan food at a reasonable price.
Matey Hut
This little unassuming restaurant is tucked into the side of the hill, just before the tunnel leading into Ella town. Serving seriously good Sri Lankan staples, the best thing you can do here is order the Rice and Curry, then bolster your order with a couple more curries on the side, and an extra serve of rice. The prices aren’t the cheapest on the island, but are very reasonable for the area. We ate dinner here twice, and had to wait for a table both nights. There’s a small waiting area outside, with a couple of benches to take a seat on. It’ll be worth the wait.
Ella Siyapatha Hut Restaurant
Up on Kitalella road, which winds up the hill behind Sri Lanka town, this little place offers and all-you-can-eat curry vegetarian buffet, with an optional serve of meat. Hosting cooking classes during the day, and feeding customers at night, this family-run business has everyone from grandma down working in the small, open fire kitchen. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, and you have to walk up a steep driveway, but the food is excellent, tasty and extremely fresh. A tuktuk up here from Ella town costs about 250rs, or it’s a 10-15 minute walk.
