wildlife
Yala National Park (Block 1)
The busiest and most famous sector of Yala, holding the world's highest density of leopards alongside elephants, sloth bears, crocodiles and abundant birdlife across scrub and rock.
Yala · Attractions
Top attractions in Yala
A reference guide to the sights worth seeing in Yala, what each one is and why it's worth your time.
Want to know how to spend your days instead? See our things to do.
wildlife
Bundala National Park
Coastal lagoons and salt pans forming Sri Lanka's first Ramsar wetland and a UNESCO biosphere reserve, with nearly 200 bird species and greater flamingos from November to January.
wildlife
Udawalawe National Park
Open grassland around a large reservoir west of Tissa, the most reliable park in Sri Lanka for watching wild elephant herds at close range in uncrowded conditions.
wildlife
Elephant Transit Home, Udawalawe
A state rehabilitation centre where orphaned calves are bottle-fed and released back to the wild. Public viewing at feeding times, watched from a respectful distance rather than by riding.
culture
Ruhunu Maha Kataragama Devalaya
The multi-faith shrine at the heart of Kataragama, honouring the guardian deity Kataragama, or Murugan, and revered by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Vedda alike, with daily puja.
culture
Sithulpawwa Rock Temple
A 2nd-century BCE cave monastery within Yala's boundaries, with more than 160 rock shelters and a whitewashed stupa on a summit rock overlooking the surrounding wilderness.
landmark
Tissamaharama Raja Maha Viharaya
A vast white dagoba dating from the 3rd century BCE, one of the largest stupas in southern Sri Lanka and the visual anchor of Tissa town beside its ancient tanks.
nature
Kumana National Park
The remote eastern sector of the Yala complex, centred on the mangrove-fringed Kumana Villu where herons, storks, pelicans and spoonbills nest, with over 250 recorded bird species.
beach
Kirinda Beach and Temple
A small Buddhist temple set on a rocky headland above a wide beach south of Tissa, linked to the legend of Queen Viharamahadevi and offering broad views over the Indian Ocean.
nature
Tissa Wewa
An ancient irrigation reservoir at the centre of Tissamaharama, ringed by a tree-lined bund that fills with birdlife and locals at dusk, a calm counterpoint to the safari parks.
landmark
Kiri Vehera, Kataragama
A large white stupa a short walk from the Kataragama shrines, one of Sri Lanka's Solosmasthana sacred sites and a quiet focus for Buddhist pilgrims in the sacred town.