Naula

Naula is a small but historically significant town in Matale District, Central Province, positioned along the A9 highway — the main arterial road connecting Kandy to Jaffna — roughly 53 kilometres north of Kandy. Sitting within an intermediate climate zone, the town enjoys a moderate year-round temperature that makes it a comfortable stop for travellers exploring the cultural heartland of Sri Lanka. The surrounding countryside is layered with terraced paddy fields, forested ridgelines, and ancient reservoirs that speak to a long history of human settlement in this part of the island.

What can you see and do around Naula?

Despite its modest size, Naula serves as a convenient gateway to several worthwhile attractions spread across the surrounding landscape.

• Nalanda Gedige — One of Sri Lanka's most architecturally unusual monuments, Nalanda Gedige is a stone shrine that blends Mahayana Buddhist and Hindu design elements in a style rarely seen elsewhere on the island. Scholars believe it dates to around the 8th or 9th century CE. The structure was painstakingly reassembled after the construction of the Nalanda Tank flooded its original site, and it now stands on a small peninsula overlooking the reservoir.
• Nalanda Tank — The reservoir created during the Nalanda irrigation scheme provides a peaceful setting for the Gedige and attracts birdlife along its banks, particularly in the early morning hours.
• Bowathenna Dam, Tank, and Hydropower Station — A more modern landmark, the Bowathenna Dam harnesses the waters of the Amban Ganga River as part of the Mahaweli Development Programme. The reservoir and its surroundings offer scenic views typical of the Central Province's green interior.
• Nitre Caves — A lesser-known attraction in the vicinity, these natural limestone formations hold local historical interest and are worth including on a longer exploration of the area.

The roads in and around Naula are consistently praised by travellers for their scenery. The drive north or south along the A9 passes through agricultural land, rocky outcrops, and small rural settlements that give an honest picture of life in central Sri Lanka away from the main tourist circuit.

When is the best time to visit Naula?

Naula's intermediate climate zone means it avoids the extremes of both the wet zone and the dry zone. Rainfall is distributed across two monsoon periods — the southwest monsoon from May to September and the northeast monsoon from October to January — but neither typically causes prolonged disruption to travel. The driest and most settled conditions generally fall between January and April, making that window particularly comfortable for exploring outdoor sites like the Nalanda Gedige and the reservoir shores. Temperatures throughout the year remain moderate, typically cooler than Colombo but warmer than the higher elevations of Nuwara Eliya.

How do you get to Naula from Kandy?

The most straightforward route is the A9 highway heading north from Kandy. The journey covers around 53 kilometres and takes approximately one to one and a half hours by road depending on traffic, with the drive itself passing through attractive hill-country scenery. Naula can also be reached by bus from Kandy's main bus terminal; services on the Kandy–Dambulla corridor stop at Naula regularly. For travellers continuing north toward Dambulla, Sigiriya, or Anuradhapura, Naula sits naturally along the route and lends itself well to a stop rather than a dedicated detour.

Where does Naula fit within Matale District?

Matale District covers roughly 1,993 square kilometres in the northern part of Central Province. It is bounded by Anuradhapura District to the north, Polonnaruwa and Badulla to the east, Kurunagala to the west, and Kandy to the south — a position that places it at the geographical centre of the island. The district's administrative capital is Matale town, located south of Naula along the A9. The broader district is known for its spice cultivation, particularly cinnamon, pepper, and cloves, and a number of spice gardens operating near Matale town are open to visitors.

Naula lies in the northern reaches of this district, closer in character and landscape to the dry-zone plains of the North Central Province than to the steep tea-covered slopes of Kandy and Nuwara Eliya. This transitional quality — between the central highlands and the ancient cities of the Cultural Triangle — makes it a useful orientation point for travellers moving between the two regions.

What is the broader geography of Central Province?

Central Province encompasses three districts: Kandy, Matale, and Nuwara Eliya, covering a combined land area of around 5,575 square kilometres, or approximately 8.6 percent of Sri Lanka's total land area. Elevations across the province range from around 180 metres at the lower margins to well above 1,800 metres on the main ridge. The province is bordered to the north by North Central Province, to the east by the Mahaweli River — Sri Lanka's longest — and to the south and west by the mountain ranges and peaks that define the island's central massif, including Adam's Peak and Kirigalpotta. Naula, sitting on the northern edge of this highland region, occupies the zone where the hills begin to flatten into the plains that characterise the ancient kingdoms of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa.

Is Naula worth including in a Sri Lanka itinerary?

For travellers following the classic route between Kandy and the Cultural Triangle, Naula adds genuine depth without significant detour. Nalanda Gedige in particular is undervisited relative to its architectural importance and can be explored at a relaxed pace with few crowds. The Bowathenna reservoir and the quiet rural roads nearby suit travellers who want to see an authentic slice of central Sri Lanka rather than moving only between headline attractions. A half-day stop is sufficient to cover the main sites, though the town also has basic facilities for those who prefer to overnight outside the busier hub of Dambulla.