A scenic train journey is one of the must-do experiences for anyone visiting Sri Lanka. However, due to extremely high demand and limited seat availability, securing train tickets can be very challenging.
Sri Lanka Railways releases tickets to the general public only 30 days before the travel date, and popular routes often sell out within minutes.
As a Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) accredited tour operator, we maintain a limited allocation of train tickets for guests who have booked holidays with us where a scenic train journey forms part of their itinerary. From time to time, we may also have additional tickets available due to last-minute cancellations or itinerary changes, and we are pleased to offer these to other travellers whenever possible.
Please note the following conditions before making a reservation:
- Payment does not guarantee a confirmed ticket. Your reservation will be processed based on ticket availability. If we are unable to secure your requested seats, we will make every reasonable effort to obtain suitable alternatives. If we are ultimately unsuccessful, your payment will be refunded in full.
- Accurate passport details are required. We require either clear passport copies or accurate passport numbers for all passengers, as tickets must be issued under the correct passport details. Incorrect information may result in passengers being denied boarding by Sri Lanka Railways.
- The requested travel class is subject to availability. While you may reserve a specific class (e.g. First Class), availability cannot be guaranteed. If we are only able to secure a lower class than the one you paid for, we will automatically refund the applicable fare difference.
- E-tickets will be issued approximately six (6) hours before departure. We continue working until the last possible moment to secure the best available seats for our customers. For this reason, your e-ticket will only be released shortly before your scheduled departure.
By proceeding with your reservation, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to the above terms and conditions.
Train № 1015, named Udarata Menike — meaning 'Upcountry Maiden' — is the classic daytime service running from Colombo Fort Railway Station into the Sri Lankan highlands, with Ella among its stops. It is one of the most celebrated rail journeys in Asia, not for its speed but for the sheer variety of landscape it moves through: coastal lowlands giving way to rubber and coconut groves, then to the cloud-level tea country of the central hills. Booking a seat through Lakpura means having a dedicated allocation managed on your behalf, which matters on a route where general-release tickets frequently sell out within minutes of becoming available.
Departing Colombo Fort in the morning, the train works its way through a succession of market towns before the gradient steepens at Rambukkana and the locomotive begins its serious climb. By Kandy — a major stop with its ornate, canopied platform — the lowland heat has already softened. Beyond Peradeniya the line enters the hill country proper: tunnels carved through moss-covered rock, single-track cuttings through dense forest, and long viaducts of stone arches spanning river gorges below. The Nine Arch Bridge at Demodara is the journey's most photographed moment, a handsome colonial-era structure best seen from the open doorway of a carriage as the train curves across it. Further on, tea estates spread across every hillside, the bushes clipped to a uniform level and interrupted only by estate buildings and the occasional waterfall dropping into the valley.
The train uses red and maroon passenger carriages hauled by a diesel locomotive in the distinctive green-and-red livery of Sri Lanka Railways. Carriage interiors have blue upholstered seats arranged in facing pairs, overhead luggage racks, ceiling fans, and wide windows that can be opened to let in the cool highland air. The open doorways at each carriage end are where many passengers choose to stand for the more dramatic stretches, and the pace of the train is gentle enough that this becomes a comfortable vantage point rather than a precarious one.
Lakpura holds a limited allocation of tickets as an SLTDA-accredited operator and is able to offer these to travellers whose itineraries include this journey, as well as on occasion to independent travellers when seats become free through last-minute changes. A reservation is accepted on the understanding that confirmation depends on seat availability at the time of processing. Should the requested travel class be unavailable, a lower class may be substituted and the fare difference refunded; should no seat be secured at all, the full payment is returned. Accurate passport details for every passenger are required before a ticket can be issued, as Sri Lanka Railways registers tickets against passenger identity documents and incorrect details can result in denied boarding.
The e-ticket is released approximately six hours before the scheduled departure, reflecting the fact that allocation work continues until the latest practical moment. The service departs Colombo Fort in the morning and reaches Ella in the early evening, stopping at stations including Ragama, Gampaha, Polgahawela, Rambukkana, Kadugannawa, Kandy, Peradeniya, Gampola, Watawala, Hatton, Talawakele, Nanu Oya, Pattipola, Ohiya, Haputale, and Bandarawela along the way. Included in the reservation is the train journey itself and all applicable taxes and service charges; hotel transfers, meals, drinks, and personal expenses are outside the scope of the ticket.
