About this experience
This private day tour starts at your hotel in Weligama and follows the southern coast towards Galle, joining up a tea estate, the stilt fishermen and the old walled city in a single outing. Your chauffeur guide collects you in the morning and drives you in a private vehicle throughout, so the day moves at the pace of your own party.
The first stop is the Handunugoda Tea Estate at Tittagalla, near Ahangama. The estate is known for its Virgin White Tea, made from a single unopened bud that is cut with golden scissors and placed into a bowl without ever being touched by hand. A tour of the factory shows how the leaf is handled on its way from the bush to the cup.
Back on the coast near Weligama you meet the stilt fishermen, who sit on a crossbar fixed to a tall pole planted in the shallow water and fish from there above the waves. There is time to watch them at work and to talk with one of the fishermen about how the method works.
The afternoon belongs to Galle. The Portuguese built the first fort here in 1588, and the Dutch greatly extended the fortifications from 1649; the Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1988. Your guide takes you along the ramparts and past the lighthouse, the National Maritime Museum and the cobbled streets that still carry their Dutch names.
Hotel pick-up and drop-off in Weligama, transport by private vehicle and the service of an English-speaking chauffeur guide are included. Meals where not specified, expenses of a personal nature and gratuities are not included. The minimum age is five, the tour is not wheelchair or stroller accessible, infant seats are unavailable and pets cannot be accommodated. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended for the time on foot in Galle.
