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Joe's Bungalow Yala is a private safari bungalow at Kirinda, near Yala National Park, let as a whole with two air-conditioned bedrooms, a pool and its own chef. Set in the dry-zone scrub near Kirinda on Sri Lanka's deep south coast, it is run by Joe's Resorts as a back-to-nature base for families and groups of friends who want a safari house to themselves rather than a room in a hotel.
The bungalow is never shared with other guests, so there is only one thing to book.
Our rate covers up to five adults and two children, sleeping in the two bedrooms. The verandah sofa beds mean the bungalow can take a larger party; if your group is bigger than seven, ask us before you book so that we can confirm the arrangements with Joe's.
An in-house chef cooks every day, preparing Sri Lankan dishes as well as Western food, and the permanent household staff look after meals around your safari times. Meals are usually taken at the long wooden table on the verandah, open to the garden.
Life here is simple: a swim in the pool, an afternoon on the loungers under the parasols, and time in the green garden of dry-zone trees. Most guests come for the park, and jeep safaris into Yala National Park can be arranged on request. Yala is famous for its leopards and also has elephants, crocodiles, buffalo, monkeys and a great many water birds; the main gate is at Palatupana.
Inside the park are two old pilgrimage sites, the rock monastery of Sithulpawwa and Magul Maha Viharaya. On the coast at Kirinda is the Kirinda Raja Maha Viharaya, a temple on a rock above the sea, and nearby Nidangala is a quiet, rocky beach with natural pools for bathing. Inland, Tissamaharama has its great stupa and the old reservoir of Tissa Wewa, and the pilgrimage town of Kataragama, sacred to Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims, is within easy reach. Birdwatchers can add Bundala National Park, and the rock-cut figures of Buduruwagala, with a standing Buddha about 15 metres tall, make a longer day out.
From Bandaranaike International Airport the drive takes about four hours, depending on traffic, with the Southern Expressway covering much of the way; the bungalow is about 190 kilometres from the airport in a straight line. The simplest way to arrive is a private transfer from Colombo airport to Joe's Bungalow Yala. Small aircraft, including scheduled domestic services, use Weerawila Airport, about an hour away by road. Yala also fits naturally into a longer tour, after the hill country or the south and west coasts.
It suits families and groups of friends who want a private safari house with a pool and a cook, and are happy with simple, comfortable rooms rather than resort facilities. Two nights allows a morning and an afternoon game drive with time at the pool in between. For other options near the park see our places to stay in Kirinda.
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