Explore more curated experiences in Bentota
View all Bentota toursKandy and Pinnawala Day Trip from Bentota with the Temple of the Tooth
Activity provider: Sign of Lanka (Pvt) Ltd
+5
more
A long day inland from the Bentota coast to the hill capital: the Pinnawala elephant orphanage, the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Peradeniya.
Highlights
- The one day that shows a beach-based trip the hill country
- Pinnawala, an elephant orphanage holding around eighty rescued animals
- The Temple of the Tooth, the reason Kandy is a World Heritage site
- Kandy lake and the town in its ring of hills
- The Royal Botanic Gardens at Peradeniya
Kandy and Pinnawala Day Trip from Bentota with the Temple of the Tooth: Key Facts
| Price | From $286 per person |
|---|---|
| Duration | 10 hours |
| Languages | English |
| Tour type | Guided Tour |
| Booking | Direct with the local operator — no OTA markup |
Choose from 2 available options
Full Day tour to Kandy & Pinnawala from Kalutara/ Waskaduwa
Departures: 6:00 AM
10 hours
English
$286
Free cancellation
Full Day tour to Kandy & Pinnawala from Bentota/ Beruwala
Departures: 6:00 AM
10 hours
English
$299
Free cancellation
Full description
Bentota is a beach town and Kandy is three and a half hours inland, which makes this a long day — but for anyone whose Sri Lanka trip is otherwise entirely coastal, it is the one day that shows them the other country.
Pinnawala is the first stop and it deserves an honest description. It is an elephant orphanage established in 1975 for animals found abandoned or injured, it holds around eighty elephants, and it is also heavily commercialised, with bathing sessions timed for tour groups and bottle-feeding you can pay to do. The animals are real and the rescue work is real; the presentation is built for visitors. If that combination sits badly with you, say so when booking and the stop can be replaced.
Kandy is the point of the day. The Temple of the Tooth holds a relic of the Buddha and is why Kandy is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the town around it — the lake dug by the last king in 1807, the market, the hills closing in on all sides — is a completely different Sri Lanka from the coast you drove up from.
The Royal Botanic Gardens at Peradeniya, just outside Kandy, close the day before the long drive back down.
Kandy was the last capital of the Sinhalese kings, holding out against the Portuguese and Dutch until the British took it in 1815, and the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic on the lake is why it matters: the relic, believed to be a tooth of the Buddha, is the most sacred object on the island and its custody once legitimised the kingship. The relic chamber opens for puja three times a day, at about 5:30, 9:30 and 18:30, when the drumming starts and the queue moves past the casket. Dress covers shoulders and knees, shoes come off at the entrance, and the Esala Perahera in July or August parades the casket on an elephant through the city for ten nights.
Tour Itinerary
Itineraries are customisable as per your request
The schedule below is a suggested plan and can be adjusted to suit your preferences.
6:00 AM
Pickup in Bentota
An early start for the drive inland.
9:30 AM
Pinnawala
The elephant orphanage.
12:00 PM
Drive to Kandy
About an hour further into the hills.
1:30 PM
Temple of the Tooth
The temple complex and the relic chamber.
3:00 PM
Peradeniya gardens
The palm avenue and the great fig.
4:30 PM
Return drive
The long road back to the coast.
8:00 PM
Bentota
Drop-off at your hotel.
Detailed Itinerary
06:00
Hotel pickup
Three and a half hours inland. Seven hours of driving across the day.
09:30
Pinnawala
Bathing sessions run mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Entry is paid at the gate.
13:30
Sri Dalada Maligawa
Shoes off, shoulders and knees covered. Pujas at 9.30am and 6.30pm.
15:00
Peradeniya
An hour is enough for the highlights.
20:00
Bentota
Drop-off at your hotel.
Includes
- Private air-conditioned vehicle with an English-speaking driver-guide, hotel pickup and drop-off in Bentota or Kalutara, all driving, fuel and parking.
Excludes
- Entrance fees at Pinnawala, the Temple of the Tooth and the botanic gardens, meals and drinks, gratuities.
Important information
Meeting point
Hotel pickup in Bentota or Kalutara; confirmed after booking.
Know before you go
- Free cancellation available up to 24 hours before the activity starts
About this activity
Free cancellation
Cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund
Secure payment
Complete your booking safely with Razorpay. Full refund if you cancel 24h prior. Read more
Duration 10 hours
Check availability to see starting times
Live tour guide
English
Wheelchair accessible
You might also like...
Main Tour Price
Starting from $286
$286
Tour Type
Day TripCulturalWildlife
Need a custom booking or have a larger group?Contact Support via WhatsApp
We reply within 5 minutes
Free cancellation
Free cancellation
Cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund
Secure payment
Complete your booking safely with Razorpay. Full refund if you cancel 24h prior. Read more
Frequently Asked Questions
Hotel pickup in Bentota or Kalutara; confirmed after booking.
The price does not cover entrance fees at pinnawala, the temple of the tooth and the botanic gardens, meals and drinks, gratuities.. Everything it does cover is listed in full on this page, so if something is not on that list, budget for it separately.
Religious sites expect shoulders and knees covered, and shoes come off before entering many of them. A light scarf is worth carrying. Where a site enforces this at the gate, arriving dressed correctly saves the whole group time.
Sign of Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. We book with them directly rather than through a reseller, which is why we can confirm your place with the operator before taking it as final.
We confirm your booking with the operator before we treat it as final, and we need at least one day's notice outside India. Once it is confirmed you get the meeting point, the time and a contact number for the day. If the operator cannot take your date we tell you and refund you rather than leave you waiting.
Private air-conditioned vehicle with an English-speaking driver-guide, hotel pickup and drop-off in Bentota or Kalutara, all driving, fuel and parking.
The duration of the Kandy and Pinnawala Day Trip from Bentota with the Temple of the Tooth is typically 10 hours. We recommend arriving 15 minutes before the scheduled start time for a smooth check-in. Your guide will meet you at the designated meeting point and ensure the experience runs on schedule while remaining flexible to your pace.
For most experiences, we highly recommend an early morning start. This allows you to avoid the midday heat, bypass the largest crowds, and capture the best lighting for photography. Your guide can advise on the optimal timing based on the season and specific attractions included.
Yes, once your booking is completed via our secure payment gateway, you will receive an instant confirmation email with your tour details, meeting point address, guide's name, and direct contact information. You can also view and manage your booking through your AsiaByLocals account dashboard.
Yes! All our private tours are fully customizable. Whether you want to add extra stops, skip certain locations, change the pace, or adjust the start time — simply let your guide know in advance or on the day. We aim to create a personalized experience tailored to your interests and energy level.
We offer free cancellation up to 24 hours before the scheduled start time for a full refund. Cancellations within 24 hours may be subject to a partial charge depending on the tour type. Weather-related cancellations for outdoor and boat tours are handled on a case-by-case basis, with full refunds or free rebooking offered when safety is a concern.
Most of our experiences are family-friendly and suitable for children of all ages. However, some tours involving extensive walking, water activities, or early morning starts may be better suited for children aged 5 and above. Please check the specific tour description for age recommendations, or contact us for personalized family itinerary advice.
After booking, you will receive detailed meeting point instructions via email. Most tours include complimentary hotel pickup within the central area. For tours without pickup, your confirmation email will include the exact address, Google Maps pin, and your guide's phone number for easy coordination. Guides typically arrive 10 minutes early and will message you on WhatsApp.
We accept all major credit and debit cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express), PayPal, Apple Pay, and Razorpay for Indian cards. All payments are processed through a PCI-compliant secure gateway with 256-bit encryption. You can also pay in multiple currencies — the price is automatically converted to your local currency at checkout.
Yes, all AsiaByLocals guides are licensed professionals who have been rigorously vetted through background checks, skill assessments, and customer reviews. Many hold government-issued tourism licenses, university degrees in history or cultural studies, and have years of experience leading tours for international travelers. Every guide maintains a minimum 4.5-star rating to remain active on our platform.
Roughly November to April. From May to September the southwest monsoon builds the surf and strengthens rip currents, and swimming becomes genuinely dangerous even on calm-looking days. Most of the beach has no lifeguard — an empty sea on a hot afternoon is information.
A 2-3 hour boat trip through a Ramsar-listed 900-hectare wetland with 64 islands and around 14 mangrove species — one of the last intact stands in Sri Lanka — including a working cinnamon island. It runs year-round, unaffected by the monsoon that closes the beaches. See our Madu River guide.
No. It is harmless to you and unpleasant for the fish, kept at high density in a hot open tank. The same goes for jetties with a caged monkey or python for photographs — declining is completely normal and a good operator does not stop there at all.
November to April, with January to March the reliable core. Boats leave at 6-6.30am, so staying in Mirissa or Weligama the night before is effectively required. Outside the season, Trincomalee on the east coast runs the mirror season. See the Mirissa guide.
About 100 km and 1.5-2 hours on the E01 expressway — the shortest transfer from the airport to a proper beach in Sri Lanka, which is why it works as a first or last stop. See our Bentota guide.
They vary a great deal. The better ones release hatchlings the same night they emerge; the worse ones keep them in tanks for visitor photographs, which sharply reduces survival odds. Ask what happens to the hatchlings before you pay.
No. It is a living town of about four hundred families, not a heritage site with a gate — you walk in. Go late afternoon: the ramparts face west, so that is both the light and the sea breeze, and the day-trippers leave around five. See our Galle Fort guide.
Roughly November to April. From May to September the southwest monsoon builds the sea and strengthens rip currents, and swimming becomes genuinely dangerous even on calm-looking days. The east coast is the reverse — dry and calm May to September. See our south coast beaches guide.
November to April, with January to March the reliable core. Boats leave Mirissa harbour at 6-6.30am and are back by eleven, so staying in Mirissa or Weligama the night before is effectively required. Outside the season, Trincomalee on the east coast takes over. See the Mirissa whale watching guide.
No — and an operator promising one is promising something they cannot control. Sighting rates in season are high; the honest operators offer a free repeat trip instead of a guarantee. Choose a smaller boat with a naturalist aboard that commits to the 100 m distance rule.
Rarely. The main resort stretches sometimes have them; most beaches do not. Red flags mean what they say, and an empty sea on a hot afternoon is information — locals know which days are dangerous. If caught in a rip, swim *parallel* to the beach, not against it.
Two nights. One full day for the countryside cycling and Galle Fort at sunset, and a second morning for the whale boat. Our Galle 2-day itinerary sets out the hours and why they matter.
They vary a great deal. The better ones release hatchlings the same night they emerge; the worse ones keep them in tanks for visitor photographs, which sharply reduces survival odds. Ask what happens to the hatchlings before you pay.
Time it for a puja — 5.30am, 9.30am or 6.30pm. Those are the only windows when the upper relic chamber opens and the hevisi drummers play; outside them you are visiting a beautiful building rather than a ceremony. Take socks: shoes come off at the gate and the stone courtyard gets painfully hot. Full detail in our Temple of the Tooth guide.
February for the clearest weather, or July-August, which is drier here than most people expect and covers the Esala Perahera. Kandy sits between Sri Lanka's *two* monsoons and catches some of both, so it has no long dry season — but it also never has a season that is a write-off. See best time to visit Kandy.
Reserved seats open 30 days ahead and sell out within hours from December to March. Unreserved 2nd/3rd class is sold on the day and always available — you will stand, which is where the open doorways and the famous photographs are. Sit on the right-hand side going south. Note there is no Nuwara Eliya station; the stop is Nanu Oya, 10 km away. See our Kandy to Ella train guide.
July or August — but the dates move every year with the lunar calendar, so any guide naming a fixed week is guessing. It runs ten nights and ends on the Nikini poya. Book accommodation on the route six to twelve months ahead. Details in our Esala Perahera guide.
Sigiriya and Dambulla (2.5 hrs each way) is the best of them. Kitulgala rafting is 2 hrs, the Knuckles range and Pekoe Trail stages are day hikes from here. Ella, Galle and Yala are *too far* — 4-6 hours each way. See day trips from Kandy.
Two nights. One full day for the town — Bahirawakanda, Peradeniya gardens, the lake and the evening puja — and a second for a hike, a village day or the cultural triangle. Our Kandy 2-day itinerary lays it out hour by hour.
The centre and the lake circuit are walkable. For anything up a hill or out of town, take a tuk-tuk — roughly LKR 100-150/km on the meter, and ride-hailing apps price it automatically with no negotiation. See getting around Kandy.