Sigiriya is a 200-metre slab of rock rising out of flat jungle, with the ruins of King Kashyapa’s fifth-century palace on top. You climb past the old water gardens, a mirror wall polished so long ago it still holds graffiti from travellers in the 8th century, and between two giant stone lion paws for the last stretch.
Nearby Dambulla has five cave temples carved into a hillside, filled with painted ceilings and more than 150 Buddha statues. Go at opening time: by mid-morning the rock holds the heat like an oven.
Don't miss
- Climb Sigiriya at opening time, before the sun and the crowds
- The painted cave ceilings at Dambulla
- Homestay breakfasts: hoppers, dhal and sambol