Day Trip to Nuwara Eliya with Kingfisher Tours

Loved the tour. Was very exciting and very good. Ferose was our guide. Excellent guide. Very friendly. Did everything we asked. Would totally recommend Kingfishers tours. Would definitely go again for an unforgettable tour.

We had less than 48 hours in Colombo and wanted to find a tour that would pack in some sightseeing of the mountainous region of Sri Lanka, including some tea plantations. Kingfisher was very responsive in the booking process, and we were somewhat able to get a customized tour (we were not interested in the gem mining museum). It was nice to have a completely private tour, just us and our driver. It's less of a reflection on our driver and more on Sri Lanka in general, but driving can be a harrowing experience compared to being in the US. There is a lot of horn honking, jutting in and out of traffic, not for the faint of heart (or those who get carsick easily), but it was very nice to get pickup and drop-off right at our hotel. Our first stop was an herb and spice garden. There was a lot of pressure to buy these ayuredic products, which I didn't appreciate, even though we did end up buying. We felt we might offend if we didn't buy anything. I would most certainly describe the first stop as a tourist trap. We then moved on the Glenloch Tea Factory where we saw the factory, learned how to pick tea leaves, and sampled some teas. Our host there was coughing a lot (unnerving during a pandemic when you need a negative test to return home), and she seemed very agitated when we said we did not want to buy any teas. We asked our driver if we could visit Damro, as we had passed through their property and it looked much nicer. He was kind enough to drop us off there, and we enjoyed that property much more. We then drove through Nuwara Eliya and passed by several sites, including Gregory Lake, Victoria Park, and the post office. We could have gotten out of the car and visited, but we were limited on time. We did not see the Strawberry Farm because it was not the right season. Our driver offered to take us to a restaurant near Ramboda Falls for lunch. The view from the restaurant is very nice, but we were only offered a buffet, and the food was not fresh or very good. There were a lot of flies buzzing around as well. It was very affordable though. Just $15 USD for two of us. We did see what we wanted to see: the central region of Sri Lanka with all its beautiful mountains and greenery. But Kingfisher is receiving kickbacks for bringing tourists to these specific sites, and there is a lot of pressure to buy things, which we didn't care for.

I recommend anybody to book their excursions through Kingfisher Tours as I was in touch with the tour operator throughout who was making sure we were having a good experience with our guide. Our driver/guide , Surendra was great and very helpful. He made the trip flexible and comfortable. We saw beautiful sceneries and he did not hesitate in asking us whether we wanted to stop for photos. We went on Day Trip to Nuwara Eliya and Kandy Tour (on separate days) with Kingfisher Tours. The Kandy Tour was a last minute plan but still Kingfisher Tours did not fail us and got the tour started within 1.5 hours. The only downfall was that we missed out on Udawatta Sanctuary and Strawberry Farm because both close around 5pm, which we were not informed about. Overall, l am happy with the experience.