This is a guide to a motorbike/scooter trip I did in the southern part of central Sri Lanka last year. I’ve been travelling and digital nomadding for the last 2 years at the time of writing, and this trip might be the best single trip I’ve done in those whole two years.
It’s a really good idea for anyone looking to do a scooter/motorbike trip in Sri Lanka. Particularly for anyone who’s planning to be in the Ella area or Nuwara Eliya area. This route takes in all of the best places in the south part of central Sri Lanka. These are some of the biggest destinations in Sri Lanka. Just check out the places you go…
- Ella
- Lipton’s Seat
- World’s End and Horton Plains National Park
- Nuwara Eliya
- Adam’s Peak
You could also include the railway journey from Nuwara Eliya to Ella as part of the trip. That’s the most scenic part of the main, famous railway journey in Sri Lanka. You’d need to make arrangements for your bike, but it’s on the route.
There’s also a bunch of waterfalls on the way that you could visit…
- Diyaluma Falls
- Pahanthudawa Falls
- Bambarakanda Falls
- Lover’s Leap Waterfall
Furthermore, you can have chill time in Ella or Nuwara Eliya to hang out and visit the many sites these places have if you want as well.
The good thing about this route, though, is the views you get and the roads you drive on en route…
The Landscape is Amazing on the Drive
The route basically takes you along the front of the higher altitude mountainish area that forms central Sri Lanka. Between Ella and Adam’s Peak there’s basically a long raised area of land. To the north is the elevated central part of Sri Lanka, which is at the same height. Directly to the south the mountains suddenly drop off something like 1,000 metres into the flat, lower part of Sri Lanka. The land at the bottom of where it drops off is close to sea level.
The drop off is very steep and dramatic at this point and you focus a lot of your drive on this raised area of land, near the drop off. You also come off this part as well and go to other places with a different but equally interesting landscape. There are tea plantations and landscapes that remind me of Europe, for example, which you don’t totally expect.
I’ve done other scooter loops in the world, and there always seems to be a theme. On the Thakek Loop, you see enough caves to last you a lifetime. On the Pakse Loop, you see enough waterfalls to last you a lifetime. On the Ella to Adam’s Peak Loop Thing, you see enough amazing landscapes views to last you a lifetime.
You Need Clear Weather
The one prerequisite with this trip is that you have to go at a time when the views are clear. This is a trip for clear weather when you get the views.
I actually had mixed weather, and so I had good views sometimes and bad views other times. You’ll see in the photos that I had bad views at Lipton’s Seat and at the top of Adam’s Peak. That was a shame, but overall, it was a good trip. I had good views at World’s End and everywhere else.
I’ve put some stock photos in of those places, so you know what to expect.
Safety
I’ll just point out that you should be careful about safety if you do this trip. You really need to be an experienced scooter/motorbike driver to do it. The roads in Sri Lanka are dangerous. They’re less scooter and motorbike friendly than South East Asia, for example. You should only do this trip if you’re independently certain that you will be safe.
The Route is Adaptable
The reason this is called a motorbike/scooter loop thing is because it’s not actually a circular loop. It’s probably best called a scooter zone. Or a figure of 8. I kind of did a figure of 8.
You can actually plan your own route for this trip if you want.
I think climbing Adam’s Peak is kind of a must do if you’re going to travel around this area because it has probably the best views you can get. So this means you have to do the whole trip across from Ella to Adam’s Peak. You can, however, pick out the places you want to visit, and devise your own route if you want.
I’ve already listed the main sites above, and if you don’t want to follow the itineraries I give, just make your own route.
You Could Start in Nuwara Eliya
An alternative approach to the whole situation is to start from Nuwara Eliya and then finish in Nuwara Eliya. The advantage with this is that you’d be able to finish the trip and then jump on the train for the famous Sri Lankan train journey to Ella.
Suggested Routes Map
I’ve made a map below that shows the roads I drove on and which I know are good favourable roads for a scooter. They should have good views and be nice to drive on. You can aim to use these roads, and you can also look for other quiet roads with nice views yourself.
I’ve also marked on points of interest on the map.
CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MY MAP
I hope that I’ve remembered the right roads here. I’m not absolutely 100%. If it looks wrong at any point, you can try another way.
If you don’t want to make your own route, read on and I’ll give you what I think is the best route.
My Suggested Ella to Adam’s Peak Bike Trip Routes
I actually have 3 suggested routes. One main one, and then a longer one and a shorter one.
When I did this myself, I actually first did the shorter, last route. Then I went back later along some of the same route first route to visit World’s End.
I’ve used both experiences to devise the routes here. It’s really a simple combination, and most is on the same roads.
The Best Ella to Adam’s Peak Scooter Route
I think this is probably the best route. You move relatively quickly, but you go to all the good places.
Day 1 – Ella to Ohiya via Lipton’s Seat
You leave Ella and stop off at Lipton’s seat for a visit. The route I took for this first leg to Lipton’s Seat wasn’t actually that nice (if you look at the map). You might do well to look for a quieter alternative. Going south from Ella first off might be good. Lipton’s seat is nice, and while I was there, I saw two Tamil devotional processions where people were hanging themselves from hooks. It’s one of the most amazing things I’ve seen, and I wasn’t expecting it at all.
Then you drive on to the village of Ohiya. There isn’t much to do in Ohiya, but it’s the base for visiting World’s End and Horton Plains. You can arrange a ride up to the World’s End trek through your hotel on the evening before. I wasn’t able to go any further than the entrance on my scooter, so a tuk tuk was easiest. I think this is the normal thing.
Then you need to be ready to get up early the next morning for a sunrise trek.
The total drive you do isn’t much on the first day, so there’s no real need to leave early or rush. Ohiya is also a quiet place, so take your time and don’t get there early.
Day 2 – Hike to World’s End and then go to Adam’s Peak
So on the morning of the second day, you do your early hike to World’s End. Plus you also hike over Horton Plains National Park on the way back from World’s End. It’s an easy trek, and the only hard thing is trying to wake up.
Have a nap at your hotel after if you need because the drive isn’t too long.
My photos of World’s End aren’t that great. All Trails have some good photos, plus photos from the rest of the walk, including Baker’s Falls. Have a look here.
You have the rest of the day then to drive to Dalhousie, which is the village you stay in before you climb Adam’s Peak. I recommend driving via Nuwara Eliya and taking the time to have a look at whatever sites you want. Again, Dalhousie is a fairly quiet, uneventful place, so there’s no point getting there early. The wild pigs that wonder around the village are quite cool, but I think it’s normally pretty quiet.
Note that when I did this trip, there was no way to drive a scooter directly through Horton Plains to go straight from Ohiya to Nuwara Eliya. That would be a nice route for the second day.
You Can Stop Off in Nuwara Eliya
There’s a bunch of stuff in Nuwara Eliya, like Moon Plains and Lover’s Leap Waterfall. There are also tea plantations in the area. These are always really spectacular, and it’s a good idea to drive around them or go and visit.
I also drive on the road from Nuwara Eliya to the north entrance of Horton Plains National Park, though Ambewela. This was interesting because the landscape feels totally different. There’s a big dairy farm there as well, which you don’t expect. You can visit the dairy farm if you want.
Get Ready Climb Adam’s Peak Early in the Morning
You need to get up early in the morning to climb Adam’s Peak.
I didn’t take a guide. I don’t know if you need to book ahead if you do decide to take one. I also didn’t wake up too early because it was off season and there was no big procession of pilgrims and people going up. It only took me a couple of hours to get to the top.
Day 3 – Climb Adam’s Peak and Then Visit Nuwara Eliya
I won’t go into detail about climbing Adam’s Peak. Partly because there’s no need, and partly because I climbed it at a quiet time of year and when there was rain. No one spoke to me, and I couldn’t see anything. It was also cold.
I remember there was a friendly dog at the top. The temple is also nice, and the climb is good exercise. I only took a couple of hours to get to the top.
You should have a good time, and you should see some of the best views in Sri Lanka…
Have a look at this guide to Adam’s Peak with good photos here.
After you climb Adam’s Peak, you might be tired. You can go and have a sleep at your hotel if you want. Some people leave very early for the climb, and you should definitely have a break if that’s you. You can take a whole day if you need.
In the afternoon, you then drive back to Nuwara Eliya. You have the afternoon again to visit Nuwara Eliya and the sites around the town. While I was there, there was a big music concert on, and it’s a good idea to look out for this kind of thing.
Day 5 – Nuwara Eliya Back to Ella
On the final day, you just need to get back to Ella. The drive should only be a few hours, so I suggest looking up some places to visit, and making some stops en route.
As I said at the start, there are various waterfalls to the south of the route:
- Diyaluma Falls
- Pahanthudawa Falls
- Bambarakanda Falls
You could possibly visit these, otherwise find somewhere else.
Once you get back, there’s also all the places to visit in Ella and close by. That’s stuff like Nine Arches Bridge, Little Adam’s Peak and Ella Rock. I’d suggest a day at least for visiting Ella. I imagine most people spend 2-3 days in Ella.
The Longer Route
My next suggestion is to do a five day version of the route.
The route is essentially the same, but you don’t go from Ohiya (World’s End) to Dalhousie (Adam’s Peak) on the second day. Instead, you stop in Nuwara Eliya on the second night. Then you head to Dalhousie on the third day.
This route is very similar, but it just gives you more time to visit Nuwara Eliya and the surrounding area. You’ll just have more time for getting sidetracked and visiting things.
The Fast Route
There is also a three day alternative, where you miss out World’s End and go all the way to Adam’s peak on the first night. This is actually what I did the first time I went on this trip.
The thing is that if you do go World’s End and Adam’s Peak and travel the whole Southern Central Sri Lanka area, you will see tonnes of good views. Like if you’re going to be spending a long time in Ella, for example. The whole trip might be actually a bit overkill on the landscape views. There’s an article about whether World’s End is worth it or not here.
This version is good one for people who think they might have had enough of landscape views after a while.
I think if you’re also planning on spending time in Ella and also doing the famous railway journey, missing out World’s End would be fine. All of the activities in South Central Sri Lanka are about big views, and you don’t want to end up doing too much.
You Have a Lng First day
I’d say the main downside with this is that you have a long first day. You’ll probably need to leave early and give yourself plenty of time. You also need to keep making sure you’re generally making progress.
Here’s the Itinerary…
Day 1 – Ella to Dalhousie (Adam’s Peak) via Lipton’s Seat
You need to leave earlyish, but you still have time to visit Lipton’s Seat.
Day 2 – Climb Adam’s Peak and Then Drive to Nuwara Eliya
Visit Nuwara Eliya I the afternoon and the next morning.
Day 3 – Nuwara Eliya to Ella
You can visit Nuwara Eliya more in the morning and then head back to Ella. What might be nice is to head south on the road towards Horton Plains to check out the landscape there. Unless the rules have changed, you won’t be able to drive through Horton Plains, so be prepared to double back on yourself.
There are the waterfalls to the south of the mountain range as well.
