Join expert wildlife photographer Sean Weekly on this dedicated photography safari to help you capture images of Sri Lanka’s beautiful leopards and intriguing sloth bears.
With a single wildlife rich base, this tour follows a popular format designed to maximise photography opportunities in a special, yet seldom visited corner of Sri Lanka.
Over the course of our safari, we will be seeking out some of Sri Lanka’s most iconic wildlife. With many national parks in Sri Lanka becoming busy, we are delighted to be based at Kumana National Park for this tour. This remote park in the corner of south-eastern Sri Lanka, is home to a large population of habituated leopards and sloth bears, as well as numerous Asian elephants and other wildlife, yet receives only a handful of visitors each day.
With superb opportunities to photograph exciting mammals and some spectacular birdlife, Kumana is the perfect base for a dedicated photography tour. Under Sean Weekly’s expert guidance, we will make the most of the gorgeous dry season light and sightings that we come across.
The trip operates in September when the remaining water concentrates the wildlife activity, and we hope to photograph leopards, sloth bears, golden jackals, spotted deer and elephants against some beautiful backdrops.
Read more about Sean's previous visit to Kumana for leopard photography in our blog.
Typical Itinerary
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Day 1:
Depart UK
Depart the UK on an overnight flight from London to Colombo via Dubai.
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Day 2:
Arrive in Colombo and transfer to hotel
On arrival in Sri Lanka, we are met at the airport and transferred the 45-minute drive to our first night's accommodation. Here we have the evening to recover from our journey, before gathering together for a welcome dinner.
Accommodation: Jetwing Kaduruketha, 1-night
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Day 3:
Transfer to Jetwing Surf
Today we begin with a short bird walk in the lush grounds of Jetwing Kaduruketha, which will be a perfect introduction to the beautiful avian fauna of Sri Lanka, and a great opportunity to practice some photography techniques.
We then depart for the two- and half-hour drive to Jetwing Surf in Arugam Bay, our home for the next six nights. The afternoon is at leisure to relax and settle in to our base.
Accommodation: Jetwing Surf, 6-nights
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Days 4-8
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Kumana National Park
We have five full days to explore picturesque Kumana National Park, which is contiguous with the more famous Yala National Park, but receives only a handful of visitors each day. We split up our days, so that we have time to rest and enjoy the setting of our accommodation, whilst also maximising wildlife photography on a mixture of morning and afternoon safaris. On one day, we plan to spend a full day in the park to maximise our opportunities. On this day we stop for lunch at a delightful campsite by the river where we can enjoy some cool drinks, a rest, some macro photography and maybe even a dip in the refreshing river if we wish.
Of particular interest to us is the high leopard density in the park, which in the absence of any larger predators, has resulted in very reliable leopard sightings here. At this time of year, the remaining waterholes attract a hub of wildlife activity, including the presence of leopards. During our time in the park, we hope to enjoy a number of leopard sightings amongst different settings, this may include leopards relaxed in the trees under the dappled canopy or taking their first lap of water from a mirror still pool.
Another highlight of the park is the population of sloth bear. These highly specialised bears that feed almost exclusively on termites can be challenging yet rewarding subjects to photograph. Here, they often visit waterholes late in the afternoon, providing us with realistic opportunities to capture a selection of images of this fascinating and elusive species. Our safaris are focussed on putting you in the best positions for photography of everything we come across, taking into account the light and background as best we can. As we explore the park, we can enjoy photography with other species from Asian elephants and endemic toque macaques to peacocks and mugger crocodiles. Sean is on hand throughout to offer guidance wherever necessary, helping you maximise all the opportunities.
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Day 9:
Safari in Block Five of Yala National Park
After a fabulous week enjoying the wilds of Kumana National Park, we must say goodbye to Sri Lanka's eastern coast and early this morning we drive to another wildlife hotspot in the seldom visited Block 5 of Yala National Park.
Our drive will take around 3 hours to reach the park entrance, where we then switch to jeeps and begin exploring with a packed lunch, giving us flexibility. This is a much quieter section of Yala National Park, offering a rewarding wildlife photography experience. Block five is another reliable area to encounter the elusive sloth bear, which will be one of our key targets. There will also be plenty of other wildlife highlights, from spotted deer and grey langurs to colourful birdlife. After our safari we transfer to our lodge in the village of Kataragama, near Tissamaharama.
Accommodation: Kithala Resort, 2-nights
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Day 10:
Morning visit to Thissa wetlands & Afternoon safari in Block Five
This morning, we can enjoy a different wildlife experience on a visit to the Tissamaharama wetlands, close to our accommodation. The ancient Tissa Wewa reservoir, is a haven for wetland birdlife with great opportunities to photograph spot-billed pelican, pheasant-tailed jacana, grey-headed fish eagle, and many others. We will also photograph the huge colony of Indian flying fox that roost nearby, along with the inquisitive endemic Toque macaques.
After lunch, we take an afternoon safari into Yala's Block Five sector to explore the mosaic of woodland, scrub, and grassland habitats for further wildlife photography opportunities, hopefully with sloth bear, leopard and the rare stripe-necked mongoose.
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Day 11:
Transfer to Colombo
This morning, we have some time at leisure, before we transfer approximately four hours to Colombo and our hotel for the night.
In the evening, we plan to make a short visit to a nearby wetland on the edge of Colombo city. Despite the urban setting, this area attracts a wide range of bird species, many of which are approachable and offer photographic opportunities. Species such as oriental darter and numerous herons, egrets and storks may be seen, in addition to several species of kingfishers.
We then return to the hotel for our final dinner together.
Accommodation: Jetwing Colombo Seven, 1-night
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Day 12:
Fly to the UK via Dubai
