Udawalawe National Park — 4-Hour Private Jeep Safari (Pickup)

Where do I start? I was a little hesitant booking this direct with the company in case they failed to collect us from our hotel. However, from the moment I emailed them I was nothing but impressed. They asked me to WhatsApp them the details of what we wanted. We wanted collecting from our hotel, a 3 hour taxi drive, a sunrise 4 hour safari in private jeep, a trip to the elephant transit orphanage and driven back to our hotel, 3 hours away in the south. The price was agreed and was truly reasonable, 400 US Dollars total for 4 adults. Payment upon collection. We were collected promptly at 3am and taken to the Udawalawe National Park. Our Safari guide introduced himself to us as NAVEE. What he didn’t know about the animals and the park was not worth knowing. He was highly educated and informative. Within 5 minutes of entering the park we saw movement within the bushes. He turned off our engine and we sat patiently. What came out of the greenery was nothing more than incredible. A full grown adult male elephant. He walked straight down the side of our vehicle. The driver was respectful and allowed the elephant to walk off. He then carefully drove slowly past him and stopped again. We could stay as long as we wished watching this fantastic beast slowly meander past us. We proceeded to go around the vast land and NAVEE was outstanding. He found 3 females with a calf, another squirting water over himself, another spraying mud over his body. We had 12 sightings of elephants, all of which were in their natural habitat and we didn’t disturb them. We also saw crocodiles up close, monkeys, mongoose, a toucan, water buffalo, eagles and so many stunning kingfisher birds. NAVEE had the knowledge and experience and tried his best to show us as much as possibie. My husband, 2 children, 15 and 18 and I were mesmerised by what we had seen. We felt so fortunate to have witnessed what we had. NAVEE then drove us to the transit elephant orphanage. This in turn was a very different experience. We didn’t get anywhere near to the elephants and simply observed. It was a magnificent experience seeing them getting fed. You don’t need more than 1 hour there. All in all we could not fault our experience. We were told that there were only 35 vehicles on the safari that day due to low season. There can be up to 450 which I think would spoil the experience. Top tip, (take your own toilet paper for all toilet breaks).

Lovely tour, not crowded. You will see elephants, monkeys, birds and if lucky crocodiles. It's recommended if you are looking for a more peaceful experience rather than variety. Keep your eyes on the bags/wallets though.

Great safari. Arranged the night before a prompt 6am pick up. Communication was good and clear. Navii was a great guide, carefully driving the rutted roads. Saw an amazing amount of elephants, many groups with a baby! Fab experience

Excellent trip! Kosala, my driver was so kind. He gave me travel info, explained so many things about Sri Lanka and pulled over at a few pretty spots so I could rake photos. The conversation was so pleasant. Navee the safari driver was equally kind. He was so knowledgeable about the animals and taught me a lot. He also knew the best spots to find the animals. They were both very safe drivers and friendly. The sights were gorgeous, and I am smiling so much after such a great day. I highly recommend booking here to arrange your transit and tour.

The experience was amazing. We did it with Nawy and he was explaining all the animals and indicating where they were. We love the experience and especially hacing done it with Nawy

It was great fun. We have seen a lot of elephants very nearby. Also crocodiles, birds , mongos, water buffalos , eagles, deers . Our guide was excellent, he explained everything to us and drove us very safely trough the bumpy roads.

The tour operator provided transportation from the cruise ship port, which was about an hour away. We met our guide, Navee, at the gate, where he greeted us with his 4x4 truck—reserved just for us. It was a fantastic experience having a spacious, open-air vehicle all to ourselves, with plenty of room to move around comfortably. Once inside the park, Navee demonstrated an incredible eye for spotting wildlife. He pointed out small animals and birds we would have easily missed on our own. We were also lucky enough to get up close to numerous elephants with calves, as well as monkeys and water buffalo, and we even spotted a few crocodiles. Navee was attentive, knowledgeable, and spoke excellent English, which made the experience even more enjoyable. Thank you for a truly wonderful and memorable day!

I booked this tour with a friend, and it was an awesome experience. We saw so many small and big animals, including of course the elephants. Lakshan joined us on the tour, he is a very experienced volunteer in the park. He taught us a lot about the animals and answered every question. He was able to identify every single species. Our driver, Amila, was also excellent and very nice. He is also very experienced and was able to spot even the smallest animals. The booking process was very easy as well. I would definitely recommend.

Amila picked us up and took us on what was an amazing day. He was an incredible guide and great driver. We were lucky and saw so many elephants maybe even 50. Amila was super respectful to the park and it's animals whilst also always getting a good view for us and not rushing us at all. He was so nice and made us feel very comfortable, good laughs were had!

The safari was very nice! Four hours is totally sufficient. We saw everything we wanted to see but also very lucky. Our driver was great! Always told us something about the animals and saw every animal immediately without getting too close to them!