Caving Tour In Sri Lanka

Speleology is a recreational activity of exploring caves. It is a scientific study of caves, how they made-up, structure, physical features, history and its life form. Sri Lanka has a great history with caves. This is a once in a life time experience which involves mapping, photographing, surveying and exploring of hidden caves in the island as the word ‘Speleology’ describes. The most famous being Batadomba Cave at Balangoda, attributed to the “Balangoda man” a prehistoric man whose skeletal remains were uncovered inside this cave. At present, some of these mysterious cave have been converted into Buddhist Temples or hermitages in Sri Lanka. Eventhough this caving is relatively new to Sri Lanka, the island has many caves to be explored some even date back to approximately 500 million years. Take an opportunity to be a part of this unusual experience of finding prehistoric features on a holiday in Ceylon!

At a glance

Trip length

Depends on your preferences and duration of stay. Can be combined with a general tour itinerary.

Price

Contact us for details

When to go

Any time of the year

Transfers

Airport – Hotel – Tour attractions – Airport

Picture your self

Discovering most fascinating unknown depths

Spotting wildlife in Udawalawe National Park

Canoeing at Samanala Wewa enjoying breathtaking views of natural beauty

Not to miss in this tour

PrehistoricExperience Prehistoric Features Of Sri Lanka

CaveVisit To Batatotalena Cave, Once A Rested Place Of Lord Buddha And Where Buddhist Priests Still Calls It Home

CaveExplore Waulpane Cave For A Thrilling And Mysterious Experience

WaterfallDiscover A Captive Place Of Beautiful Sita, Ravana Ekka Waterfall And Cave Behind It

Batatotalena_Cave in Sri Lanka
Batatotalena Cave

Located 85km from Colombo at Sudagala, about 5 km away from Kuruwita, has been used as a dwelling place and it dates back over 25,000 years. This has been used as a dwelling place during many historical eras as per the archeological findings while Skeletal remains, ancient cave drawings and painting, a Buddhist shrine room and a Devalaya has been excavated here. Apart from that, Buddhist literature states Batatotalena as a sacred place where Lord Buddha rested on his way back from Sri Pada (Adam’s Peak).

Walk around 400m and reach the base where climb starts. The cave is heigh in 50 feet. To add more worth to your cave expedition, head to explore the underground cave which is located about 30m away from the main site. It is partly submerged in a stream and to see the real place, you will have to swim 😉

Belilena Cave
Belilena Cave

Located in picturesque area of Kitulgala, Belilena cave is one of the largest caves in Sri Lanka. Evidence shows that this site had a prehistoric human presence as early as 32,000 years ago and some of the unearthed several fossils probably occupied by the Balangoda man has been found here. You may encounter colorful butterflies and hundreds of bats residence in this cave’s cool interior.

Batadombalena Cave
Batadombalena Cave

A must visit cave in Sri Lanka! Batadombalena Cave is situated in close proximity to Kuruwita, which is about 90 kilometers away from Colombo. This has been the home of the prehistoric ‘Balangoda Man’ or Homo sapiens balangodensis, as the remains revealed. Further, various land and fresh water shells which date back over 28000 BC and stone tools that are interpreted as arrow and carefully shaped for hunting has also been uncovered here. You can find this archeological treasure trove behind a gently cascading waterfall, and it creates mesmerizing scene with the soft breeze of the wind.

Waulpane Cave
Waulpane Cave

Waulpane cave is also named as the ‘Cave of Bats’, as hundreds of thousands of bats call it as their home! Located in the
astern foothills of the Sinharaja range and renowned for its beautiful stalactites and stalagmites which are approximately 500 million years old. You may discover a prehistoric world with ancient fossils in the cavern walls. This cave is one of the only limestone caves of Sri Lanka and it has a beautiful internal waterfall which provide habitats to water monitors, amphibians and fish species too.

Mahalenama Cave
Mahalenama Cave

Located between Kumana and Lahugala-Kithulana, Mahalenama Cave is a very different cave than others. It was inhibited by “Nittaewo” the strange lost race in Sri Lanka. There are some controversies as to the identity of this folk but most of them identify as ape-man who is nearly one meter in height, hairy bodied, short, and dagger claws with great length and strength.

Pannila Calcarious Cave
Pannila Calcarious Cave

This cave is a home to a wide variety of fishes, butterflies, birds, reptiles and bats. You will feel you step into an underground zoo. The Cave has two main caves situated near an enchanting waterfall. The prehistory of this caves are estimated to be around 500 million years old and has some smaller caves as well containing ancient stalagmites and stalactites.

Andirilena cave
Andirilena cave

You can visit Andirilena Cave while you are in the southern coast. It is about 4km form Udugama in Galle District. The space of inside is huge even though the entrance is very small. There are two tunnels dividing the main cave and those funnels guide to few more caves. After 500m these two tunnels joining back together

Ravana Ella Cave
Ravana Ella Cave

Located about 2km away from famous city Ella. Quite a small cave comparing to other caves in Sri Lanka. History says that this cave is used by King Ravana to hide the Princess Sita same as the Sthripura cave. And it is believed that this cave is connected with cities / dairy farms & airports by Kind Ravana. The man-made tunnels proves that this cave had been used to transport through the hills and as a secret passage.

Bogoda Cave in Sri Lanka
Bogoda Cave

The history says that Bogoda Cave has been used by a Sri Lankan king called Walagamba as one of his hide outs from South Indian forces. King Walagamba had many invading from South Indian Forces during the ancient times, so he used this cave as a network to other caves through tunnels. He was able to move to other hideouts such as the Narangala mountain cave, Dowa rock temple at Bandarawela and Rawana Ella cave in Ella. But as the time passes the tunnels have been covered by dense vegetation and earth over the years.

Belilena Cave in Sri Lanka
Pahiyangala Cave

Located about 40km away from Colombo in a village called Yatagampitiya, Pahiyangala Cave is the largest cave in Sri Lanka. This is also known as Fa-Hien Lena and one of the largest natural rock formations in all of Asia. The prehistoric remains of this cave go back to 37 000 years while those were one of the region’s oldest prehistoric human settlements

Sthripura Cave
Sthripura Cave

Located in a village called Kiriwanagama which is 16km away from Welimada. According to the Great Ramayanaya, legend, it is believed that this cave had been used by Kind Ravana to hide princess Sita who was the princess of Prince Rama of India. Kind Ravana was abducted Pricess Sita after defeating Price Rama and the legend says that he kept her in this cave.

Speak to Team Blue Lanka to get a carefully curated package including these treasury caves or add any of these impressive caves to your itinerary on hand!

Trail on the ground

FAQ

Q. Is it possible to visit Belilena Caves by bicycles?
A. Yes, it is possible.

Q. How many steps are there in Dambulla Caves Temple?
A. There are 364 steps.

Q. Can we customize an itinerary including some interesting caves?
A. Yes, our travel consultants are always ready to customize a wonderful caving tour itinerary for you.

Q. Will you provide a tour guide for the tours?
A. Yes, of course you will be accompanying by one of our best chauffeur guides throughout the tours.

Real people, real views

How they experienced it

Whenz wrote a review Feb 2019

Fabulous Sri Lankan Tour

We were a couple who booked a 7 day tour with Blue Lanka and right from the outset were impressed with the level of communication and professionalism. Unlike some groups where you can feel pressured, Blue Lanka patiently and
informatively designed a tour to suit our needs and budget. Deminda and then Natasha communicated very well with us ensuring everything was ok, including phone check ins along the way during the tour. The sights we saw and activities were well chosen and hotels were excellent. What made the tour for us personally was our fantastic driver/guide Kosala. His level of professionalism and care was second to none. Right from our evening pick up from the airport to when he returned us to leave Sri Lanka Kosala gave us service above and beyond expectations. Kosala speaks excellent English and had an amazing knowledge about beautiful Sri Lanka. He was attentive to our every need and made excellent suggestions when necessary to ensure we could fit all the activities into a given time – we so appreciated his initiative and flexibility. Driving in Sri Lanka is an experience in itself, with Kosala we felt in absolutely safe hands as he navigated roads that we would never have managed! We thoroughly enjoyed having open conversations not only about the sights but just life in general and our families. A humble caring gentlemen we witnessed his care beyond us, there was one incident havingfound a young boy running on the road and he stopped to ensure there were some adults to take care of him. Kosala gave us hints at our accommodation spots and helped us navigate through the spicy Sri Lankan food. We really can’t speak highly enough of his care and would recommend him to anyone wanting the best tour. Overall we can only suggest anybody wanting to see Sri Lanka will not be disappointed using Blue Lanka tours ( and of course Kosala as guide /driver) Thank you to all the Blue Lanka team for making our holiday a wonderful memorable experience.

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