Nuwara Eliya

Lake Gregory, Single Tree Hill and a night on Sri Pada

Three days cover Nuwara Eliya and its peaks. Spend the first in town with a tea factory tour, Single Tree Hill and Lake Gregory, the second at Horton Plains for the early walk to World's End, and the third travelling to Nallathanniya for the night climb up Sri Pada.

Day one, morning. Walk from the post office through Victoria Park, then visit a tea factory in the estates outside town for a tour and tasting. Afternoon. Climb Single Tree Hill through the tea bushes for the view over Nuwara Eliya, then descend to Lake Gregory for a stroll or boat ride. Evening. Have a drink at the Grand Hotel or another colonial-era hotel.

Day two. Leave very early for Horton Plains National Park, where a loop walk crosses grassland and cloud forest to World's End, a sheer drop that is often hidden in mist by mid-morning. Back in town, see Lover's Leap waterfall or the Hakgala gardens.

Day three and night. Travel to Hatton and on to Nallathanniya. Sleep a few hours, then start climbing to Sri Pada around two in the morning to reach the summit for sunrise. The descent is hard on the knees; many people rest in Hatton afterwards.

The train from Nanu Oya runs on to Ella or back towards Kandy.

Strawberry stalls, hill-country vegetables and estate tea

The cool climate turns Nuwara Eliya into the island's vegetable garden. Leeks, carrots, cabbages and potatoes are grown on the surrounding slopes and sold in heaps at the town market. They turn up in local rice and curry, the standard Sri Lankan meal, and in hearty soups well suited to cold evenings.

Strawberries are the other local crop. Farms around Lake Gregory serve strawberry pancakes, desserts and drinks made from fruit picked on site.

The town has a large Tamil community, many of them tea-estate families, so South Indian vegetarian food is easy to find: dosa, idli and thali meals at pure-vegetarian places in the town centre. Budget restaurants in the same area serve fried rice, noodles and short eats.

Tea is the main event, though. Estate factories offer tastings of the high-grown teas produced at this altitude, light and bright in the cup. Colonial-era hotels serve afternoon tea with sandwiches and scones, a tradition kept up mostly for visitors but popular with Sri Lankan families on holiday too.

The pilgrim path from Nallathanniya and the April season

Climb Sri Pada between the Unduvap poya in December and Vesak in May, when the steps are lit and tea stalls stay open all night. Start from Nallathanniya after midnight to reach the 2,243-metre summit by dawn. In Nuwara Eliya, April brings New Year horse racing, while February and March are quieter.

Sri Pada, or Adam's Peak, rises to 2,243 metres in Nuwara Eliya District, about 32 km southwest of Hatton. A rock hollow at the summit is revered by Buddhists as the footprint of the Buddha, by Hindus as that of Shiva and by many Muslims and Christians as Adam's. The Sri Pada pilgrimage season runs from the Unduvap poya in December to Vesak in May, when the steps are lit and tea stalls stay open through the night.

The Hatton route from Nallathanniya is the shortest and steepest of the six trails. Several thousand steps lead to the top, and the climb takes several hours. Most people start after midnight to reach the summit before dawn. April is peak pilgrimage time, while the off-season path is unlit and lonely.

In Nuwara Eliya itself, April is the festive high point. Sinhala and Tamil New Year in mid-April brings horse racing at the old racecourse, motor races, flower shows and fairs, and the town fills with visitors from Colombo. If you prefer quiet, come in February or March: still dry, and less crowded.

After the pilgrimage season closes at Vesak in May, the southwest monsoon brings rain and mist to the hills until about September. For the lowland side of the trip, Colombo is a full day's travel away.