Bandarawela
Uva Province
About Bandarawela
Bandarawela built its reputation on its thermometer: at 1,230 metres, the town claims one of the most equable climates anywhere - never hot, never cold, dry when Nuwara Eliya drips - which made it the sanatorium and retirement address of the planting Raj and keeps it the hill country's most liveable base today. The icon is the Bandarawela Hotel, the 1893 tea planters' club preserved in amber - rattan chairs, brass bells, billiard room - where afternoon tea is a rite; around it, the busy bazaar town serves a countryside of vegetable terraces, strawberry farms, and pine ridges laced with walking lanes. Its position is the strategist's choice: Ella's circus fifteen minutes one way, Haputale's cliff-edge views twenty the other, Dowa's rock temple, Porawagala's viewpoints, and the Lipton country all within a short drive - hill country's greatest hits without hill country's crowds or chill.
Top Activities
- ✓Afternoon tea at the 1893 planters' hotel
- ✓Countryside lane walks
- ✓Strawberry and vegetable farm visits
- ✓Day trips to Ella, Haputale and Dowa
- ✓The bazaar town's market mornings
Nearby Attractions
Travel Tips
Base here to day-trip Ella without paying Ella prices.
The old hotel's tea and billiards are the colonial time capsule.
Market mornings (Sundays especially) show the Uva larder in full.
Quick Info
Best Time
Year-round; January to April clearest
Weather
Famously mild and dry for the hills; light layers year-round.
Estimated Daily Budget
6.8292°N, 80.9911°E
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