Nothing quite says "bucket list" like a cruise to Africa.
29.07.2024 - 14:17 / insider.com
Imagine a tropical island with unspoiled beaches. Towering palm trees dot the shore, and ornate Hindu and Buddhist temples beckon you inward.
You can embark on a jeep safari to spot big game and, on the same day, lay down a towel on white-sand beaches and bask in the sun.
This is Sri Lanka, a tiny island nation alone in the Indian Ocean that looks like a tear falling from continental India. But although Sri Lanka is called India's teardrop, I think it's really its gem.
The country is emerging out of a dark past with political turmoil and economic crises, and its tourism industry is just taking off. In December, Sri Lanka recorded more than a million tourist arrivals — the first time over a million arrivals have been recorded there in four years.
In my seven years of traveling to 60 countries — including most countries in Southeast Asia — I have rarely been anywhere as wild and diverse as Sri Lanka. Here, you can see beaches, jungles, and mountains in a small space.
Like Bali, Sri Lanka is a tropical island with rainforests, beaches, thieving monkeys, sacred Hindu and Buddhist temples, vibrant surfing communities, and roads with more motorcycles than cars.
But above all, it hasn't been harmed by overtourism the way Bali has.
One of the main advantages of Sri Lanka is its size.
Although the country is smaller than New York state, it packs a diversity of environments, cultures, and activities into one place.
Within this small strip of land, there are trendy surfing villages that host famed competitions, sacred mountain towns with glittering golden temples, historic tea plantations, ancient ruins of forgotten empires, safari camps, and tropical beaches with calm waters and cocktail bars.
Because of its size, Sri Lanka is also relatively easy to get around. You can ride colonial-era trains through the heart of the country or rent a motorbike and drive yourself around.
The local buses are also useful, but they can get a bit packed with people and are not the most comfortable, in my experience. However, a scenic, five-hour bus journey will only cost you between $3 and $6, and it's quite an adventure.
In my opinion, the best thing about Sri Lanka is its incredibly diverse ecosystems, which offer great opportunities for wildlife watching.
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Its national parks are teeming with wildlife, and its safaris are similar to those available in sub-Saharan Africa but at a fraction of the price.
On these safaris, you can climb into a jeep at sunrise and race over bumpy dirt roads through dry grasslands to spot elephants, leopards, water buffalo, sloth bears, crocodiles, and rare birds.
If you're more of an ocean person, you can swim with black-tip reef sharks, snorkel with dolphins, and go whale watching
Nothing quite says "bucket list" like a cruise to Africa.
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