The island of Sri Lanka has earned itself a strong reputation as a tourism destination because of the many drastically differing experiences the island has to offer. These range from beautiful tropical beaches, to dense rainforests, and even icy cold hill-tops. The cold hill-country of Sri Lanka is one of her most popular attractions and there’s many a hotel in Nuwara Eliya to choose from such as the Jetwing St. Andrew’s.
Probably the single best experience the hill-country has to offer is Horton Plains, which is a spectacular National Park that contains the legendary ‘World’s End’. The original name of this park was Maha Eliya Thenna which translates to ‘great open plain’. During the time of British rule, the plains were named after the governor of Ceylon at the time.
The plains are located more than two thousand metres above sea level, making them one of the highest landscapes in the country. Unlike most national parks in Sri Lanka, Horton Plains allows visitors to explore the park on foot along designated tracks.
If visitors would like to spend a night or two within the park there are a few lodges to choose from as well as a camping site for those who are more adventurous.
The best thing to do in Horton Plains is taking the famous hiking trail which will take you through mini world’s end, Baker’s Falls, and the larger world’s end.
Given that it is a circular trail you can start it from either direction. Most opt to take the clockwise path, which will first take you to mini-world’s end, which serves as a small taster for the magnificent views to come. Shortly afterwards you will arrive at World’s End itself, which has a straight drop of four-thousand feet, and finally Baker’s Falls.
If you ever find yourself in Sri Lanka, a visit to Horton Plains should definitely be something for you to consider.
Roland Lefevre is a travel writer who specializes in creating features on leisure as well as business travel destinations across the globe. Google+