Waking up to elephants in Sri Lanka that were literally bathing in a river outside of my last-minute-booked hotel room was seriously one of the most exciting travel moments I’ve ever experienced. It was like waking up on Christmas morning thinking you’re going to get a pony, except instead of a pony it’s a couple dozen elephants…and they’re actually there.

This magical elephant bathing place in Sri Lanka is called Pinnawala, and the elephants come from the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. Someone actually sent me a photo of it on Instagram, and after doing my research I decided my best bet for tourist-free photos of ellies would be to go early in the morning, which is where I got the idea to stay at a hotel right next to it.

Well. That was the best idea ever. Not only did I wake up to a river full of elephants without any tourists around, but I realized that staying there was also massively cheaper than doing a day trip to Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage like everyone else does. Plus wifi and breakfast were included!

I planned/discovered this trip all by myself, so if you’re interested this is how I did it!

**NOTE** This trip was NOT sponsored! I paid for it all by myself out of pocket, so if these tips help you and you end up going here or booking a hotel anywhere, please click on the links from my site because then I might get like a dollar or two (lol, WOMP).

[Exchange Rate: 150 Sri Lankan rupees = $1USD = 0.9 Euros]

1. How to Get to Sri Lanka

Yeah so you’re probably going to need to book a flight in order to see the elephants in Sri Lanka. I was already in India so I just took a last minute flight for around $150 (would have been cheaper if I booked in advance but this trip was totally random) on Spice Jet, that I found on Skyscanner.

If you’re NOT already in a country near Sri Lanka, I would advise finding the cheapest roundtrip flight from your home city to the closest country (like Bangkok or India but NOTE: you need to apply for a visa for India in advance). Then from that country, get a cheaper connecting round trip or one way flight to Sri Lanka.

For a full tutorial on how to do this, see my Skyscanner Flexible Option Technique.

The airport that you will fly into is called NEGOMBO which is easy to confuse with the main city of Colombo, but Negombo is actually further North and closer in distance to Pinnawala.

2. How to Get to Pinnawala (Where the Elephants in Sri Lanka Are)

Pinnawala is the town where the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is (obviously), and it’s about 2 hours from Negombo airport. There’s a couple options for getting there depending on what time you get in, and what your budget is.

Since I’m a super smart genius and booked the wrong flight, resulting in me having to take a red-eye in the middle of the night, my options were limited, but that just goes to show you that any flight arrival time is possible.

Also to note, I considered staying the night near the airport since I arrived at 1:30AM, but since I only had one morning to get up early and see the elephants in Sri Lanka, I decided to just tough it out and take the 2 hour drive in the middle of the night…and sneakily talk my way into “checking in super early” to the hotel…

SO the options for transportation to Pinnawala are:

• UBER: (Cost: 4,000 rps +500rps tip, 2 hours) Yes, Uber magically works in some places of Sri Lanka, and thankfully there was one around the airport when I arrived at 1:30AM. If you want to take an Uber, I’d highly recommend calling the driver after you book him to make sure he’s up for the 2 hour drive first! Also, if you have a good driver, keep his number, you might be needing it later. Oh also again, all of the Uber prices are fixed before you ride, which was awesome. (I saved my Uber guys info because he was very nice and reliable: Sumith: +94 718253394)
• TRAIN: (Cost: 150 – 600 rps, 3 hours NO NIGHT TRAINS) I freaking LOVED taking the train in Sri Lanka. So cheap, such great views, the only thing that sucked was that it could get really cramped which additionally sucks if you have luggage. There also aren’t any trains that run late at night. The train from Negombo doesn’t go straight to Pinnawala though. You’ll need to take one train from Negombo to Ragama (hourly), then another one from Ragama to Rambukkana (3 times a day). From Rambukkana train station you’ll need to take a rickshaw to the hotel (100-200 rps).
• Taxi: (Expensive AF) If you can’t find an Uber or you missed the last train, your last resort is to take a taxi. You can probably find one on the street, or if you get in late, you can safely book one from the airport.
• Rickshaw: (Cost: 2500-3000 rps) If you don’t know what a rickshaw is…it’s a little 3 wheeled mini-taxi type thing that will take you pretty much anywhere and will let you bargain the price. If you’re up for driving in a tiny seat with no windows or doors for 2 hours, go for it, and don’t worry about luggage…they always magically find a way to make everything fit!

3. Hotels in Pinnawala with River Views and Elephants for Under $50

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I used my typical Google maps search for hotels technique to locate any hotels that were near Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, or near the river next to it. I was actually shocked that they were so cheap, plus had additional last-minute booking discounts on Booking.com!

I actually wasn’t 100% sure this was the area of the river where the elephants would be bathed, I thought there was probably  a lake or something at the actual orphanage, so now you can probably imagine my surprise when I opened my door in the morning!

I stayed at Hotel Pinnalanda, which only has a couple of rooms, but like I said, since no one ever stays over night, there’s a good chance you’ll get one of the ones that faces the river. I had my own patio area that you share with 3 other rooms, which also has tables for breakfast (which is included), and an awesome people-free view of the river and elephants.

…You’ll also get a great view of how the elephant keepers constantly yell at the elephants and overcharge tourists to take photos or feed them fruit…this is what made my decision to NOT go in the actual orphanage.

The other two hotels are Hotel Elephant Park which was next door and seemed relatively new, and Hotel Elephant Bay, which is a little further down on the river from where the elephants “bathe”.

Booking.com

4. Seeing the Actual Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage

So, I’m of course completely against animals in captivity and the mistreatment of animals like elephants that are used as tourist attractions. That’s why when I first read that there were elephants in Sri Lanka that had been rescued at an orphanage, I was all excited to report back about a positive cause. But, I can’t say that I’d really feel completely right about saying that.

I didn’t like the way the elephants were shuffled to and from the river TWICE every day, most with chains around their ankle and neck, and a keeper shouting at them to keep moving. I thought it was nice that the elephants got free time to hang out in the river rather than being kept in confined areas in the orphanage (although some were chained to one spot), but watching them being forced to lay on their sides while the keepers scrubbed them down was somewhat uncomfortable.

I’m no elephant expert, but I did read that elephants typically keep cool by dumping dirt on their backs to shield the sun, and that when they bathe, they use their trunks and do it standing up. Watching the extremely slow process of an elephant laying down and getting back up just felt stressful, as did watching the keepers scrub their thick, rough skin with brushes.

That, plus the first-hand experience of being badgered for money (then more money) by the keepers, and then watching them herd them back out to the orphanage was enough to make me not want to see what goes on inside. I’m glad if the organization has saved injured or orphaned elephants, but I do wonder why none of them are ever released back into the wild, and why there was a couple babies born in captivity…

When I looked into it, I also found that sites like Born Free Again and Responsible Travel had negative reviews about it too. BUT, keep in mind that there are not many places that you can just see wild, free-roaming, bathing elephants in Sri Lanka or the rest of the world! If your dream is to wake up to elephants in Sri Lanka, this is probably one of the best opportunities you have, just maybe don’t support the whole elephant riding thing…

5. Other Costs and Things in Pinnawala

The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage costs about $27 for a ticket, which includes entrance to the actual orphanage park, plus your ticket to enter the small street that leads to the river…and also to the three hotels I mentioned above.

That being said, if you are already staying at one of the hotels, you do not need to pay for this ticket, UNLESS you want to go inside the orphanage, which again, I did not.

But, there isn’t really that much else to do in Pinnawala other than see the elephants, so it may be an option for you to consider. Other things to do include:

• Shopping: The little street is filled with clothing and souvenirs, all over-priced per usual but some shops are bargain-able. There were a couple upscale clothing, jewelry, and tea shops, and of course you can’t miss the…
• Elephant Poo Souvenirs: That’s right. There’s an entire store (actually a couple) that only sells souvenirs made from recycled elephant poo. No, it doesn’t smell, or look like poo, it just looks like paper, but is still highly amusing if you have the same maturity level that I do. Naturally I decided to get my postcards for my souvenir giveaway from here to send to 3 super lucky people…
• Eat: It was really easy to figure out how the town of Pinnawala works; they shuttle in day-trip tours to Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage twice a day, either for lunch, or early dinner, then shuttle them back out and then the whole little town shuts down. Since I had my own balcony, I got to witness this strategic business schedule, and since I had nothing else to do…I also walked upstairs and joined the masses. Only once though, since lunch was almost the same price as my room for the night…
• Walk on the River: When the elephants aren’t “bathing” and the river is empty, you can walk along the rocks in the shallow river for some awesome views, or to get to the opposite bank where there’s a sandy “beach” area, or a jungle-ey path that leads to a rice field!

Booking.com

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