Taking the Kandy to Ella train

The line climbs out of Kandy through tea gardens and cloud, and the part everyone photographs — open doors, green terraces falling away — is mostly the stretch after Nanu Oya. If your time is short, the Nuwara Eliya to Ella leg gives you the best of it in about four hours instead of seven.

Sit on the right leaving Kandy for the valley views, then swap sides after the halfway point. Reserved seats sell out well ahead in season; unreserved carriages always have room, in the sense that there is always more room than you think.

Bring water and something to eat. Vendors work the aisles with tea and short eats, but the gaps between them can be long, and the windows are more interesting than the queue for the buffet car.

This is demo content from Travel Experience Pro. Delete it once you have writing of your own.