Sigiriya · Things to do

Included with the rock ticket and usually skipped. Good on the hydraulics and on frescoes you cannot photograph up top.

Dawn flights run in the dry season, roughly Nov to Apr, drifting past Sigiriya and Pidurangala. Weather dependent.

Flat lanes between tanks, buffalo and village temples. Most guesthouses lend bikes; go early or late, never at noon.

A small 8th-century stone shrine mixing Hindu and Buddhist forms, moved stone by stone when the reservoir filled.

The gardens on the Matale road are genuinely informative but end in a hard sell. Enjoy the walk, decline the oils.