Yup, the whole damn thing. Vistas of waterfalls and emerald tea plantations cascading through valleys. Visiting Kandy is cool if you approach it with the right mindset.
Ella is a bubble in the mountains: a cloud-soaked bubble lost in the hills. So the Kandy to Ella Train Guide β a travel guide in three parts. Kandy, Ella, the places to visit, and β probably most importantly β how to catch the bloody train! The Broke Backpacker is supported by you. And, hey, look, on the spectrum of public transport in Asia, the Sri Lanka Railway is really quite good. I did some sewing; it was great! The trains may not run on time but they always arriveβ¦ usually.
As for how to book Kandy to Ella train tickets? Well, unreserved is piss-easy. You show up on the day at the railway station, you buy a ticket, and you get on the train. The blue train! Reserved seats need to be booked in advance at the station before the day of the ride. Want to save money on accommodation? The train is a lot emptier on the Ella side, so taking the train from Ella to Kandy is not a bad idea and an easier way of snagging a seat.
Even the clouds in the Sri Lankan hill country have good vibes. A scenic train ride in Sri Lanka needs a scene! You will catch some of the southwestern monsoon in Kandy, however, catching the tail-end of the summer season β August is what I did initially and is a good balance between the two. Outside of summer, it rains in the hills a lot more. They show up, hang out for a bit, and then French exit out on outta there.
Winter β December to February β is the other primo choice. I will say, after some spending some time here in Ella through autumn , catching the train in these in-between seasons is iffy for views. It rains consistently in the arvos usually with clear mornings.
