Udawalawe safari + the Transit Home
Plan your safari day
First, pick a drive. Then add a visit to the baby elephants. A morning safari fits best: the 10:30 feed comes soon after it.
- Morning safariThen the 10:30 feed
- About 15 minutes apartPark gate to the Transit Home
Four ways to do it
These buttons go to Wild Ceylon. It's the safari company that made this guide.
- Easiest with the feed
Morning safari + the 10:30 feed
Safari from 6 in the morning, out by about 9:30, then the 10:30 feed
Wild elephants first, then the babies' milk time. Lunch in town after.
Plan a morning safari and the 10:30 feed (another website) -
Afternoon safari
2:30 in the afternoon to 6 in the evening
A later start. If you are in Udawalawe town in the morning, you can watch the 10:30 feed first.
Plan an afternoon safari (another website) -
Full day
6 in the morning to 6 in the evening
A long day in the park for big animal fans. The feeds don't fit into this one.
Plan a full-day safari (another website) -
Stay the night
Two days, no rush
Sleep in Udawalawe town. Walk to a feed in the afternoon or evening. Go on a safari the next morning.
Plan a trip to Udawalawe (another website)
A morning safari day
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Early morning
Meet your jeep
Be at the park gate just before 6. The gates open at 6.
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6 until about 9:30
Safari time
Look for elephants, buffalo, crocodiles and birds.
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10:30
Milk time
Drive about 15 minutes to the Transit Home and watch the feed.
Ask to leave the park a little early, at about 9:30. Then you get to the Transit Home in good time to find a good spot.
What makes up the cost?
A safari day has three parts:
- Park tickets: grown-ups from abroad pay US$25 each, and children aged 6 to 12 pay US$15. Under-6s go free. Each jeep also pays a small fee, and tax goes on top of it all.
- A jeep with a driver. One jeep takes up to 6 people. The price depends on the drive you pick.
- The Transit Home ticket. About 2,000 rupees for each grown-up from abroad, paid at its own counter.
Park prices as of November 2026. Transit Home price checked in October 2026.
You can hire a jeep in Udawalawe town, through your hotel or online. Wild Ceylon's planner shows one price for your group, park tickets included. The Transit Home's ticket is extra.
If you plan your safari on that planner, you pay on the day, not before. You can change or cancel it for free up to 2 days before. Checked in November 2026.
This button goes to Wild Ceylon. It's the safari company that made this guide.
Work out the cost for your group (another website)Coming from Ella or the beach?
- From Ella: you reach the park gate first. Try a morning safari, then the 10:30 feed. Then drive on to the beach.
- From the beach: you pass the Transit Home on the way to the park gate. It is only a short stop off the road.
- Going back to Ella: the Transit Home is a little off your road. Going there adds about half an hour.