Sri Lanka's National Parks: Yala or Udawalawe for a Wild Adventure?

I recently had the chance to explore Sri Lanka's national parks, and I'm still buzzing from the experience. My adventure took me to two of the country's most famous parks: Yala and Udawalawe. If you're planning a trip to the south side of the island, these are the two parks you'll want to consider.

Yala's a bit more popular, so be prepared for a lot of other jeeps on the road. And to make matters worse, the roads were in bad shape before our trip, so they closed off part of the park. This meant even more people packed into a tiny space. The only real advantage Yala has is that there's a tiny chance you might spot a leopard. It's a long shot, but it's still worth a try.

We opted for Udawalawe instead, and I'm so glad we did. The park was way less crowded, and we had a better chance of seeing wildlife in general. Plus, the drive from Mirissa takes about two hours, so it's definitely worth the trip.

Getting to the park is pretty straightforward. You can hire a local driver who'll take you, set everything up in the park, and wait for you to finish before dropping you back off at your hotel. We paid $290 for the four of us, including the full safari experience. If you go with a group tour, it's a minimum of $80-$85 per person. It's more expensive, but you get to ride in a bus and sit in a jeep with six other people, which is way more fun than being stuck in a car with just your own crew.

When you arrive at the park, you'll need to pay for the entrance fee. If you're taking a tour or hiring a driver, they'll cover all the costs. The maximum number of people in the jeep is 6, and the price doesn't depend on the number of people. We went for 3.5 hours, which was a bit longer than the recommended 3-4 hours.

The park is open from 06:00 to 18:00, and the guides recommend getting there early, especially during the day when it's hot, as the animals are less active. We arrived at 05:45 and already saw a queue of jeeps forming at the entrance. So, if you get there early, you can secure a spot, pay the driver, and head to the park entrance.

Keep in mind that it's chilly in the park at 6 am. We all got a bit chilly during the first hour, sitting in the open jeep.

When you're heading to the park, be prepared not to see all the wildlife. It's just the way it is – the animals don't always come out on the road, and even if they do, there's no guarantee you'll see them at the right time in the right place.

Seeing a sloth bear from a distance is one thing, but getting a close-up shot is a different story altogether.

But if a whole family of animals comes out onto the road, it's like a traffic jam – all the jeeps converge from different parts of the park, and the drivers start communicating with each other to figure out where to go to spot the wildlife.

We spent a good chunk of time waiting for the elephants to move, and I'm not exaggerating when I say it was 10 minutes of just standing there. There were three of them, and the cars just kept circling around them, waiting for them to either wander off into the bushes or for the tourists to get impatient and ask the driver to move on. We were done waiting, so we asked our driver to take us further. And, honestly, we weren't the only ones who felt that way - there were at least 10 cars still waiting.

It wasn't long before we encountered a family of five elephants, with two of them being tiny little things. We saw them a total of three times in just three and a half hours - I guess you could say we had a bit of an elephant encounter.

The pheasants, on the other hand, were everywhere. They're like the cats of the forest - you can't go anywhere without seeing them. They're not just strutting along the side of the road, either - they're perched up in the trees, showing off their fancy feathers and long tails.

Some of the birds are a bit tricky to spot, though - you need to get up close and personal with them, either with a pair of binoculars or by zooming in with your phone's camera. But when you do get a good look, it's totally worth it.

And then there's the female - she's a real showstopper, let me tell you.

After an hour in the park, peacocks were the last thing on our minds. We spotted vultures three times - they were always in pairs, flying together too.

It's not easy to spot birds on trees, but the driver always points them out and stops the vehicle.

We saw a ton of different birds - green parrots, roosters, and these tiny, brightly colored birds with names that slipped my mind.

On the last photo on the left, that's a rooster right there. To be honest, it's tough to get a good shot of birds since they usually stay away from the road.

One thing that's really noticeable is how the view through the lens doesn't always match what you get in the photos.

Check out this shot, for example - it looks okay with the naked eye, but it's a bit blurry on camera.

That's not just a problem with this particular photo, either - I've found that it's a common issue with this camera.

Take a look at this bird, for instance - it's eating a spider, and it's a pretty clear shot.

We've also spotted some predatory birds, which is always exciting.

And in the waterways, we've seen herons and other birds that I couldn't quite identify - the driver mentioned something about a 'stork', but I'm not sure that's what it was.

There are even crocodiles lurking in the depths - although they're not always easy to spot, and you'll be lucky to catch one in a photo.

They're not always swimming, either - often they're just basking in the sun. And good luck trying to spot one on the rocks - without a binoculars, I wouldn't have seen them at all.

You'll probably not be able to spot a crocodile in this photo, either - but that's just one of the challenges of using this camera.

I was surprised to see how easily a floating crocodile blended in with the surroundings until the driver pointed it out to me.There were plenty of monkeys in the park, but it's not like it's a rare sight anywhere else.We stumbled upon a big group near the waterhole, and the monkeys were having the time of their lives.We also spotted monitor lizards, mongooses, and buffalo.We even saw buffalo from a distance while they were taking a dip.And then we spotted two families of wild boars.That's about it for 3.5 hours. You'll spend most of that time driving around the park in search of animals, and most of the time you'll only catch glimpses of them from a distance.What really stood out to me was when they allowed us to get out of the car, take a stroll, and snap some photos in one spot.

I have to say, the safari experience was a lot of fun, but if I'm being honest, I wouldn't go back to Sri Lanka. It just didn't live up to my expectations. I'd give it 4 stars instead of 5.

And what really grated on me was the aggressive tipping pressure from the driver. He even mentioned it before we left, and to be honest, it was pretty off-putting. Tipping's supposed to be a gesture of appreciation, not an obligation.