You are here: Home / Destinations / ELEPHANT BACK SAFARI
Elephant Back Safari in Sri Lanka brings in multifaceted joys. The majestic beast, the locations in close proximity to the cultural attractions and the terrain rich with bird life all add up to bring in memorable experiences to the tourists holidaying in Sri Lanka. Elephant Back Safaris are one of the newest and most thrilling safari experiences in Sri Lanka. These Elephant Back Safari not only make it possible to view wildlife from the back of an elephant, but perhaps more importantly, provide the unique opportunity to share a day in the life of the elephant.
Elephant Back Safaris not only make it possible to view wildlife while riding an elephant, but also to view the wildlife enthusiasts chances to be familiar with the nature and behavior of tamed Elephants. The holiday makers may opt to share a day with the majestic beast by picnicking in the bush in the shadow of the elephant or by swimming, grooming, feeding the elephant too. The most popular locations of Elephant Back Safaris are Habarana, Sigiriya and Pinnawala. The tamed elephants are accompanied by mahouts carrying a lightweight spear-like bull hooks. Elephant Back Safaris afford the opportunity to riders to be familiar with behavior of the elephants. Here you will find hundreds of domesticated mature elephants who are trained to safely take tourists on exploratory rides through native forest and jungle and also provide them with the thrill of wading through shallow lakes and rivers with water lapping close to their feet which hang over the side of the howdahs. The howdah is named after its ancient ornate Indian counterpart used by royalty for their transport by elephant. The Sri Lankan howdah, however, is a sturdy, no frills, padded and comfortable wooden platform with metal rails about half a meter high (one and a half feet) all the way around and is securely strapped onto the elephants midsection. You climb up steps to the top of a platform approximately three metres high. Your ride is then led to the side of the platform where you step into the howdah and position yourself, usually two or three on either side. With a firm grip on the rail, your feet will be dangling over the side and resting against the belly of this big grey animal that now has complete control of your wellbeing, for at least the next hour. Please don t forget to tip the Mahout who kept everything under control.
 "If you ever plan to visit Sri Lanka (and I think you should) this is your guide!!! Martha Iordanidou - Thesoloneki - Greece " Martha Iordanidou
 "Dear Cyril, Thank you for truly amazing oneweek tour your beautiful country.We have seen so many amazing sites in such a short space of time. From Sigiriya to beautiful temples, Scenic tea gardens of Nuwaraeliya the colonial land ark hotel Mount Lavinia. We have seen so much more. You have made this an utterly memorable holiday with your expert knowledge, amazing, facinating stories, patience, careful+safe drivingand your unforgetable smile. We will cetainly recommonding your tours to all of fr..." Sara Kitson - UK
 "Thank you so much for your great service and making our honeymoon in Sri Lanka, so special and joyful. Best regards from Yuffa and Elad Abbo – Israel- 10 July 2008 " Yuffa and Elad Abbo - Israel
 "We had a fantastic holiday in Sri Lanka, thanks Cyril Tours, Our driver, Amiila, was brilliant and nothing was too much trouble for him. The places we visited were really interesting and we saw some lovely scenery.I would definitely recommend your company to other people. Emma - UK 2010 December " Emma Patterson
 "Dear Cyril, Yes that's the one that we were calling all the time. Her name is Celia and by now she has a little sister. My dear Cyril, of course we can't forget your companion and we are always telling about you when we are talking about our trip to Sri Lanka. I wish you good luck with your company and I hope that you will have whatever you want. I want to tell also that I was very happy when I learned that you are a grandfather now. Best regards, Chris Greece 26/07/2011" Cristos Pravitas - Greece
 "Cyril was absolutly Fantastic,Veryhelpful, Patient and extremly knowledgable. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend and travel with him again. Whole tour was well organized and perfectly done. Kate Williams and family from UK 04th January 2015" Kate Williams UK
 "Hi Mr.Cyril, Hope you and family and grandchild are doing fine. Hope to come to Sri Lanka again. We really enjoyed our trip especially with your special help and guidance. We will definitely contact you if at all we wish to visit Sri Lanka again. Thanks & Best Regards Mr. & Mrs.Pillai Singapore 29/7/11 " Mr & Mrs.Pillai from Singapore
 "We are glad to meet Cyril. He is very kind and patient, very professional in his work. He have lot of knowledge about history of the places and the things that happened in Sri Lanka. He knows all the roads and places very well. Very friendly and stand on time. The tour he recommended us and places were excellent. He replied immediately for mails which we send. He was flexible when we asked him to stop in different places and to change our program. He speaks very good English and explanations..." Ruty Ben Haim from Isarel
 "We found Cyril on-line and after checking with lots of other guides we decided he is the one for us, that decision was the best one we did for our trip From the beginning, in our emails, Cyril listen to us and was very helpful, he gave us information and helped us to create the best trip for us.We had 10 days trip, for our honeymoon, to many parts of Sri-Lanka. the country is amazing, green, nice people and good food.Cyril was a great driver and even greater guide, he has so much knowledge and e..." Coral and Oded from Israel
 "CyrilWe are now back at home after the lovely time with you in Sri Lanka, andvisiting Hong Kong.Thank you for driving for us while we were in Sri Lanka.In particular, we appreciated - your smooth, calm and efficient driving through varied traffic conditions - your calmness when things did not go quite as expected - your being available at all times of day - I'm remembering our late arrival at the airport, and our late departure - your information about all sorts of ..." Cliff Hooker and Jean from Australia