Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The town centre itself is a dusty ribbon of traffic, three-wheelers and small-scale com-
merce. But take a short walk and you'll be rewarded with extraordinary views. The rail-
way hugs one side of the ridge in a minor victory for 19th-century engineering.
Haputale now mainly shows the influence of the Sinhalese and Tamil cultures, but the
legacy of the British tea planters also lives on. Tea estates blanket the hillsides, punctuated
by graceful planters' bungalows, all enveloped in a damp and heavy climate that must
have made the British settlers feel right at home. The pretty Anglican church (St
Andrew's) on the Bandarawela road has a graveyard filled with poignant memories of
earlier times.
In recent years Haputale's popularity with tourists seems to have mysteriously dimin-
ished, but the town has an array of good, cheap accommodation and makes an excellent
base for visiting Horton Plains National Park, exploring other places in the area or just tak-
ing pleasant walks in cool mountain air. It also has a more authentic Sri Lankan air to it
than that of nearby Ella and its international traveller feel. Guesthouses arrange vans and
4WDs to Horton Plains for Rs 4500.
See the privately run website
www.haputale.de
for more information.
Sights & Activities
