Yala National Park

Yala National Park

The leopard does not perform. You wait. Sometimes the jungle rewards patience.

Yala National Park holds one of the highest densities of leopards in the world. Block One covers 141 square kilometres of dry zone jungle, lagoons, rocky outcrops, and open grassland. The leopard is the reason most guests come. But the elephant herds at dusk, the crocodiles in the lagoons, the sloth bears at dusk --- these are not consolation prizes.

Experiences at this stop

• Dawn safari --- leopard tracking

Gates open at 6am. The leopard crosses the dry riverbed at Block One at approximately 6.15--6.30am if the wind is from the east. The first 90 minutes of the morning safari are the only ones that matter.

• Wild elephant herd encounters

Over 300 entirely wild elephants. A herd crossing the road --- matriarch leading, the youngest sheltered in the middle --- is one of the most moving wildlife encounters the island offers.

• Sloth bear at the termite mounds

Best sightings at dusk. Your guide will know the locations. Twenty minutes of stillness is usually rewarded.

• Lagoon --- crocodile and waterbird watching

Painted storks, spoonbills, flamingos in wet season. Slow time here, binoculars up, in silence, is as rewarding as the leopard search.