Train Travel in Sri Lanka with a Toddler

Travel Matters Travel Ambassador, Zoe, returns to her home-away-from-home…Sri Lanka. It has been a few years since Zoe has been back, but this time she is introducing her daughter to the Teardrop of India, known fondly by its people as Serendib.

Zoe documents her experiences thus far -

Firstly, we are beyond excited to be travelling long haul with our 2-year-old toddler for the first time ever and what better country to visit than Sri Lanka, which is incredibly family friendly. Our daughter, Islay, is obsessed with trains (choo choo) and so we were excited to make special memories with her and jump on a train to traverse the island.

The most popular and beautiful route is Kandy to Ella and the stretch of line from Haputale (through Bandarawela) has particularly stunning scenery. We did our research on train times and then boarded a local passenger train at Haputale, a small station in the heart of the hill country near to the eco-retreat Living Heritage Koslanda, our base for hill country exploration.

In Sri Lanka, you can book your train tickets up to 30-days advance. If like us you aren’t always the most organised, they release an allocation of tickets each morning at every train station so you can arrive with your driver and buy a ticket on the day (it’s very affordable!).

If you want reserved comfortable seats & A/C then 1st Class is the one for you, but there aren’t any open windows. Probably a good shout though for long journeys and the loos are…better.

2nd Class & 3rd Class reservations give you a chance to sit with other local folk and families (seats facing one another in groups of 4) and you get to be close to nature through open windows. Do note that these seats are less comfortable! The open vestibules at the end of each carriage give you a chance to walk about and sit by the open doorways to watch the world go by, which was right up our street as we wanted to mix with locals as much as possible. Be warned, 3rd Class toilets aren’t particularly lavish and the seats are more like benches, but if you’re on a strict budget and a short journey, 3rd Class is very doable.

In our carriage we met locals from all walks of life and religions - Islay got to play with other kids sat near us too. We loved the gentle speed of the train rocking as we moved through the undulating countryside and tea estates while observing cascading waterfalls in the distance. Local folk will jump on from time to time selling food so snacks to keep hunger at bay, so that was another highlight to watch.

After an unforgettable 1.5-hour journey we arrived at Ella, a pretty train station that is so quaint it has won the ‘Best-Kept Station’ award. It is like Thomas the Tank engine has come to life much to our daughter’s squealing delight! All in all, this is an opportunity not be missed and our toddler revelled in the chance to travel on a train, look at the fascinating outside world through open windows, interact with people and wander about letting off steam rather than be sat in a car for hours.

(Zoe travelled to Sri Lanka January & February 2022)