Yala Village is under refurbishment throughout the Summer (Date period is 1st May until 31st October) and Yala Village soon to be Chaaya Wild Yala.Please refer to Hotels in Yala page if you are looking for accommodation in Yala.

About 280km away from the commercial capital of Colombo lies the village of Kirinda bordering the Yala National Park. This little village is home to Yala Village Hotel. Travelers can take the Kataragama road, through the Colombo-Galle-Matara highway and reach Tissamaharama and then proceed to Kirinda. After 12 km once you reach the Kirinda/Yala junction take a left turn and travel for approximately 13km to find the Yala Village Hotel. The Ratnapura-Embilipitiya road passing Uda Walawe is also a convenient route.

Location
Yala National Park is located 305 km south of Colombo.

Reaching Yala

The gateway to Yala National Park is Tissamaharama 264km south of Colombo in the Hambantota district of Southern province of Sri Lanka.

Entrance to Yala
The entrance to Yala National Park is located at Palatupana, 27km from Tissamaharama.

Birdwatching
Birdwatching is done year round. During the period of October to March thousands of migrant birds arrive to escape the winter in the northern hemisphere.

Viewing Elephants
Wild elephants are seen the year round at Yala National Park. During the dry season of May to August elephants are seen in herds around the waterholes.

Mammals
Among the resident mammals of Yala National Park are wild boar, sloth bears, wild buffaloes, macaque and langur monkeys, jackals, mongooses, pangolins, porcupines, rabbits and wild cats.

Closed period
Yala National Park is usually closed annually during the period of 1st September to 15th October.