We are due to travel to Pune in India mid-February for a family wedding and would like to travel on to Sri Lanka to visit the historic and colonial sites, but we cannot tolerate heat above about 28C. Have you any suggestions about joining a group that would provide travel home and a different route out?
What is the political situation now in Sri Lanka? The Foreign and Commonwealth Office website is still very offputting. Elizabeth Runnacles, via e-mail
Times Travel Doctor responds: Average temperatures in Sri Lanka during February would be about 29C-30C and in March 30C-32C but the tea country of Nuwara Eliya is cooler, as is the historic city of Kandy, while the other cultural centres of Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya, which usually feature on group tours, are only marginally warmer.
TransIndus (020-8566 3739, www.transindus.com) has an escorted tour, “Sri Lanka — The Emerald Isle”, group departure arriving in Sri Lanka on March 6. This is a 13-day trip visiting Colombo and Galle, Anuradhapura, Polonnuwara, Sigiriya and Dambulla, followed by cultural sights at Kandy, tea plantations at Nuwara Eliya and wildlife at Yala, then ending with two nights on the beach at Bentota.
All accommodation is top-of-the-range and the trip costs £1,998pp based on twin share (there is a discount of £200 on offer) including flights on Sri Lankan Airlines, B&B and guided sightseeing.
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There would be a supplement to pay as you’re flying to India and back from Sri Lanka but if the departure date doesn’t suit you TransIndus could arrange a tailor-made trip.
According to Amrit Singh, the managing director of TransIndus, the political situation in Sri Lanka is quite stable now and all groups are in talks to settle the ethnic dispute.