Where to stay in Ella — pick the right hotel, book in 3 clicks

Local dishes to try in Ella

1. 1🍳

   Kottu Roti

   Chopped flatbread stir-fried on a griddle with vegetables, egg and meat curry — Ella's go-to dish, cheap, filling and made to a rhythmic clatter

   📍 Signature dish
2. 2🍛

   Rice and Curry

   A generous plate of rice with several sides like dhal, vegetables and coconut sambol — the most authentic local meal, best at a small family spot

   📍 Local staple
3. 3🥞

   Hoppers

   Crispy bowl-shaped pancakes of fermented rice flour and coconut milk — try the egg hopper and string hoppers with sambol and curry

   📍 Breakfast & dinner
4. 4🍌

   Lamprais

   Rice, meat curries and an eggplant relish wrapped in a banana leaf and baked into a fragrant parcel — a Dutch-Burgher Sri Lankan classic

   📍 Banana-leaf baked
5. 5🫖

   Ceylon Tea

   Top-grade tea from the estates around Ella, sipped in a mountain-view cafe or straight from a factory tour — the town's signature pour

   📍 Drink
6. 6🥟

   Short Eats

   An array of grab-and-go bites — vegetable roti, fish buns, fish rolls and little patties — perfect between hikes and sights

   📍 Snacks

1. 1🌉

   Nine Arch Bridge

   A nine-arch brick-and-cement railway viaduct built in 1921 without steel, set deep in a green valley — Ella's most famous sight, best timed for a passing train

   📍 Demodara
2. 2⛰️

   Little Adam's Peak

   An easy 20-30 minute climb to a 1,141 m summit with 360-degree views over Ella Gap and Ella Rock — a favourite spot for sunrise

   📍 Hiking
3. 3💦

   Ravana Falls

   A roughly 25 m waterfall about a 10-minute drive from town, tied to the legend of King Ravana in the Ramayana and visible right from the roadside

   📍 Waterfall
4. 4🧗

   Ella Rock

   A tougher 8 km round-trip trek through tea estates and villages, rewarded with panoramic valley views from the top

   📍 Hiking
5. 5🍃

   Lipton's Seat

   The lookout where Sir Thomas Lipton surveyed his tea empire, with tea estates rolling in every direction — go before 8 am for the clearest views

   📍 Tea views
6. 6🌊

   Diyaluma Falls

   Sri Lanka's second-highest waterfall at 220 m, about an hour's drive from Ella, with natural rock pools to swim in when water levels drop

   📍 Waterfall
7. 7🏭

   Uva Halpewatte Tea Factory

   A factory and plantation tour north of Ella where you can see tea processing, try plucking and taste fresh Ceylon tea in the cafe

   📍 Tea estate
8. 8🛕

   Dowa Rock Temple

   An ancient roadside Buddhist shrine with a 12 m unfinished Buddha carved into the rock — a peaceful stop off the main tourist trail

   📍 Temple