Things to do — Nuwara Eliya

The flagship attraction of Nuwara Eliya is the tea plantation visit. Two main options:

Mackwoods Labookellie (15 km southwest, on the Kandy road) is the most visited. Founded in 1841, it's one of the region's oldest plantations. The free 45-minute guided tour covers the full manufacturing process: picking (you'll see Tamil pickers at work in the neighbouring fields), withering, rolling, fermentation, drying, sorting by sieving. The visit ends with a free tasting at the large café-restaurant overlooking the plantation — exceptional panoramic view over kilometres of carefully trimmed green tea bushes. Very commercial but well orchestrated. Allow 2 hours on site with lunch.

Pedro Estate (4 km east of Nuwara Eliya, accessible by tuk-tuk for 500 LKR / £1.30) offers a more authentic visit of a still-active factory. Founded in 1885, it produces around 60 tonnes of tea a month today. The guided visit (1,000 LKR / £2.70) includes a tasting. The atmosphere is more industrial and less polished than at Mackwoods, but more representative of the daily work of a tea factory.

Nuwara Eliya's second great draw is Horton Plains National Park, 32 km south (1h15 by road). This high plateau (2,100-2,300 m) is home to the 9 km hiking loop that leads to World's End — one of Sri Lanka's most spectacular panoramas: a 900 m vertical drop opening onto a 360-degree view of the central mountains, and on clear days, all the way to the ocean 80 km south. The walk is easy (moderate elevation, marked path) and lasts 3 hours round trip. Departure must be at sunrise (arrival at the park at 6 am, walk 6:30-9:30): after 10 am, tropical clouds rise and mask the cliff in 80% of cases. Entry 4,500 LKR (£12) + vehicle fees. Pack warm clothing, walking shoes, water, snacks.

The colonial city centre can be visited on foot in 2 hours. Highlights: the Grand Hotel (1828) with its Victorian salon where you can take afternoon tea (3,000 LKR / £8 for the classic set with scones, sandwiches and Ceylon tea), the Hill Club (1876) which welcomes visitors during the day for the restaurant and bar (smart dress required, dress code in the evening), Holy Trinity Church (1852, neo-Gothic), the racecourse (1875, active only in April), Victoria Park (English-style gardens in the city centre) and Gregory Lake (1 km south, lovely at sunset).

For golf lovers, Nuwara Eliya Golf Club (1889) offers green fees for visitors (8,000 LKR / £22 for 18 holes). It's the oldest course in South Asia and one of the rare altitude courses in the world — thin air lets the ball fly 10% farther.