Minneriya National Park

We arrived early in the morning, and there weren't many people around. Within minutes of entering, we spotted elephants! As we continued, we encountered large herds of them, and we were not too far away, which made the experience even more enjoyable. If you're looking to see elephants in a peaceful natural park setting, this is the place for you. The tranquility and proximity to these majestic creatures make it an unforgettable experience.

We visited early in the morning in September. The park was not busy, allowing us to spot large herds of elephants a few minutes after entering. Seeing them up close made the experience even more enjoyable. This is a great place to see elephants in a their natural setting. Unforgettable experience:)

ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ ජනප්‍රිය සංස්කෘතික ත්‍රිකෝණයේ හදවතෙහි පිහිටුවා ඇති මින්නේරිය ජාතික වනෝද්‍යානය බොහෝ දුරට එහි ඇදහිය නොහැකි අලි සංක්‍රමණය සඳහා ප්‍රසිද්ධය, එය ආසියාවේ විශිෂ්ටතම වනජීවී අත්දැකීමකි. ජුනි සිට සැප්තැම්බර් දක්වා වියළි මාසවලදී, වැදගත් ජල ප්‍රභවයක් සපයන ජලය බැස යන ජලයෙන් ප්‍රයෝජන ගනිමින්, පුරාණ මින්නේරිය ජල ටැංකිය (ක්‍රි. ව. 3 වන සියවස දක්වා දිවෙන) අවට මින්නේරිය ජාතික වනෝද්‍යානයේ අලි ඇතුන් 300 ක් පමණ එක්රැස් වේ.

එය ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ අනෙකුත් සංස්කෘතික ආකර්ෂණ ස්ථාන වලට ඉතා සමීප බැවින් යාල සහ දකුණේ අනෙකුත් උද්‍යාන සඳහා කදිම විකල්පයක් විය හැකිය.

Visited during the rainy season. The park was blooming with green. Loved it. But during that time there were not many elephants around. Saw foxes, eagles and deer. Very refreshing visit

Minneriya National Park is home to the world’s largest known gathering of Asian elephants. During this period, herds of up to 350 elephants are seen at the 8,890-hectare park within a few square kilometers of the Minneriya Tank. According to some reports, there are as many as 700 elephants. In August and September each year, during the dry season, wild elephants migrate from Wasgamuwa National Park to Minneriya National Park in search of food and shelter. Tourists visit Minneriya National Park largely because of elephants, especially in the dry season.

Nearest Town: Habarana
Distance to Nearest Town: 8.5 km
Drive time From Colombo: 3.45 to 4.15 Hours

When to visit? Throughout the year, but best in August to September.

Park opening hours: 6 Am to 6.30 Pm
Last time for Ticket purchase: 5.00 Pm
Mode of Game Drive: by Safari Jeep

There don’t have ATM Nearest ATM at ‘Habarana city’

USD Not accept! Only Rupees accepted.
Please bring Snacks & Water there have no Restaurant
What i should bring? A Hat or cap / Sun protection cream / Dust musk / Water

Enjoy your holidays with a natural environment with the visibility of nature. Minneriya national park is one of the best national parks in Sri Lanka. #travel #national park #elephant #birds #off road vehicles#hospitality

Foreign Prices September 2022
Vehicle for 2 foreigners approx. 25000r or $70
(I think $25pp, $10 vehicle, 15% VAT, 150r pp for your driver/guide)

Temper your expectations. We saw 30 elephants, the largest group being about 10. Apparently even when there large numbers each group is still the same. Nonetheless a fun drive around especially if baby elephants.

Minneriya National Park, located in the centre of Sri Lanka's well-known cultural triangle, is well recognised for its amazing elephant migration, one of Asia's finest animal experiences. As many as 300 elephants gather in the Minneriya National Park around the historic Minneriya water tank (which dates back to the third century AD) during the drier months of June to September, taking advantage of the receding waters that provide a vital water source.

I have posted a detailed video on Minneriya, do check out my YouTube @everycornerofworld

Fortunatrly some good sence has prevailed in releasing the Minneriya waters, so that elephants could have acces to their usual feeding grounds!

This was denied to them in the last two to three years, because of the release of waters from Moragahakanda Reservoir.

Because of that excess influx of water, serving no irrigation purpose in Polonnaruwa, the Grand Elephant Spectale on the grassy glades of Minneriya Lakebed was denied to all tourists- local as well as foreign.

Luckily, the paucity of Dollers in the government coffers, drilled the much needed elephantine sence into park management!

We entered the park early around 6: 30 am and were actually one of only two Jeeps that entered the Nationalpark by the time we left three hours later. What a luxury to watch elephants all by ourselves! Surely this was due to the petrol crisis, but it made our safari very memorable. The earlier you go, the more you see!

Only thing we occasionally felt a little uncomfortable with, was how close our driver got to the elephants. Some tourists may want this, but we felt a little sorry for the elephants. It is however far better than visiting one of the many elephant orphanages that chain and mistreat elephants to bathe with tourists.

The Minneriya national park is about 30 min drive from Sigiriya, it is most famous for the amazing (elephant gathering about i think 350), also near the lake you can see very wide variety of birds. Wherever you look you'll see something.birds, monkeys, spotted deers and many other animals.

Best to visit during September and October.
It's a breath-taking experience, we enjoyed it more than yala safari.

Seeing the baby elephants feeding with their mother was amazing and We were lucky to see two male elephants preparing to start a fight to be with the females.

Fees is around 90$ for a private jeep for two adults.

I had an amazing experience. This place is the best place to watch young, old n baby elephants. The elephant called Biso is the eldest in their clan. You can see more than 150 elephants at a time. Best time to visit this place is afternoon like after 3pm. I should mention that the staff here is helpful n friendly.

️ Dry zone national park filled with elephants, leopards, bears and various other animals. Safari vehicles takes you a journey through the park, and you will get the chance to watch animals and do photography as well.

A very knowledgeable driver who could spot a highly camouflaged lizard and took is too see dozens of elephants, birds and buffalo

Home to one of the largest wild elephant gatherings in Asia as upto as many as 300 elephants arrive to the ancient Minneriya Tank for its water resouce.
You can get really close to see the elephant herds crossing.
There is much more flora and fauna to be seen as well.
Absolutely gorgeous nature park for wildlife photography.

Covering an area of 8,890 hectares, Minneriya is around 4 hours from the capital city of Colombo and is close to other local attractions. For example, the UNESCO world heritage site of Polonnaruwa is just 20 kilometres away and Habarana and Sigiriya are also close-by, making it possible to combine cultural and wildlife experiences into one itinerary. The topography of the park is comprised of scrub plains and mixed evergreen forests alongside rocky outcrops and wetlands, providing a range of habitats to suit a variety of critters. Large numbers of Sri Lankan elephants are attracted to grass fields on the edges of the Minneriya Tank during the dry season. The Great Elephants gathered here is numbering around 150-350, is the largest wild Asian gathering in the World" They eat, play & bath at their native environment.
Minneriya National Park

Thr area is situation in dry zone of srilaka and receives an average rain of 1500_2000 millimeterss tamperatue (20c-34.5c)

Minneriya National Park is located 182 km away from Colombo in the North Central Plains of Sri Lanka. The major city closest to Minneriya National Park is Polonnaruwa.

The renovated vast ancient Minneriya Rainwater Reservoir that irrigates the considerable area of the district of Polonnaruwa is the focal point of the Minneriya National Park.

Being part of the elephant corridor which joins up with Kaudulla and Wasgomuwa parks, Minneriya National Park gives the opportunity to see herds of Elephants throughout the year. May to October is the best period to visit Minneriya National Park in view of the famous Gathering of the wild elephants.

The dry season, from April to October, is reckoned to be the best time to visit (as by then water in the tank has dried up, exposing grasses and shoots to grazing animals). Elephants, which can number 200 or more, come to feed and bathe during what is known as ‘the Gathering’; and flocks of birds, such as little cormorants, painted storks, herons and large pelicans all fish in the shallow waters. However, it's also possible to see large numbers of elephants here at other times of year, too; we saw over 100 in February when we visited.

The park entrance is on the Habarana–Polonnaruwa Rd. A visitor centre near the entrance sells tickets and has a few exhibits about the park’s natural history. The initial 40-minute drive (along a poor dirt road) into the heart of the park is through dense forest, where wildlife sightings are rare. But then the landscape opens up dramatically, and the views across the tank are superb. Early mornings are generally best for birds and late afternoon for elephants.

Among the 24 species of mammals resident in the park are Elephants, Leopards, Sloth Bear, Spotted Deer, Sambar Deer, Wild Buffalo, Wild Pig, Grey Langers, Purple-faced Leaf Monkey, three species of Mongoose, Porcupine and Indian Pangolin. Pre-booked Minneriya Safari is the best way to see them all. Among the nine species of Amphibians at Minneriya National Park are the endemic and endangered Slender Wood Frog and the Common Tree Frog. Of the 25 species of reptiles recorded in the park 8 are endemic including the Red-lipped Lizard. Water and Land Monitors are also seen here. The Mugger Crocodile can be seen near the tank. Many species of fresh water fish are found in the Minneriya reservoir.

Minneriya National Park has no accommodation facilities within its boundaries. But the cities close to Minneriya National Park- Sigiriya, Polonnaruwa, Habrana and Giritale- are clustered with luxury hotels and lodges.

Minneriya National Park is a national park in North Central Province of Sri Lanka. The park has become niche for many kind of bird species, mammals and reptiles. The area belongs to the catchment of Minneriya tank which was built by King Mahasen in the 3rd century AD. Tourists can visit the park for safari. Since the elephants are common in the evening at the dry season it is a nice place for wild life photography. Those who are intrest to visit make sure you are only remain your footprints in the forest!

Love that place.but this season is not suitable to view animals. The guide says that August is the best month to view animals. Because they all are coming to same water resource. And there is government holiday bungalow in the forest. If you want to book that you should book it at colombo.