Southern Province
Bundala National Park, near Tissamaharama on the south-east coast, is a protected wetland and Sri Lanka's first Ramsar site. It's best known for birdwatching, with migratory birds and often flamingos in the northern-hemisphere winter, plus crocodiles and elephants. It's quieter than Yala and easy to combine with a Yala safari.
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Most often in the migratory season, roughly September to March, but numbers vary year to year.
Yala for leopards and big game, and Bundala for birds and a quieter safari. Many people do both.
They're close, both near Tissamaharama.
Yes. It's a relaxed safari with plenty to see.
Yala is Sri Lanka's most visited national park, a mosaic of scrub jungle, rocky outcrops, lagoons and coastline in the south-east. It is known for one of the highest leopard densities recorded anywhere, though sightings are never guaranteed.
Tangalle is a quiet stretch of Sri Lanka's south coast with long, empty beaches, boutique villas and a slower pace than Mirissa or Unawatuna. Highlights include turtle watching at Rekawa, the Mulkirigala rock temple and easy safaris in Yala or Udawalawe. Visit roughly November to April. Many beaches have strong currents, so swim with care.
Udawalawe National Park surrounds a large reservoir on the edge of the southern plains. Its open grassland and scrub make wild elephants easy to watch, and it is one of the most dependable parks on the island for seeing them.
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