Wildlife spotting

What usually comes to mind when you visit national parks?Yes, looking for any signs of life.In Somawathiya National Park, you will find plenty of elephants,some jackals, water buffaloes, porcupines, wild boars and sambar.

Smell the grass

Aquatic plants and water-tolerant grasses populate the national park. The area is also inundated with creeping grasses, floating plants, and tree species.

Experience a miracle

Who knows? You might get lucky to experience a miracle when you visit Somawathiya Chaitya. Miracle or not, however, visiting the site where the right canine relic of the Buddha can be found can be a spiritual experience.

Somawathiya National Park

Home to diverse flora and fauna, this national park is one of the four national parks that make up the Mahaweli River development projects. One of its prominent features are the many ‘villus’ found in the area.

Somawathiya Chaitya

Built for the Princess Somawathi, it was intended as a relic chamber for the right tooth of the Lord Buddha. According to historical documents, this stupa was supposedly built on the eastern bank of the Mahaweli River, but the current site is on the west bank. Regardless of the geography, it is one key attraction that is worth visiting when in the Somawathiya National Park.

Nearby Attractions:

Found close to Polonnaruwa, some of the nearby attractions of Somawathiya include:

Polonnaruwa City

Added to the World Heritage list of UNESCO in 1982, the ancient city of Polonnaruwa is a tourist attraction on its own. After all, it has historical remnants and features that comprise a wonderful site in Sri Lanka. These include a Rest House, Quadrangle, and New Town.

Archaeological Museum

This museum is designed in such a way that you walk from one end to another, passing through a series of themed rooms – the outer city, the citadel, the periphery, the monastery area, and the Hindu monuments.

Royal Palace Group

This features a group of buildings that dates back at the time of Parakramabahu I. There is the Royal Palace, Audience Hall, and Bathing Pool.

Vatadage

Located at the southeast of the Quadrangle of Polonnaruwa, the circular relic house or Vatadage has two terraces (outermost and second terrace), four entrances and the moonstone.

Gal Pota

This ancient monument is a representation of the ola book that is made of stone. It is around 9m long, 15m wide and up to 66cm thick. It bears the longest stone inscription in any of Sri Lanka’s stone inscriptions.

Kiri Vihara

This ancient temple was originally called Rupavati Chetiya, but the current name is much more appropriate. This is because when it was discovered, after years of neglect that caused a jungle to surround it, the lime plaster of the Kiri Vihara was in its perfect and milk-white condition. To this day, it is the best preserved dagoba that was never been restored.