"We had the most wonderful holiday in Sri Lanka. In fact it was one of the best we have ever had. We had both a very good driver, Sunil and a first rate guide in Dhami. They both went out of their way to take care of us and to make the whole trip run smoothly. Dhami could identify birds from a thousand paces and knew all the best places to find them. He even found us a civet cat, which are nocturnal and very elusive. As he knows all the best guides in the National Parks , we saw 4 leopards in Yala , which was amazing, we had really good views of them as well. We saw one at Yala Beach Hotel too.
Baurs are an excellent local agent. They have a policy not to take you to shops or to any of the places where other agents go in expectation of receiving commission, which we really appreciated. We were only taken to the shops we asked to go to.They spend all their advertising budget on supporting the local community since the tsunami struck, which impressed us.
The holiday was everything we hoped it would be and more. It's success was due in no small part to Sunil and Dhami both of whom we liked enormously and to Dhami's expert knowledge of the birds and wildlife.
If Willdlifeworldwide is considering supporting some projects in Sri Lanka, then providing a ranger or two in Bundala and particularly Minneriya, to keep the local cattle and domestic buffalo from grazing there, would be very worthwhile. The elephants in Minneriya are in poor condition as there is too much competition for the available grazing. Maybe the answer is to somehow provide grazing for domestic animals outside the National Parks which would also be of benefit to the local community."
Jenny D. October 2009.
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