Here are the reasons why I think Sri Lanka should be on everyone’s holiday list for 2019.

Beautiful Beaches

Sri Lanka has beautiful, unspoilt, white sandy beaches! Unlike some neighbouring countries, Sri Lanka’s beaches are free from rubbish, and the water is clear and inviting. There are beautiful beaches in the west, near Galle, in the south around Mirissa and Tangalle, in the east near Trincomalee, and even in Negombo, 10kms from the airport!

The best beach depends on the time of year you’re visiting, so as to avoid the monsoon. Give us a call for the low-down!

Hill country 

Only a few hours’ drive inland from the coast takes you to spectacular, green hill country. With mountains as high as 2000 metres, the weather here is usually humid and wet – perfect for growing tea! The first tea plantations were planted by the British in 1824, and since then, tea has quickly become Sri Lanka’s greatest export. The central highlands region still has a distinct British flavour, with Nurawa Eliya town nicknamed ‘Little England’ for its stately homes, hedge gardens, and a colonial ‘Grand Dame-esque’ hotel serving up a very British afternoon tea.
Taking a local train through the hill country is an absolute must. It’s a chance to mix with the locals and stick your head out the window to feel the breeze in your hair, while you watch the most beautiful green, rolling tea plantations pass you by.

It’s a slow journey – timetables mean nothing – however a passing parade of food sellers will help to keep hunger at bay, offering spiced nuts, fried dhal and hot masala chai.

“Ella” is a great little town with a handful of quirky cafes and shops, and if you venture just a few kilometres out of town, you’re deep in tea-country.
There are beautiful walks you can do in this region, across the Horton Plains too. There is plenty in this region to keep you entertained for a few days!

Safari

Did you know Sri Lanka has the highest population of leopards in Asia? Arriving at Yala National Park is like being transported to a completely different destination – it’s hot and dry, with vast plains – perfect for spotting leopards in the wild. As well as leopards, you can see elephants, crocodiles, buffalo, monkeys, and plenty of birdlife in the National Park.

There’s nothing like going on a jeep safari at dawn or dusk, cameras at the ready, hoping to spot animals in their natural habitat!

In the centre of the country (near Sigiriya), a visit to either Minneriya or Kawudulla National Parks is a must, for their huge Elephant population. Where else can you visit an ancient historical site in the morning, go on safari in the afternoon, and have a cocktail by the pool at your hotel in the evening?!

Food

Sri Lankan food is fresh, spicy and full of flavour! The main spices Sri Lankans use in their foods are cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. Curry leaves are also used often, and of course, everything is flavoured with fresh coconut.
Egg hoppers are a fantastic start to the day – a type of crepe made from rice flour and coconut milk, with an egg in the middle. These are topped with a dhal curry, and fresh, grated coconut.

For other meals, curry is the order of the day, with plenty of lime and coconut milk. Coconut sambal accompanies everything – this is a mixture of fresh grated coconut, chilli, garlic and lime.
Dessert is crème caramel, or a coconut and honey mixture, either deep-fried, or rolled up in a crepe.

Travellers to Sri Lanka certainly wont go hungry!

The people

Sri Lankans are some of the friendliest people I’ve met! They’re genuinely proud to show off their beautiful country, and will go out of their way to help travellers.

In our week-long trip through the country, we were not hassled once, nor pressured to buy anything. On the road, all timings are quoted in ‘Sri-Lankan time’, ie, a 100km journey will take ‘3 hours, Sri Lankan time’ , always said with a cheeky grin, meaning it will probably take 4 hours! This however, is no cause for angst, and we didn’t encounter any erratic driving, road rage or excessive tooting.

Direct flights from Australia

If you live in Victoria like me, we’re lucky enough to have direct flights from Melbourne to Colombo, with Sri Lankan Airlines! The service encountered onboard is difficult to fault, with good food (Sri Lankan chicken curry for dinner), a decent selection of in-flight entertainment options, and comfortable seating.

With a flying time of 10 hours, Sri Lanka has never felt more accessible!
For those with frequent flyer memberships with other carriers, or those looking to fly from Australia’s other Capital cities, there are plenty of other great options, with Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways or Cathay Pacific, among others.

Sri Lanka makes for a great holiday destination combined with a stopover in Singapore, Bangkok, or perhaps even the Maldives?

An undiscovered gem, for now

Sri Lanka is distinctly un-touristy. There are very few tourist shops and restaurants, and almost zero souvenirs. Beaches are free from hawkers and you don’t see many other tourists wandering around.
However, this will almost certainly change in the near future. Lonely Planet has just named Sri Lanka the #1 destination to visit in 201 9 and it is the destination on everyone’s lips.

I think some of Sri Lanka’s pristine, beautiful charm may be lost in the next 5 – 10 years, so if you’re considering a visit to beautiful Sri Lanka, I recommend going now!

To enquire about a fabulous trip to Sri Lanka, call Rosie on (03) 5275 4583!

The post 7 reasons why you should visit Sri Lanka NOW! appeared first on Mosaic Travel.

These were the endearing sentiments of my husband’s Baba (now passed) when she first met me. Of course, I didn’t understand it at the time because I didn’t speak Croatian and she didn’t speak English but it was later translated and will be a sentence that stays with me forever.

Five years later and at times, it feels as though there is no other explanation for it. I look around and am still struck by the natural beauty of Croatia; the climate, history, tradition and culture… it all still has me spellbound. And now, I get to share my love and passion with guests sailing up and down the Dalmatian coast. So, how did a kiwi come to live and work on a yacht in Croatia?

I first came to Croatia almost six years ago, I had just finished a 2-year stint in London and my soul was in need of sunshine, freedom and adventure. I knew nothing about Croatia at the time, I had only seen a few dreamy pictures from my friends who had been sailing in Croatia and that was enough.

After travelling around Europe, through a series of coincidences, I ended up working on a boat in Croatia as a tour guide for young aussie and kiwi travellers.

I instantly fell in love with the country, something about it made me feel home. While the turquoise waters and coastline held me captivated, it was the people more than anything who really made me feel welcome. Once I got to know the locals, it didn’t take long before they all started telling me that I was Dalmatian at heart, that I would find love and end up moving to Croatia. I figured this was just a line they used on all of the young, enthusiastic travellers but it turns out, they were right.

This is where the story gets a little cliché, I met Mirko – my now husband, on a boat in Croatia. Not just any boat either, it was a replica pirate ship! To cut a long story short, Mirko and I got together (in my second summer in Croatia); then I moved to Australia for work but inevitably booked a one-way ticket back to Croatia and married my man of the Adriatic.

Since then, we have been working on luxury yachts together, Mirko as the Captain and I work as the hostess. A lot of people think it is a dream to be living and working together on a yacht but I will say this now, working with your partner, in a small confined space is not for everyone. Restaurants taught me a lot of valuable lessons but no matter how difficult, at the end of the day, you still get to go home to your own space. Not so on a yacht. You cannot fake working in this industry, living and working in the same space can be intense, so you really need to be in it for the right reasons and love what you do. Thankfully, we do.

Sailing and the sea has been Mirko’s passion for more than a decade; he loves raising the sails and showing people his country. As well as being the Captain, Mirko is also a – carpenter, electrician, plumber… all of these traits come in extremely handy when you live and work on a boat for 4 – 5 months. My background is in hospitality, for the better part of a decade, I worked in and managed restaurants in NZ, Australia and London. This passion for hospitality, gastronomy and more importantly – people, was the perfect foundation for life on a boat.

I may sound biased when I say this – but after working on yachts in Croatia for a few years now, I can hand-to-my-heart say that when you are booking a sailing holiday, the crew are one of the most important factors. Think about it for a second, you could book the most beautiful yacht but if the crew are incompetent or even just that bit miserable, it will impact on the energy of your holiday. For better or worse, the crew become a part of your travel memories. I have been lucky enough to work among some fantastic crews and it was something that our guests always commented on.

This year, Mirko and I are moving away from luxury cruising vessels and are instead managing and crewing (just the 2 of us) a gorgeous, classic 72-foot sailing yacht. Mirko is thrilled because it means he will be able to hoist the sails a lot more than in previous years and I am excited for the clientele I believe this yacht will attract. While luxury cruising was all good and well, we both have so much passion for Croatia that we want to share with our guests – rather than just ‘serving’.

Croatia has a rich history and culture, the food and wine scene is only just being discovered and for those who want adventure or to get ‘off-the-beaten-path’, we know exactly where to take you. I think this is the beauty of being a foreigner in this role and why Mirko and I make such a great team. For me, the awe of how special Croatia is hasn’t worn off, I see this in our guests and get to guide them through their experience, all while understanding an international traveller’s expectations. Whereas Mirko is from Croatia, he knows the coastline like the back of his hands and can share genuine experiences of growing up here.

Our motto is “SEA it different”; we want our guests to have a beautiful, relaxed sailing holiday but we also pride ourselves on customising our itineraries to match our guests’ interests and expectations while showing them ‘our’ Croatia – rather than a copy-paste tour.

Like I said, the job itself can be challenging but waking up on the water, in a new destination every day and showing people around a country that we both love, really is a dream job to me, to us. We are already excited for the summer sailing season ahead and cannot wait to create new memories for our guests. See you in Croatia!

If you’re interested in joining Tash and Mirko in Croatia, or have any questions about sailing in Croatia, get in touch with us on (03) 8609 7499 or send an email to rosie@mosaictravel.com.au

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With only 10 guests, we’ll spend 20 days exploring Croatia, from the old town of Dubrovnik, to the laid-back islands of Korcula and bright lights of Hvar, to the small country villages of Istria, before finally arriving in glorious Venice by speedboat, George Clooney style!

As well as seeing the sights, we take time on this small-group tour to enjoy long lunches, wine tastings, unique cultural experiences, and plenty of free time for you to explore on your own.

Accommodation varies from a luxurious clifftop resort (with a private elevator down to a private beach!), to a restored mansion within the city walls, to a boutique winery hotel.

The tour is from 11 – 30 June and there are only two spots left. Please call Rosie for more info and a special deal – I’m not used to having places available on these tours!!!

Magnificent Croatia

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The inaugural Black Sea tour was such an adventure! Northern Turkey, along the Black Sea coast, and Georgia and Armenia – what a fascinating and undiscovered part of the world.

The walk from the ‘road’ to our alpine chalet accommodation high in the Kackar Mountains.

Incredible singing and dancing troupe showing us traditional dances and music in the heart of Georgia’s wine region.

Armenia has a sad history, which is still very much evident in everyday life. However, the Armenians embrace life and we had lots of fun cooking ‘dolma’ with some local ladies, tasting local brandy and a crazy night tapping our toes in a famous jazz club until 2am!!!

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