Badulla with a private driver

Badulla is the administrative capital of Uva Province and the end of the line for the scenic Kandy–Badulla railway that passes through Ella. It sits in a wide bowl at about 670 metres, surrounded by the tea-covered hills of Uva, and the drive down from Ella (about 30 minutes by private car) drops through terraced estates and rubber groves before arriving in a town that retains much of its quiet colonial-era character around the old district court and St Mark's Church. The Dunhinda Falls, four kilometres north of town, tumble 64 metres into a boulder-carved pool and are arguably the most dramatic single-drop waterfall in Sri Lanka. The surrounding Uva Highlands are also the source of the world-famous Uva seasonal flavour in Ceylon teas — a curious quality that appears only in July–September as the distinctive Cachetonne winds dry the leaves. A private driver combining Ella with Badulla can make Dunhinda Falls and the tea-estate drives a half-day add-on rather than an afterthought.