By Serendip Unfolded · 3 Nov 2026. General planning notes; confirm details for your own dates when you request a quote.
Udawalawe is known for elephants, but there is much more to the park. This reference article gathers the main facts on its history, its reservoir, its wildlife and its climate. We name our sources at the end, and we mark places where they disagree.
At a glance
- Location: Uva and Sabaragamuwa provinces, in the south of Sri Lanka.
- Area: about 308 km² (30,821 hectares).
- Established: 30 June 1972.
- Nearest town: Embilipitiya.
- Distance from Colombo: about 165 km.
- Managed by: the Department of Wildlife Conservation.
Why the park exists
Udawalawe was created partly to protect wildlife displaced by the Udawalawe Reservoir and to safeguard the reservoir's catchment. The reservoir was formed by a dam across the Walawe River. It serves irrigation and hydroelectric power, and it holds about 267 million cubic metres of water. The hydroelectric units were commissioned in April 1969, which is a few years before the park was established.
Climate
The park sits on the boundary between Sri Lanka's wet and dry zones. Annual rainfall is around 1,500 mm, mostly from October to January and March to May. The average temperature is about 27 to 28 °C, and humidity ranges from 70 to 83 per cent. This mix of conditions produces a landscape of open grassland, scrub and patches of forest around the water.
Elephants
A herd of about 250 Sri Lankan elephants is believed to be permanently resident. This is a belief rather than a recent count, so read it as a rough guide. Across the island, estimates of wild Sri Lankan elephants include 5,879 in 2011 and about 7,500 in 2019 as reported by the BBC in 2020, and the methods differ. The species is listed in CITES Appendix I.
The Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home, founded in 1995, cares for orphaned calves and releases them back to the wild when possible.
Other mammals
The park has recorded 43 mammal species. They include sambar, axis deer and Indian muntjac, wild boar, water buffalo, golden jackals, toque macaques and tufted grey langurs. Leopards, fishing cats and rusty-spotted cats are also recorded, and sloth bears are present but rarely seen.
Birds
Udawalawe has recorded 184 bird species, and 33 of them are migratory. The reservoir and wetlands support water birds such as cormorants, the spot-billed pelican, Asian openbill, painted stork, black-headed ibis and Eurasian spoonbill. Birds of prey include the white-bellied sea eagle, crested serpent eagle, grey-headed fish eagle, booted eagle and changeable hawk-eagle.
Visitors
Jeep safaris are the main attraction, normally in the early morning and late afternoon. Wikipedia reports 188,388 visitors in 2023 and describes the park as the third most visited in the country. It also gives two different totals for 1994 to 2001, about 452,000 in one place and 423,000 in another, so we do not quote either. Visitor numbers have limited value on their own, but they show that the park can be busy.
Elephants beyond the park boundary
Udawalawe protects elephants, but it does not hold all of them. Wikipedia reports that as of 2006 about 65 per cent of the elephants' range in Sri Lanka lay outside protected areas. That helps explain conflict between people and elephants, which damages crops and homes and costs animal and human lives. The Department of Wildlife Conservation records, quoted in the same article, show 407 elephant deaths in 2019 and 328, 375 and 439 in the three years after. These are national figures, not Udawalawe alone, but they show why careful, respectful tourism matters to local communities.
A note on the data
Most figures in this article come from Wikipedia, which in turn cites government records, academic studies and news reports. Some are old, and a few contradict each other, so we have named the conflicts rather than hide them. For the latest rules, fees and access, check with the Department of Wildlife Conservation and with your operator.
What this means for a visit
The reservoir is the park's centre. Birds, buffalo and elephants all depend on it, and the shoreline is where much of the wildlife viewing happens. When you plan, ask your guide how the water level and season are affecting where animals gather.
Udawalawe suits travellers who want an open, accessible park with reliable elephant habitat and good birdlife, and who want to avoid a long detour. As with any park, no sighting is guaranteed, and access can change with rain, season and park rules. Ask for current information before you travel.
You can read our practical guide to an Udawalawe safari, or plan a visit with our Udawalawe safari. To compare it with another park, see Yala or Udawalawe.
Sources
Cover photo: M.S Dulan De Silva, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. All photo credits are on our photo credits page.