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Ella Odyssey: spectacular journey through Sri Lanka’s tea country

Climbing across the “wet, misty” mountains between Sri Lanka’s coastal capital, Colombo, and the highland city of Badulla, the Main Line is one of the world’s most spectacular railways. Now you can ride it on the Ella Odyssey, says Adrian Bridge in The Daily Telegraph – a new “tourist-friendly” service that offers “an upgraded level of comfort” and longer stops at ten of the best viewpoints along the way. Built in stages under British rule between 1858 and 1924, the line passes through forests and tea plantations, navigating steep ascents and edging around deep gorges where waterfalls plunge over “craggy” cliffs. 

It’s a journey “redolent of another age”, owing to the “astonishing beauty” of the landscape, the “wonderful” sounds of the train, the “beautifully maintained” stations, and the “dainty white-bread sandwiches” served with tea in the buffet car. The seats are “smart and upholstered” even in third class, staff are plentiful and “unfailingly friendly”, and there are usually lots of chatty locals among the passengers, making for a wonderful sense of “camaraderie”.

Source: https://www.theweek.co.uk/arts-life/travel/960922/rail-travel-the-worlds-best-train-journeys