Getting around
The most photographed railway in Asia has been broken since a cyclone came through in November 2025. Part of it is back. Here is what runs, what does not, and how to ride the good half anyway.
The short version
Cyclone Ditwah crossed the island in late November 2025 and did severe damage to the Colombo–Badulla railway, with landslides, washouts and subsidence recorded at more than two hundred separate locations through the hill country. The line stopped entirely for months.
It has come back in pieces. The section from Nanu Oya down to Ella and on to Badulla reopened on 18 July 2026. The section from Kandy up to Nanu Oya is still under repair, with services expected to resume around the end of 2026. You cannot, at present, board at Kandy and ride through to Ella.
What matters for anyone planning a trip is that the celebrated part of the journey is on the open section. Ambewela, Haputale, the long ridge runs, the Demodara loop and the Nine Arch Bridge all sit south of Nanu Oya. You reach Nanu Oya by road in around two and a half hours from Kandy and join the train there. The ride is shorter. It is not lesser.
The thing that catches people out
Tickets that cannot be used
A number of third-party booking sites still list the full Kandy to Ella service as though nothing has changed, and will sell you a seat on it. That ticket does not correspond to a train. Whatever you book, check that the departure station reads Nanu Oya.
The same applies to itineraries written before last November, which includes most of what is published about Sri Lanka. If a plan has you taking the train out of Kandy in the morning, it needs redrawing around a road transfer.
How to do it now
Elsewhere on the network
The damage was concentrated in the hill country. Most of the island's other lines are running.
| Line | Status |
|---|---|
| Northern line, Colombo to Jaffna | Running, including the Yal Devi |
| Coastal line, Colombo to Beliatta | Running normally |
| Batticaloa line | Reopened January 2026 |
| Nanu Oya to Ella and Badulla | Reopened 18 July 2026 |
| Kandy to Nanu Oya | Closed, expected late 2026 |
Restoration continues and dates move. This page is re-checked and date-stamped each time; confirm with Sri Lanka Railways before booking travel that depends on a specific section.
Common questions
Not as a single journey. Cyclone Ditwah damaged the hill country line in November 2025, and the section between Kandy and Nanu Oya remains closed while repairs continue. Sri Lanka Railways expects it back around the end of 2026. The Nanu Oya to Ella section reopened on 18 July 2026 and is running.
Yes, and you are not missing the best of it. The stretch everyone photographs, through Ambewela and Haputale and around the Demodara loop into Ella, sits on the section that is open. You reach Nanu Oya by road and pick the train up there.
By road, in about two and a half to three hours. A private driver is the comfortable option and the drive itself is scenic; buses run frequently from Kandy to Nuwara Eliya, from where Nanu Oya station is a short tuk-tuk ride down the hill.
Reservations open thirty days before travel at railway stations and through authorised agents. Reserved seats on this route sell quickly, particularly first class and the observation saloon. Unreserved classes are sold on the day at the station and are perfectly comfortable for a journey of this length.
No, and confusing the two is a common and expensive mistake. Nanu Oya is the station serving Nuwara Eliya, about half an hour down the hill from the town. If you are staying in Nuwara Eliya, allow for that transfer on the morning you travel.
The northern line to Jaffna is fully operational, including the Yal Devi. The Batticaloa line reopened in January 2026 and the southern coastal line is running normally. The damage was concentrated in the hill country.
No. Some third-party booking sites still list the full Kandy to Ella route as though it runs. A ticket showing Kandy as the departure station cannot be used at present. Check that your journey begins at Nanu Oya.
Planning around it
A hill country itinerary written before last November will not work. Tell us your dates and we will build one around what is actually running.
