Pinnawala

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The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is a remarkable project that protects elephants that were misplaced, abandoned or injured in the jungle. The orphanage is situated in North west of the town of Kegalla, 90 km from Colombo towards Kandy, in the village of Pinnawala. The orphanage was established in 1975 by Sri Lanka wildlife department in a 25 acre of land which connects to the Ma Oya (Ma River).

The orphanage started off with the introduction of five abandoned baby elephants, namely Vijaya, Neela, Kadira, Mathlee and Kumari. Today there are more than a hundred elephants. The opportunity to watch milk feeding and bathing times are not to be missed. The baby elephants feeding times are 9.15am, 1.15pm and 5.00pm and bathing times are 10am-12pm and 2-4pm every day. The orphanage attracts more visitors each year and is very popular among tourists.