A Sri Lankan travel company, and a marketplace for the rest
We plan and run private tours across the island with our own chauffeur guides. We also built a marketplace so travellers who would rather organise things themselves can hire directly from verified local garages and operators, at the price the supplier actually sets.
Why we exist
Most Sri Lanka holidays are still sold by agencies several time zones away, who mark up a local operator’s price and pass on a driver they have never met. It works, but the traveller pays more, the local business earns less, and nobody in the middle has any real answer when something goes wrong at 11pm in Nuwara Eliya.
Hemli Tours is the other way round. Our tours are planned and driven by our own team. Our marketplace lists local suppliers directly, at their own rates, with a transparent platform fee rather than a hidden markup. You always know who you are dealing with and you always have a number that gets answered.
How a trip usually goes
You tell us roughly when you are coming, how long you have and what you would like to see. We send back a written day-by-day itinerary with suggested hotels and one fixed price covering the vehicle, driver, fuel and accommodation. You change whatever you like — as many times as you like — and nothing is charged until you are happy with it.
On the ground, the same team is on WhatsApp for the whole trip. Plans change: weather, closures, a beach you do not want to leave. The itinerary is a plan, not a contract.
Six things we do not compromise on
These are the rules the business runs on, and the reason travellers come back.
Local, not outsourced
The people planning your trip live here. Your driver-guide is an employee, not a subcontractor found the week before you land.
Verified before listed
Every supplier on the marketplace is checked for business registration and tourism-board licensing before a single listing goes live.
One price, agreed up front
No commission-driven detours to gem shops or spice gardens you did not ask for. The quote you accept is the amount you pay.
Always private
We do not run group departures or coach tours. Every trip is yours alone, which is why the itinerary can change mid-morning.
Money that stays here
Village lunches, homestays and local guides are paid directly. It costs you nothing extra and it matters a great deal at that end.
Reachable, genuinely
A real WhatsApp number, answered by the team running your trip, for the whole time you are in the country.
Ready when you are
Whether you want the whole trip organised or just a vehicle and the freedom to figure it out yourself, we can help. There is no obligation and no deposit to get a plan and a price.