The 2026/27 season for the Adam’s Peak climb is due to run from the Unduvap full moon on Wednesday 23 December 2026 to Vesak on Wednesday 19 May 2027 (CBSL 2026; CBSL 2027). For sunrise, leave Nallathanniya (Dalhousie) by about 2.30am: the roughly 5,000 to 6,000 steps take 2.5 to 4 hours up and 1.5 to 2 hours down (sripada.org; Love Sri Lanka; Wikivoyage). We checked both holiday lists on 29 October 2026.
Key takeaways
- The season is due to open on Unduvap poya, 23 December 2026, and end at Vesak, 19 May 2027. In season the path is lit and some tea shops stay open all night.
- Sunrise on the season’s poya days falls between 5.51am and 6.26am, with first light about 22 minutes earlier.
- The Nallathanniya route is the shortest, at about 5 to 7 km. sripada.org gives Palabaddala 8 to 12 hours. Erathna is closed under the 2026 notices.
- A wildlife department notice of 24 June 2026 says every visitor in the coming season needs a sanctuary permit, Rs 1,000 for domestic visitors. A notice of 3 July 2026 requires a pass off season. We found no temple fee.
Adam’s Peak season 2026/27: dates and what changes
Ada Derana’s report on the 2025 opening said the season runs from Unduvap poya in December to Vesak in May, peaking at Medin (Ada Derana). The last two seasons opened on Unduvap: 14 December 2024 (Sunday Observer) and 4 December 2025 (Daily Mirror). So 2026/27 should open on 23 December, the Unduvap date on the Central Bank list.
In 2026 the season closed at midnight on 30 May with the Vesak observances, according to the chief custodian (Ada Derana). The bank’s 2026 list gives Vesak as 1 May and calls 30 May Adhi Poson. For 2027 the bank lists one Vesak, on 19 May. Take that as the planned end until the temple confirms it.
| Poya day | Date | Sunrise at the summit’s position |
|---|---|---|
| Unduvap (season opens) | Wed 23 Dec 2026 | 6.15am |
| Duruthu | Fri 22 Jan 2027 | 6.26am |
| Navam | Sat 20 Feb 2027 | 6.24am |
| Medin | Mon 22 Mar 2027 | 6.12am |
| Bak | Tue 20 Apr 2027 | 5.58am |
| Vesak (season ends) | Wed 19 May 2027 | 5.51am |
Sunrise times, in Sri Lanka time, are from the US Naval Observatory, run for the summit’s coordinates (Wikipedia) and a flat horizon.
In season the path is lit and tea houses line the way, some open all night (sripada.org). The same page counts about 20,000 climbers on season weekends and calls January to February the busiest period. Wikivoyage warns that on weekends, public and school holidays and poya days the queue near the top can stretch 2 km. Some waits pass 12 hours (Wikivoyage).
For the coming season, the Department of Wildlife Conservation has already set the routes. Its notice, reported on 24 June 2026, opens only the Hatton to Nallathanniya and Ratnapura to Palabaddala paths. Everyone crossing the sanctuary needs a permit and must give personal details at the wildlife counter (Ceylon Wire).
Last season also brought limits on the Hatton side. For 2025/26, the Norwood Divisional Secretary said Hatton route pilgrims could not pray above Idikatu Pahana, and more were sent via Ratnapura (Morning Telegraph). On 6 December 2025 police said the Hatton road would be restricted after a landslide at Mahagiridamba (Ada Derana). We found no 2026/27 notice on the Hatton limits, so check the news in December.
Off-season climbing: what is closed
Outside the season the path is not lit, so you need a torch. Only a handful of tea houses open, rain often falls in the afternoon, and from May to October cloud hides the peak much of the time (sripada.org). Wikipedia adds very heavy rain, strong wind and thick mist outside December to May (Wikipedia). Best Time 2 Travel, updated in August 2025, says the trail is slippery in rain and warns about leeches (Best Time 2 Travel).
On 3 July 2026 the Department of Wildlife Conservation said off-season visitors may use only the Nallathanniya and Palabaddala roads. You need a pass from the wildlife office on either road, and entering without one is an offence (Daily Mirror). The Erathna and Maliboda roads were among those closed. In May 2025 Newsfirst reported that foreigners also needed prior approval from Nallathanniya police (Newsfirst).
How many steps is Adam’s Peak, and how long does it take?
The figures differ by source.
| Source | Steps | Time up | Time down |
|---|---|---|---|
| sripada.org ascent page (Living Heritage Trust, 2017) | About 5,200 | 2.5 to 4 hours | Not given |
| Love Sri Lanka (undated) | 5,000 to 6,000 | Not given | Not given |
| Wikivoyage listing (edited January 2025) | Not given | 2.5 to 3 hours | 1.5 to 2 hours, longer in rain |
| Drink Tea and Travel (updated 6 October 2026) | About 5,500 | 3 to 4 hours | About 2 hours |
Sources: sripada.org; Love Sri Lanka; Wikivoyage; Drink Tea and Travel.
Drink Tea and Travel’s writers found no one who claimed a precise count, so treat 5,500 as a round number. The Nallathanniya trail page lists the climb from 1,252 m to 2,230 m, a gain of about 1,000 m. It gives an approximate time of 5 to 7 hours (sripada.org trail).
Routes: Nallathanniya, Palabaddala and Erathna
Of the six trails Wikipedia lists, Nallathanniya and Palabaddala are the favourites, because they are shorter and have tea shops and lighting (Wikipedia). The table uses sripada.org’s trail pages.
| Route and start | Length and climb | Time given | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hatton to Nallathanniya, from Dalhousie bridge | 5 km, about 1,000 m | 5 to 7 hours | First-timers and sunrise climbers |
| Ratnapura to Palabaddala, from Siripagama | 8.5 km, about 2,000 m | 8 to 12 hours | Fit walkers ready for a longer, more tiring climb |
| Kuruwita to Erathna, from Adevikanda | 12 km, about 1,850 m | 8 to 12 hours | Closed under both 2026 notices |
Sources: Nallathanniya; Palabaddala; Erathna.
The site’s own pages disagree on length. Its ascent page calls the Dalhousie route 7 km and the Palabaddala route 11 km, a seven-hour climb (sripada.org). The Erathna and Palabaddala trails meet about 2 km below the summit. Both trail pages suggest a late-morning start and a night in a rest shelter.
Do not plan on Erathna. The June 2026 notice bans the Kuruwita to Erathna route for the coming season, and the July notice closed it off season too.
What time to start climbing Adam’s Peak for sunrise
Work back from the sunrise time in the table. sripada.org says a 2.30am start on a poya day gets you up before dawn, which it puts at around 6.30am. It also says most people leave Dalhousie around 3am (sripada.org). Love Sri Lanka says people usually set off a little after midnight (Love Sri Lanka). On a poya day or a weekend, allow for the queue.
The wait and the cold at the top
sripada.org warns that the summit is cold and windy, so arriving long before dawn means sitting and shivering. We found no official temperature for the summit. Best Time 2 Travel, updated in August 2025, expects single-figure night temperatures from January to March (Best Time 2 Travel).
The shadow of the peak
On a clear morning the mountain casts a triangular shadow on the land around it. You can watch it move quickly down as the sun climbs (Wikipedia). Cloud can hide it, most often from May to October.
The descent
The sun and the heat rise quickly, so sripada.org suggests not lingering too long at the top (sripada.org). Its guidelines warn that tired knees can make you fall backwards on the way down (sripada.org guidelines). Allow 1.5 to 2 hours, longer in rain.
Is there an entrance fee for Adam’s Peak?
The one official charge we found is the wildlife permit. The June 2026 notice says everyone crossing the Sri Pada Sanctuary in the coming season needs a permit or ticket from the Nallathanniya or Palabaddala wildlife office. Domestic visitors pay Rs 1,000 for one person or a group of up to ten (Ceylon Wire). It gives no rate for foreigners. In October 2023 a wildlife officer said off-season visitors paid USD 5, or USD 4 from SAARC countries, under a 2022 gazette (Daily Mirror). Ask at the office before you start.
We found no temple fee when we checked on 29 October 2026. In 2023 the chief incumbent said no money had been charged from any pilgrim, in season or out (Daily News).
A travel blog updated in October 2025 says climbers are asked for a donation at the start and get a string tied round the wrist (We Are Global Travellers). Buses from Hatton to Dalhousie cost Rs 200 in Wikivoyage’s January 2025 listing. We could not load a dated room listing on 29 October 2026, so we give no guesthouse prices.
Getting to Nallathanniya
We found no report of a through train from Colombo to Hatton since Cyclone Ditwah. On 28 September 2026 Sri Lanka Railways said trains from Colombo would run as far as Peradeniya and Gampola from 2 October (Daily Mirror). The Gampola to Nawalapitiya section was still being repaired in late August (Sunday Times). Beyond it, only limited trains ran between Nawalapitiya and Hatton on 9 September (Daily Mirror). In April a ministry official gave 31 December as the target for the whole line (The Morning). Our Kandy to Ella train guide tracks the hill line.
From Hatton, regular buses run to Dalhousie, and in high season they leave from right behind the railway station (Wikivoyage).
By road, Hatton to Nallathanniya is about 31 km, which the route planner puts at 39 minutes on clear roads (OpenStreetMap). Allow 45 minutes to an hour. If you would rather go by car, our page on what a car and driver cost per day sets out dated rates. If you are landing first, see Colombo airport taxi costs.
Rules and respect on a sacred mountain
Sri Pada is holy to Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians. Each faith reads the footprint at the top differently (Love Sri Lanka). sripada.org says the authorities ban litter, alcohol, cigarettes, meat and recorded music on the path.
For 2025/26 the President’s Office said PET bottles below one litre were banned for the season, along with sachets and single-use plastic and polythene (President’s Office). Police barred plastic water bottles and alcohol from Nallathanniya to the upper compound at the top (Daily Mirror). Those were last season’s rules. We found no 2026/27 plastics notice, but the July 2026 off-season notice also asked visitors not to bring polythene or plastic bottles.
Shoes come off at the summit shrine (Drink Tea and Travel). Atlas and Boots found socks were fine on the top platform (Atlas and Boots). Wikivoyage’s advice for any Sri Lankan temple is to remove shoes and skip miniskirts, tank tops and shorts (Wikivoyage). sripada.org notes that first-timers climb with a white cloth on the head (sripada.org).
We found no Sri Pada drone rule. On 18 March 2026 the Air Force said flying any drone in Sri Lanka without permission is prohibited (Daily Mirror).
What to pack
- A head torch, which you need off season when the path is dark.
- A warm layer plus one more for the summit wait.
- A rain jacket and a cover for your camera. The trail pages say rain is likely except late in the season.
- Shoes that fit well, and socks for the shrine.
- A refillable bottle, given last season’s ban on small plastic bottles.
- A hat for the walk down, when the sun gets strong fast.
Questions about the Adam’s Peak climb
Can beginners climb Adam’s Peak?
Love Sri Lanka says you need no special gear but calls the climb quite challenging. From Nallathanniya you gain about 1,000 m on steps, with steel rails on both sides of the steepest part. sripada.org’s guidelines say not to climb too fast and to rest at the top before coming down. For other walks, see our Sri Lanka hiking trails list.
Can you climb Adam’s Peak in the off season?
Yes, on the Nallathanniya or Palabaddala roads with a wildlife pass, under the July 2026 notice. The path is dark, most stalls are shut and rain is likely. Our Sri Lanka weather by month page shows when the hill country is wettest.
Is there an entrance fee for Adam’s Peak?
You need a wildlife permit, which the June 2026 notice prices at Rs 1,000 for domestic visitors. It gives no foreign rate, so ask the office. We found no temple fee.
What is the best day to avoid crowds on Adam’s Peak?
A weekday that is not a poya day or a holiday, says Wikivoyage. Avoid the opening on 23 December, Christmas Day and the Sinhala and Tamil New Year on 13 and 14 April 2027. Our guides to Sri Lanka in December and Sri Lanka in January cover the weather.
Where should you stay for the Adam’s Peak climb?
Wikivoyage suggests a night in or near Dalhousie, where budget hotels are plentiful, so you can start early. If your route goes on east, see our guides to Nuwara Eliya’s tea country and Ella.
Plan Adam’s Peak into your trip
We are Oura Travel, based in Weligama on the south coast, and we plan private road trips with a driver-guide. If you want Adam’s Peak on your route, send us your dates.
We checked the holiday lists, wildlife notices, news reports and route figures against the linked sources on 29 October 2026. Last season’s rules came out in late November and early December, so confirm the new ones before you travel.
Top photo: Sri Pada on the right of the skyline, January 2006. Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
