North West
Yapahuwa
A rock fortress and a staircase that most itineraries drive straight past.
Yapahuwa was briefly the capital in the 13th century and held the Tooth Relic before it went to Kandy. What remains is a granite outcrop and an extraordinary ornamental stairway carved with lions and dancers. It sits between Kurunegala and Anuradhapura and is almost always empty.
Things to do
