Visiting a spice garden is a must during your Sri Lankan holiday! It will add more spice  to your talk on Sri Lankan cuisine!

Sri Lanka is famous for its spices since the early ages.  Spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, clove, nutmeg, fenugreek and pepper are very commonly used in traditional Sri Lankan cuisine to add flavour and fragrance. Others such as clove and turmeric are used in cosmetics and other products such as toothpaste.

The beneficial aspects of spices were known to ancient scholars and they form a very essential ingredient of Ayurveda medicine.

Today, there are many spice-producing companies that have created tourist-oriented gardens that offer an educative insight into spice-cultivation. A visit to a spice garden in the hilly regions of Sri Lanka, where there is abundant rainfall during the year, is an interesting experience for both young and old. Some of them also offer services such as Ayurveda massage.

Visiting a spice garden is generally free. You may be however charged more than the usual price on the products that are sold and the services that are offered. Another aspect that increases the price is the commission your driver gets for taking you to a particular spice garden. Unless you know the prices of spices in local markets, it is safe not to bargain.

A stroll around the wonderfully well-kept gardens in the company of a multi-lingual guide should be your aim when you step into one of these gardens.