GREAT TRIP IN MADAGASCAR – 27 DAYS

From 2 to 6 persons.

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The most complete trip possible to discover the different regions of Madagascar. Each has its population, its ethnic groups, its way of life, its rhythm. The atmospheres are not the same whether you are in Diego or Fianarantsoa, ​​the people are different, their daily life too. From the nonchalant and colorful north in the Nosy Be region to the central Highlands where the rice terraces draw the hills. From the Baobab forests of the West to the white beaches of Ste Marie.

This route allows you to visit several parks and reserves and to understand the many biotopes of the country and to meet many species of animals that inhabit these diverse environments.

Several trips to the same country!

Highlights

  • The most beautiful sites of Madagascar in a single travel
  • From Nosy Be to Diego Suarez, the atmosphere of the North
  • The parks, the lemurs, the birds, the landscapes
  • The Highlands and the savannahs of the South
  • The forests of the East and the stay on Ste Marie Island 

Travel identity card

  • Duration: 27 days
  • Participant: From 2 persons
  • Guiding: English-speaking Malagasy guide
  • Accommodation: Standard or superior hotel
  • Transport: 4×4 vehicle or bus or minibus
  • Period: From May to November
  • Effort = 1

    “Easy”
    This trip is accessible to all. However, we ask you to be healthy.
    It is a journey of discovery and short hikes are scheduled for site visits.
    Madagascar is large, the steps in a vehicle can sometimes be a little long.

  • Confort =4

    “Standard”
    All nights are in hotels. The accommodations and/or the hotel are good categories and equivalent to 2 or 3 stars international standards.
    Dinner in restaurant, lunch at the restaurant and / or picnic.
    Travel take place in comfortable vehicle on roads and/or on relatively good tracks.

Days 1 & 2: Days at leisure in Nosy Be

Arrival in Nosy Be. 

Meet and greet by your hotelier who will take you to the seaside. You take the time to settle in, there is no hurry!

Many possible activities from the hotel. Nosy Be and its sweetness of life will win you over. Relaxation or active stay, everything is possible, the island is full of possibilities: visit of Lokobe Park, boat trips to Nosy Komba, diving in Nosy Tanikely, swimming with turtles in Nosy Sakatia or a day in Nosy Iranja.

 At the end of the day, we recommend a walk to Mont Passot which offers a superb panorama over the whole island at sunset or simply lazing by the sea.

Day 3: Nosy Be > Ankarana

Meet with your guide who takes you to the port of Hellville. 

We embark on a speedboat for Ankify. We pass between the islands of Komba and Tanikely. Crossing the large village of Ambanja, the region is famous for its cocoa and coffee. We take the time to stop to discover these plantations and this method of cultivation. After the village of Ambilobe, arrival at the gates of Ankarana Park..

  • Duration: 45 minutes by boat + 4h driving 
  • Distance  : 150 km

Day 4: The Tsingy of Ankarana

An old coral reef, water, wind and quite a bit of time, here is the result, a limestone massif like a stone forest! Accompanied by a guide from the Ankarana National Park, we set off to explore the site. We hike, in the morning, by a sometimes difficult walk, through the Tsingy with sharp edges and in the caves including that of the Bats. Picnic lunch on the side of the place called the loss of water, this huge excavation in the bed of the river where the water disappears in the rainy season. In the afternoon we walk to the Tsingy Rary and the footbridge over the canyon. Return to the village of Mahamasina at the end of the day.

NB: the pace and duration of the walk depend on the participants (minimum 2 hours). Your guide will advise you.

  • Duration: 3 to 5h walking
  • We organize your picnic lunch.

Day 5: Ankarana > The red Tsingy > Diego 

We leave the village of Mahamasina to go up to the far north of the country. We branch off along the way to take a look at the Tsingy Rouges. The geological history of this formation is the same as that of the Tsingy of Ankarana, but with a few thousand years of difference. The others are calcareous, those are friable earth. We return to the main road to reach the village of Joffreville at the entrance to the Montagne d’Ambre national park.

  • Duration: +/- 6h
  • Distance: 150 km of road
  • We organize your picnic lunch.

Day 6: Visit of the Montagne d’Ambre

park Accompanied by a park guide, we hike through the lush forest. This park is home to exceptional vegetation with tree ferns, palm trees, orchids, many exotic species, while beautiful alleys of conifers line the track leading to the forest station. Waterfalls, crater lakes adorn our walk. And of course, the Malagasy fauna with the friendly lemur. We meet the crowned lemur, that of Sanford. 7 species share the area. We also get to know chameleons, geckos and other uroplatus. The birds in the park are as numerous as they are colorful. 

NB: the pace and duration of the walk depend on the participants (minimum 2 hours). Your guide will advise you.

  • Duration: 2 to 4h walking
  • We organize your picnic lunch.

Day 7: Diego Suarez > Antananarivo 

Transfer to Diego airport.

We assist you to take the domestic flight to the capital.

We spend the morning in Diego or Tana depending on the flight.

NB: Depending on the domestic flight schedule, the program for this day may be modified.

  • Duration:  1h15 flight

Day 8: Antananarivo > Morondava

Flight towards western Madagascar.

Your guide welcomes you at Morondava airport. Stroll through town to the market and the beach.

NB: Depending on the domestic flight schedule, the program for this day may be modified.

  • Duration: 1h flight

Day 9: Morondava > Tsingy of Bemaraha

Long way on a bumpy and dusty track today. It is soon after leaving the city that we cross the famous Alley of the Baobabs. We take the time to linger there and take some beautiful photos.

Continuation for the Tsingy of Bemaraha. The track is sometimes very uncomfortable but it is only this which leads to this site classified World Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. We cross the Tsiribihina and Manambolo rivers by ferry. Arrival at the end of the day in the village of Bekopaka.

  • Duration: +/- 8h of track
  • Distance: 190 km
  • We organize your picnic lunch.

Days 10 and 11: Discovery of the Tsingy of Bemaraha

This site is one of the most extraordinary! The Tsingy are real cathedrals of limestone, this dense network of faults, crevices and blocks of limestone carved into blades is one of the most spectacular landscapes of Madagascar.

The formation of this Middle Jurassic massif began 200 million years ago, when the sea still covered this region of Bemaraha. Then this huge slab of corals and shells rose up. Exposed to the open air for 5 million years, the rain, with its work of erosion, sculpted the rest.

Among these wonders there are 6 species of lemurs, reptiles and 53 varieties of birds.

It is also the habitat of one of the smallest species of chameleons, the Brookesia perarmata.

In the company of guides and porters, these two days are devoted to the discovery of these wonders of nature.

  • Duration: + / – 5h walk
  • We organize your picnic lunches.

Day 12: Bekopaka > Kirindy Reserve

We take the track back to Morondava and cross the Manambolo and Tsiribihina rivers by ferry. These “manipulations” can sometimes take a little time…

We arrive in the afternoon at the Kirindy reserve. This site is extraordinarily rich: one of the highest concentrations of primates in the world. We leave in the early evening with a local guide and armed with our flashlights to search for eyes in the night. Nocturnal mouse lemurs inhabit these forests.

  • Duration: +/- 5h
  • Distance: 130 km of track

Day 13: Kirindy Reserve > Morondava

Always accompanied by our guide, we spend part of the day looking for diurnal lemurs and in particular the sifaka, otherwise known as the dancing lemur. If we are lucky, we see the Fosa, the largest of Madagascar’s predators.

At the end of the day we return to Morondava. It is before arriving at our destination that we cross the famous Alley of the Baobabs. We are there at the right time, the sun is low, the raking light, the smooth trunks reflect the orange rays of the sun. Great perspective photos.

  • Duration: +/- 2h
  • Distance: 60 km of track

Day 14: Morondava > Miandrivazo > Antsirabe

Long road today.We go to the East and the Central Highlands. We cross the characteristic savannas of the Menabe region. Before arriving in Antsirabe, the rice fields draw the landscape. Arrival in the afternoon in Antsirabe. We take the time for a short visit of the city and if you feel like it, a rickshaw ride, The mode of transport of the Antsirabiens

  • Duration: +/- 8h
  • Distance: 490 km

Day 15: Antsirabe > Ambositra > Ranomafana

Still on the National 7 we continue our progress towards the south.

In the village of Ambositra we go antiquing in the shops of the Zafimaniry craftsmen, in search of the piece of carved wood or the square of marquetry so finely worked. Walk in the village.

Continuing for Ranomafana, we enter Betsileo country. Here the road is more and more sinuous, we are towards the highest points of the High Plateaux of Madagascar.

We turn east and into the rainforest. Arrival at the end of the afternoon.

  • Duration: +/- 5h
  • Distance: 230 km

Day 16: Ranomafana national park > Fianarantsoa

Visit to Ranomafana national park. This site is one of the most beautiful that the primary and rain forest of Madagascar can offer.

Accompanied by our guide, we leave for a walking tour. Many species of lemurs are present such as the golden bamboo lemur, the red-fronted lemur or the red-bellied lemur. We also find rare and endangered species such as the Greater Bamboo Lemur. On the botanical level, the park is the genetic reservoir of certain rare and endemic plant species but also of many medicinal plants.

It is necessary to provide a rain cape for the visit.

We return to the RN7 to reach the city of Fianarantsoa.

  • Duration: +/- 3 hours of walking and +/- 2 hours of road
  • Distance: 70 km

Day 17: Fianarantsoa > Anja > Ranohira

We soon leave the Highlands. In Ambalavao, we visit the artisanal Antemoro paper factory. This centuries-old process for making this paper from the bark of the Avoha mulberry tree was introduced to Madagascar in the 15th century by the first Arab migrants to transcribe the Koran. It is still made in Ambalavao using the same processes.

Meeting with lemurs in the small reserve of Anja at the foot of large granite domes.

We cross the largest plateau in Madagascar made up of a beautiful herbaceous steppe punctuated by giant termite mounds, the Horombe. Ranohira is located at the foot of the ruiniform massif of Isalo and at the entrance to the National Park.

  • Duration: +/- 5h
  • Distance: 290 km
  • We organize your picnic lunch.

Day 18: Visit of the Isalo national park

We leave for a short transfer by vehicle at the foot of the cliff of Isalo.

With a small bag on the shoulder, we walk quietly through astonishing landscapes made of canyons, pools and rocks with magical erosions. The ruiniform massif of Isalo is a continental sandstone plateau dating from the Jurassic. Here, the rock has a very variable aspect, shape and composition. Nature has adapted to the dry climate. The park is a separate ecosystem; it has an endemic rupicolous vegetation made of Aloes, Euphorbias, Pachypodiums and Kalanchoe… We take our picnic in the Tapia forest. Around the site, excursions are possible and a walk to the peaks allows you to enjoy a magnificent view.

NB: the pace and duration of the walk depend on the participants (minimum 2 hours). Your guide will advise you.

  • Duration: from 2 to 4h walking, according to your desires!
  • We organize your picnic lunch.

Day 19: Ranohira > Tulear > Ifaty

We continue our progression towards the south-west, towards the coast.

The Ranohira -Tuléar road, 245 km long, crosses several botanical landscapes. The Mozambique Channel is visible long before reaching Tuléar. On the way, short stops at the Mahafaly tombs, so beautifully decorated, and so surprisingly erected with wooden sculptures. We arrive in town at the end of the morning. Walk around the always lively market, before lunch. Along the beach and the mangrove, we reach Ifaty.

  • Duration: +/- 6h
  • Distance: 280 km

Day 20: Day at leisure in Ifaty

This free day is the banks of the Mozambique Channel will allow you to taste the various activities offered by your hotel. For those who would like to enjoy the sea and the lagoon: diving, canoe trip with the Vezo fishermen, swimming or just lazing around. Hiking enthusiasts will be able to discover, inland, a specific and singular vegetation made up of euphorbias, baobabs, didieraceae, aloes. In the south, thorns are kings.

Day 21: Ifaty > Tulear > Antananarivo

Transfer to the airport for the return flight to Antananarivo. Depending on the flight schedule, we will take a walk in the shell market and on the seafront in Tulear and have lunch on site, either at the restaurant in Antananarivo, and we make a short stop at the craft market for some shopping. Transfer to the hotel in Tana.

NB: Depending on the domestic flight schedule, the program for this day may be modified.

  • Duration: 1h15 flight

Day 22: Antananarivo > Perinet national park

We take the road to the Périnet National Park. It is one of the country’s main roads that connects the major port, Tamatave, to the capital. Traffic is intense. We leave the Highlands by the Mandraka escarpment. Here begins the forest corridor which generally represents the eco-region which runs along the entire eastern part of Madagascar more or less continuously. Visit of the Butterfly Farm. We encounter an impressive concentration of chameleons, geckos, lizards and of course butterflies. We continue our journey east. Arrival at the end of the afternoon in the village of Andasibe.

  • Duration: +/- 4h
  • Distance: 150 km

Day 23: Visit of the Perinet park > Tamatave

Accompanied by guides from the park, we set off on foot to discover this protected area. It is mainly covered with primary forests specific to the eastern part of Madagascar. A whole set of rare and endemic species shelters in this dense rain forest. The biodiversity there is remarkable. It is here that we meet the Indri indri, the largest of the lemurs. Its behavior in a group is fascinating, your guide will introduce you to its customs. Many other species share this territory such as the gray bamboo lemur (Hapalémur griseus), the Avahi (Avahi laniger) etc. In addition, the specific flora is quite interesting. There are several varieties of medicinal plants. We return to our hotel at the end of the day.

We take the Ravinala road to reach the east coast and Tamatave.

  • Duration: +/- 4h
  • Distance: 200 km

Day 24: Tamatave > Sainte Marie

Very early breakfast at the hotel.

We take our vehicle to drive along the east coast to Mahambo. Very pleasant landscape of greenery and small villages.

The “EL CONDOR” takes us across the channel separating the small island from Grande Terre (+/- 3h30 by boat).

Here you are in one of those little paradises the Indian Ocean knows how to offer. Sainte Marie is a calm and quiet place, with of course white sand and coconut palms. Your guide accompanies you to Tamatave airport. Reception at Ste Marie airport provided by your hotelier.

  • Duration: +/-3h30 drive and  +/-3h30 by boat
  • Distance: 90 km

Days 25 and 26: Days at leisure in Sainte Marie

These days on Sainte Marie Island are free, the activities are at your convenience.

The best way to get around is by bike. You can rent mountain bikes to go to the east coast, visit the pirate cemetery and pedal along the sea lined with fishing villages.

You can go to Île aux Nattes at the far south of Sainte Marie. The crossing is done in a few minutes by canoe, the tour of the island on foot along the beach is a delight. Small restaurants or hotels are on the course to restore you. Possibility also to go out to sea for scuba diving or snorkeling towards the coral reef and in this lagoon with transparent waters. A lazy morning or day is also quite possible, the decor, warmth and atmosphere lend themselves perfectly.

Your guide does not accompany you during these free days in Ste Marie. Your hotelier will be able to advise you on the activities available.

Day 27: Sainte Marie > Antananarivo

Morning at leisure and transfer to the airport organized by the hotelier.

Flight towards the Malagasy capital.

  • Duration: 1h15 flight

Include:

  • The driver/guide throughout the trip, except in Nosy Be, Ifaty and Ste Marie,
  • A vehicle throughout the trip, except in Nosy Be, Ifaty and Ste Marie,
  • Accommodation of your choice (Standard or Superior), 
  • Entries to the parks and sites indicated,
  • Local guides and porters in the parks,
  • All transfers.

Not include:

  • International and domestic flights,
  • Activities in Nosy Be, Ifaty and Ste Marie,
  • Tips and drinks,
  • Your personal insurance,
  • The visa: +/- 35 €

RESERVATION – CONFIRMATION

Reservation: Please use the form below to book your trip or change this itinerary. We will respond within 24 hours.

Confirmation: It will be effective upon receipt of the completed registration form that we will send you, as well as a deposit of 30% of the total amount of the price of the travel.

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Price for this trip: from 2 245 €

Price per person | For a group of 4 people

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