Tailor Made Holidays in Madagascar: Highlights

Charter a private yacht around Madagascar's northern islands

Whilst most people flock to Nosy Be to relax, we have found something much better. Instead of staying in a hotel charter your own yacht and set off exploring. Yachts are well competitively priced and come with a skipper, chef and English speaking guide. Spend the days sailing around the remote Nosy Mitsio and Radama Islands. Swim, snorkel and then enjoy a seafood barbeque lunch on a remote beach. Your chef will buy fish from the local fishermen so if you feel like lobster, crayfish, squid or prawns just let him know and he’ll buy it straight from a passing pirogue. Waters are turquoise, you often see turtles coming up for air as you go, or dolphins following the boat. At night, you’ll moor up in a sheltered cove, enjoy dinner on the deck with a chilled glass of wine and an incredible night sky overhead.

Read more about: The Islands & Beaches of Madagascar
 
Discover the Upper Town in Tana

The Upper Town (Antaninarenina & Isoraka) in Tana is a lovely place for a stroll, with art shops, craft boutiques and the President's Palace. We recommend starting early in the morning and heading down the steps to the old market place for a happy half hour wandering around the stalls and looking at the produce, which includes everything from tiny chilli peppers to mangrove crabs caked in mud. At the end of your walk we recommend stopping at the patisserie adjoining the Hotel Cobert for a cup of coffee and a cake.

 
Hear the indris call in Andasibe National Park

The best way to hear and see the indri is on a morning walk in the Andasibe National Park. There are three paths through the dense rainforest and you can choose to explore on two-, four- or six-hour loops. These furry lemurs are best seen early in the morning as they call at dawn and dusk and sleep in the middle of the day. Hearing the calls as they echo across several kilometres is an evocative sound you can only hear in Madagascar.

Read more about: Andasibe National Park (Perinet)
 
Hike in the Amber Mountain National Park

A morning spent hiking in the Amber Mountain National Park is a must. There are a number of paths to explore in the park, some of the prettiest leading to two waterfalls - the Cascade d'Antomboka and Cascade Sacree. Explore with your guide and discover a number of different lemur species including the endearing crowned lemur, as well as plentiful birds, frogs and chameleons. Following a hike you can wander around the small nearby village of Joffreville. With its crumbling colonial houses and tiny stalls selling pineapples, bananas and mangos this is a total contrast to the park, but just as fascinating.

Read more about: Amber Mountain National Park & Joffreville
 
Relax on remote Nosy Komba Island

Nosy Komba is the perfect place to escape the hustle and bustle of its neighbouring island Nosy Be. Small secluded coves and beaches shelving away into crystal clear waters allow for good snorkelling and total relaxation. Much of the island is covered in thick vegetation and exploring the island on foot with a guide heading off into the hills is a rewarding way to sample some of the island’s wildlife. Fishermen rowing by in pirogues offer a glimpse into Malagasy life with their boats overflowing with their morning catch as they make their way back to the markets.

Read more about: Nosy Komba
 
Relax on Tsarabanjina Island

One of the best places to relax in Madagascar is the private island of Tsarabanjina. It has pure white sand gently shelving into clear blue water, you can swim from the beach all day and there is good snorkelling around the rocky outcrops. You can spend the day relaxing in your hammock, snoozing on the beach or exploring further afield on dive and snorkel trips. The sunset is best from the southeast point of the island (just above the dining room), so sit up on the rocks with a drink and enjoy the colours. The food is superb, there are plentiful rum cocktails and after just a few hours here you already feel totally relaxed!

Read more about: Tsarabanjina Island
 
Swim in a rock pool in Isalo National Park

The rugged plateau of Isalo National Park provides some of the most stunning scenery in Madagascar. Hiking across the baking rocks is exhilarating, but hot and thirsty work. However, deep within the canyons are several gorgeous tropical pools, where your walking will be rewarded by a refreshing dip. A short, sharp hike takes you up to the Piscine Naturelle, while keen hikers can visit the black and blue pools, which lie deep in one of the furthest canyons. A swim is the perfect way to round off a day in Isalo, and it is well worth making space in your day bag for your costume!

Read more about: Isalo National Park
 
Take a walk in the sacred Ifotaka Community Forest

The Antandroy people of Ifotaka have strong Ancestral beliefs and walking in their sacred forests with them is a wonderful and insightful way of experiencing this. Initially you will be blessed into the sacred forest by one of the local elders, before learning about their meaning of life and death in this remote community, and visiting the Ancestors large decorated tombs. The forests here are also home to ring-tailed lemurs, sifakas and numerous endemic birds. Your time exploring these forests will be rewarding and is one of the most unique experiences one can have in this most unusual country.

Read more about: Ifotaka Community Forest
 
Take an early morning walk in Masoala National Park

One of the highlights of any trip to Madagascar is walking in the rainforests of the Masoala National Park. A walk usually starts along the beach, its soft yellow sand often damp from rain in the night, before heading into the cool dark forest. Here there are huge buttress roots, wild ginger plants, liquorice bushes and spongy leaf litter underneath your feet, with tiny frogs jumping out of the path and chameleons, snakes, tree-frogs and other creatures in the branches. One of the main reasons for the walks is to find lemurs, particularly the red-ruffed lemurs that only occur in this part of the island. Seeing their coats gleaming in the sun in the tops of the trees is ample reward for the effort.

Read more about: Masoala National Park
 
Take an evening bike ride on Ile Ste Marie

The best way to explore Ile Sainte Marie is on an evening bicycle ride, when the air is cool and the roads are shaded by the trees that flank them. You can ride your bike along the dirt roads, weaving in and out of the potholes that often have ducks or a couple of geese swimming on them. It’s a good way to explore the villages and at dusk there is the smell of cooking and the sound of music coming from the houses. You might like to stop for a drink in a local bar or cycle down to the beach and watch the sunset.

Read more about: Île Sainte-Marie
 
Tea in The Oasis at Anjajavy

Anjajavy is a beautiful hotel on Madagascar’s remote west coast, perched between the ocean and the forest. The hotel has created a beautiful tropical garden called The Oasis where afternoon tea is served at 5pm every day. Sitting drinking tea and eating cake in the shade is lovely, however the real excitement begins when the troops of Coquerel’s sifakas and brown lemurs come leaping through the trees. The Oasis is on their path and they often come through at around tea time. Tea with lemurs is not an experience you ever tend to forget!

Read more about: Anjajavy l'Hôtel
 
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