After a late breakfast, your guide will take you east to Andasibe, a stunning rainforest park, about 4 hours’ drive from the city. Stop along the route for a picnic lunch. Andasibe consists of two protected areas, the Perinet Special Reserve and Mantadia National Park. Perinet is world famous for its population of Indri lemurs, which are the largest living lemur species. The journey to Andasibe offers first time visitors to Madagascar an introduction to rural life with rice fields, redbrick houses and roadside stalls selling seasonal fruits and vegetables lining the route. This afternoon, visit a private reserve operated by local NGO Mitsinjo. The NGO funds reforestation, community education and sensitization to conservation issues as well as running Madagascar’s first amphibian captive-breeding facility. Here you will see a stunning array of wildlife and can also plant an indigenous species along the reforestation trail.
After an early breakfast, your guide will take you east to Andasibe, a stunning rainforest park, about 4 hours’ drive from the city. The park consists of two protected areas, the Perinet Special Reserve and Mantadia National Park. Perinet is world famous for its population of Indri lemurs, which are the largest living lemur species. The journey to Andasibe offers first time visitors to Madagascar an introduction to rural life with rice fields, redbrick houses and roadside stalls selling seasonal fruits and vegetables lining the route. Check into hotel for lunch. This afternoon, visit a private reserve operated by local NGO Mitsinjo. The NGO funds reforestation, community education and sensitization to conservation issues as well as running Madagascar’s first amphibian captive-breeding facility. Here you will see a stunning array of wildlife and can also plant an indigenous species along the reforestation trail.
After breakfast you will head to Mantadia National Park (1.5 hour drive) with a picnic lunch. Look for some of the lemur species in this stunning park including the Indri indri, diademed sifaka, grey bamboo lemur, red-bellied lemur and white ruffed lemur. While the trails are slightly more difficult, the rewards are great as the forest is taller, wilder and less crowded than Perinet. There are an abundance of birds including the scaly ground roller, the pitta-like ground roller and the red-breasted coua. This is a naturalist’s goldmine with many seldom seen species of mammals, reptiles and birds. Enjoy a picnic by the Rianasoa Waterfall before hiking back to the vehicle and return to the lodge. A night walk will be organised in late evening in the forest surrounding the reserve with a local guide. You will see a variety of nocturnal lemurs: mouse lemurs, white footed sportive lemur, fat-tailed dwarf lemur, as well as the woolly lemur.
After breakfast, enjoy a visit to the 810 ha Perinet Reserve with a local guide in search of the Indri indri. With a barely visible tail, black and white markings and a surprised teddy–bear face, this lemur is one of the few animals in the world that cannot survive in captivity. There are another 11 species of lemur to spot as you walk through the rainforest. You may find a troop of grey bamboo lemurs, common brown lemur, diademed sifaka and the black and white ruffed lemur. Birdwatchers should look out for the velvet asity, the blue coua and the Nuthatch vanga and many more endemic species. Perinet is home to many reptiles, invertebrates, and some of Madagascar’s over a thousand orchid species.
Return to the lodge for lunch and in the afternoon, drive back to Tana. In the evening, your guide will accompany you to Le Marais, the top restaurant in Madagascar from Chef Lalaina who has received numerous culinary awards in Europe. Le Marais offers a unique blend of Malagasy and European cuisine using the best Malagasy ingredients.
Transfer to the airport in time for your Tsaradia national flight to Tulear (2hrs). On arrival at the airport, meet with your English speaking guide and drive to Isalo (4hrs).
The combination of sandstone rocks cut by deep canyons and eroded into spectacular shapes and rare endemic plants, makes Isalo one of Madagascar’s most appreciated parks. For botanists there are Pachypodium plants and locally endemic Aloe; and for lemur lovers there are sifakas, brown lemurs and ring tails. Isalo is also sacred to the Bara tribe; for hundreds of years they have used caves in the canyon walls as burial sites. If time allows, depart in the late afternoon for a sundowner at the iconic Giorgio’s Window.
Full day of guided walking in the park will allow you to explore one of Madagascar's most diverse parks. Very different to the lush tropical vegetation in the east, Isalo's attraction is its vast rolling plains interspersed with stunning rock formations. Wildlife is not as dense as in other parks but look out for ring-tailed lemurs, brown lemurs, sifakas and 14 nocturnal lemur species hiding in dense vegetation along the streams. There are also 80 species of bird (including the rare Benson’s rock-thrush, the knob-billed duck or the crested ibis), 35 species of reptiles and several endemic frogs. Your guide will offer you a variety of possible trails depending on your interests and physical abilities. A popular trail is the ‘Canyon des Singes’ which winds through the dense foliage of the forest and brilliantly colored rock formations to reach a stunning rock pool called the ‘piscine naturelle’.
After an early breakfast, drive (1hr) to Zombitse National Park, a 36,300 hectare transition forest between the western and the southern habitat types, rich in biodiversity. The park is outstanding for birdwatchers as it offers the chance to glimpse one of Madagascar’s rarest endemics, Appert’s greenbul, which is confined to this forest. Other bird species include the giant coua and crested coua. This is also a great location to spot sifakas and sportive lemurs. After a 1 - 2 hour walk in the forest, drive to the stunning Bakuba Lodge (3 hours) near Tulear. Upon arrival you will check into your hotel and enjoy the pool and beautiful views over the Mozambique channel.
After breakfast, transfer to the pier where you will be met by a staff from Anakao Ocean Lodge then continue to the lodge by speed boat (45 minutes). Anakao Ocean lodge has 30 seaview rooms made from beautiful local materials. Each room has air conditioning, a private balcony, king sized bed, mini bar, safe and ensuite bathroom. The lodge is set on a stunning beach lapped by the azure waters of the Mozambique channel. The restaurant serves an enticing blend of French and Malagasy cuisine using the best of local ingredients.
This morning, depart by 4x4 for a full day visit to the Tsimanampetsotsa National Park. This is a stunning national park situated 50km south of Anakao. The focus of the park is a shallow soda lake which is a Ramsar Site and is home to flamingos and a variety of salt water birds. In addition to the lake, the park is a prime example of spinny forest, an eco-system found only in southern Madagascar. Five species of lemur are found here, including the Ring Tailed lemur, the White-footed Sportive and the Reddish-gray Mouse Lemur. In addition to lemurs there are 112 species of bird, 40 species of reptile and one of the highest levels of plant endemism in Madagascar.
Mid-morning, depart by boat from the lodge to explore some of the nearby islands including Nosy Ve. The island is home to the world’s southernmost breeding colony of red-tailed tropic-birds and has stunning white sand beaches and a beautiful reef for snorkelling. Visit the nesting site then head for a delicious barbeque lunch prepared by the lodge staff before relaxing on the beach and enjoying some world class snorkelling.
Nosy Ve
Early this morning depart by boat from the lodge to the main port at Tulear. There you will transfer by road to the airport in time for your national flight to Antananarivo.
On arrival you will be met by your English-speaking guide and transfer to your hotel. In the afternoon, drive to Ambohimanga, 20 km north-east of Tana. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is the ancestral home on the Merina kings and queens who united Madagascar under one rule. It is a fortified sacred hill with 16 gates leading to king Andrianampoinimerina’s house (ruled 1787 – 1810) and a series of elegant royal summer homes.
Transfer to the airport in time for your international flight.
