Madagascar tour with North or South Extensions
Includes English speaking guide, entrance fees & transfers.
Excludes Visa & any additional tours not mentioned.
Description of Madagascar tour with North or South Extensions
Get a real sense of what Madagascar is like from the hustle and bustle of Antananarivo to the dense forests and wildlife of the protected national parks. Antananarivo has stunning architecture and is a unique blend of African and Indonesian cultures. From Antananarivo, your guide will take you east to Andasibe, a stunning rainforest park. 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. Look for Madagascar's most famous inhabitants, the lemur, as you explore this wildlife paradise punctuated with waterfalls and lush greenery.
Next stop is Mantadia National Park. 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. There are an abundance of birds including the scaly ground roller, the pitta-like ground roller and the red-breasted coua.
At the end of your visit enjoy a relaxing stay on a beach paradise. The island of Nosy Komba offers a different pace of life and your stay at your eco-resort ensures not only a wonderful end to your trip but the confidence that you are helping preserve this beautiful island. It combines a stylish and exclusive atmosphere, an excellent slow food cuisine and tailored-made excursions, in an atmosphere dominated by a commitment to comfortable luxury and ecology. Enjoy the freshest ingredients from the island's farmers and make the most of the sea with snorkeling, scuba diving and boat trips.
At the end of your island stay you will be returned to the mainland and transferred back to Antananarivo by plane for your return flight.
Meals are included as per the itinerary and prices are based on two people sharing a twin/double room. Each of our itineraries is a guide and can be tailored to your exact requirements and interests. We can also assist with booking flights.
Itinerary
| Day 1 | Upon arrival into Ivato Airport you will be greeted by an English speaking guide who will accompany you to your hotel in the town of Antananarivo. ‘Tana’ – as the locals call it has fascinating traditional architecture and a more Indonesian influence than the rest of Madagascar. Maison Gallieni is a restored colonial mansion with an elegant mix of modern and traditional décor. Take a dip in the pool and enjoy the lovely views over the city before dinner. (D) |
| Day 2 | After an early breakfast, your guide will take you east to Andasibe, a stunning rainforest park, about 5 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. (B, L, D) |
| Day 3 | 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. (B, L, D) |
| Day 4 | 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. Back to your hotel for lunch and head back to Antananarivo afterwards (5hrs). (B, L, D) |
| Day 5 | After your breakfast, meet with your English-speaking guide and transfer back to Ivato Airport in time for your Tsaradia flight to Nosy Be (3hrs). Upon arrival, you will be welcomed by a Tsara Komba staff member and transferred to the lodge (1hr) by road and by boat. The Tsara Komba Lodge is a 4-star luxury hotel with a rare and authentic charm, in perfect keeping with nature and with the area’s outstanding biodiversity. It combines a stylish and exclusive atmosphere, an excellent slow food cuisine and tailored-made excursions, in an atmosphere dominated by a commitment to comfortable luxury and ecology. Experience the gentle caress of the wind, the bird songs and the sound of the waves lapping around this former volcano today covered by an abundant forest, bordered by a sapphire blue sea with excellent golden sandy beaches. The preservation of this sublime environment and the community-minded activities being pursued here to encourage harmonious sustainable development for the benefit of the local population are just two of the ethical aspects of this marvelous eco-paradise. (B, L, D) |
| Day 6-7 | Fill your days with your own selection of activities. The hotel can arrange customised excursions to neighboring islands, nature reserves, for fishing, quad biking, tours around the island, scuba-diving or snorkeling. All these activities are just few minutes away from the hotel for you to admire and explore the sheer beauty of the ocean depths. (B, L, D) |
| Day 8 | This morning you will transfer back to Nosy Be by boat and road in time for your international flight (B) |
Price information
Includes English speaking guide, entrance fees & transfers.
Excludes Visa & any additional tours not mentioned.
Departure information
Travel guides
Holiday information
Responsible Travel
Planet
EnvironmentIn a fragile environment, with traditional cultures and values, eco-tourism is an essential tool to sustainably manage our impact we choose only to work with those that are equally as committed. The properties are small and deliberately isolated from the local community to reduce the social and environmental impact from tourism.
River Camp is fully solar-powered, drawing all its electric and hot water needs from the sun. This helps to contribute to the protection of the environment by reducing the carbon footprint and not adding to the pressure of deforestation in Madagascar.
Beach Lodge – meets all its electricity needs through 100% solar sources. There are ongoing tree planning projects and the staff at the facility work very hard to ensure the environmental impact is kept to a minimum.
Both properties are kept small to limit the carbon footprint, while modern amenities are available such as electric points to charge phones to meet the expectations of western travellers.
People
CommunityRiver Camp: As the camp is based in the heart of the Antandroy area it has a very close relationship with the local community. All the guided walks are in community forests and the camp has helped the local community build a school for the youngsters and help with supplies of satchels, pens, books etc. With an area like this which is so steeped in tradition the staff are very careful about what they do to help retain the traditions but help the community in every way possible benefit from tourism.
Beach Lodge: It has been involved with the village building class rooms for the school and maintaining the buildings to keep them leak free and usable all year long. The lodge has also supplied satchels, pens and books to the students. Through a kind donation from one of the guests the lodge supplied the local fishermen with life jackets and have seen a dramatic drop in lives lost at sea (0 in the last 3 years since the jackets were supplied). An ongoing project - working on building some toilet facilities in the local village.
Tsara Comba lodge: The preservation of this sublime environment and the community-minded activities being pursued here to encourage harmonious sustainable development for the benefit of the local population are just two of the ethical aspects of this marvelous eco-paradise.
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