Itinerary
Road to the South
From / to Antananarivo airport, 15 days / 14 nights, all year tour
Highlights:
Ranomafana NP –
Anja Private Park –
Fenêtre de l’Isalo –
Isalo NP –
Ifaty Beach –
Grotte de Sarodrano –
Towns: Antananarivo – Antsirabe – Ambositra – Fianarantsoa – Ambalavao – Ranohira – Toliara (Tuléar)
Group departures guaranteed with a minimum of six persons, 22nd June and 20th July 2009, Price is 1700 Euro sharing
We spend 15 days exploring this little African Australia that is historically, culturally, and biologically unique in the African continent. We visit most of the four different climate regions of this, the 4th largest island in the world (alter Greenland, Borneo and New Guinea). Almost all the island, except the southern shores, is within the tropics and it is some 400 km east of the coast of Mozambique, to which it fits like a jigsaw puzzle. It is a little larger than France or Kenya, almost the size of California. Puerto Rico fits 64 times in Madagascar.
Day 1
Antananarivo, the capital of Madagascar. Meet and greet with your tour manager. Depending on the schedule a city tour to Antananarivo including the point of view of the old king’s palace. Night in Les Hautes Terres hotel.
Included meals: dinner
Day 2
Continuing southward to Antsirabe, known as the 'city where we can find much minerals’. Antsirabe is a memorable town to visit. The drive takes us across the highland landscape with its beautiful rice fields and its spectacular eroded hills called ‘lavaka’ and through a green landscape where vegetables and fruits are farmed. En-route we stop in Ambatolampy for a short visit. We stay for two nights at des Thermes, in centre town, surrounded by an elegant garden.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 3
The countryside around Antsirabe is worth exploring, especially the lakes to the west of the town like mystic Lac Tritriva. We also stop at Lac Andraikiba, a large artificial lake, said to be haunted by the ghost of a pregnant girl who drowned there. Antsirabe is also a centre precious and semi-precious stones and numerous street vendors and stalls offering souvenir stones. In some places you can watch them being cut and polished.
Included meals: breakfast, barbecue dinner
Day 4
After breakfast we take a short drive to the town of Ambositra, the arts and crafts centre of Madagascar. Here we seek out woodcarvings, raffia baskets, coloured wood collages (marqueterie) and paintings among the dozens of artisans' shops in town. Their artwork got recently UNESCO cultural heritage. We stay in L'Artisan hotel.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 5
Going to Ranomafana to see the Ranomafana rainforest. In the afternoon we visit the thermal bath. We stop in Sahambavy Tea estate, the only tea plantation in Madagascar. In Ranomafana we visit the small museum and the thermal station. Two nights in Tropic village.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 6
Visit of the Ranomafana rainforest. Probably we will find lots of birds, frogs, lemurs and other species. We hope to see red-bellied lemurs, red-fronted lemurs, and diadema sifakas. Although present, the golden bamboo Lemur and the broad-nosed gentle Lemur, are more difficult to find. The park is also flora rich with orchids, tree ferns, palms mosses, trumpet flowers and stands of giant bamboo. Here we will enjoy a day walk in the park. Later we embark on a trek in the Reserve, coming across many nocturnal rainforest species, for example the tiny mousemaki, or fossa, a predator about the size of a cat.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 7
Leaving Ranomafana we drive through a number of small villages before reaching Ambalavao, with its brightly painted buildings, is one of Madagascar's most beautiful towns. In Ambalavao we visit Soavita vineyard for wine tasting as well as the ‘Antaimoro Paper factory'. The paper factory is a vestige of the Arabian civilisation in the island. Here paper is made from scratch using the bark of the avoha bush. After a series of steps, fresh flowers are pressed into the paper to make attractive cards, envelopes and picture frames. Night at hotel aux Bougainvillées.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 8
Continuing on we stop south of Ambalavao at Anja Villagers Park with superb scenery, plants, Betsileo history, caves and tombs and ring-tailed lemurs. We take a one-hour walk into the park before continuing along the road to Isalo. Late afternoon we will dry to catch sunset at the 'fenêtre de l’Isalo'. This natural rock window offers the opportunity for a great sunset photo. Three nights in Hotel Le Joyau de l’Isalo.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 9
Today we visit to Isalo National Park, taking a day hike in this surreal park. This park is fiercely beautiful with golden plains punctuated by craggy pinnacles of terracotta rock, valleys, canyons and waterfalls. The Isalo National Park comprises the entire stretch of the Isalo massif. This huge mountain is spectacular with its eroded sandstone mountain. On our trek we can refresh ourselves on the way at a waterfall or the blue and the black lake.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 10
Along the way, we will be on the lookout for various lemurs such as sifakas, brown lemurs and ringtails. The park is also home to approximately 55 species of birds, in particular Benson’s Rock Thrush, which is endemic to Isalo, as well as lizards, and snakes, which are welcome in this park.
In the afternoon we will hike approximately 6 kilometres to the 'natural swimming pool'.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 11
We continue to Toliara (Tuléar), the terminal of the National road N° 7. Here we experience new scenery, which is comprised of the dry forests of the west, the spiny desert of the south and the spectacular baobabs. Here is the driest part of the country. The landscape is dominated by spiny forest-like cactus and different euphorbia plants. Then before arriving to Toliara town, we will see the beautiful Mahafaly and Antandroy tombs painted in many colours and decorated with ‘aloalo’, wood-carved funeral monuments. Close to the Mozambique Canal, Toliara is built on the Tropic of Capricorn. The town is painted in light colours. That is the reason why the people from the highlands call it the white city. The approach to the city is exceptional: you can see large sand dunes, which run, along the coast. Hotel Le Paille en Queue for three nights.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 12
From Toliara we take a drive north along the coast to beach of Ifaty. Here we have a break. The coral reef represents an exceptional spot. In the western area you can find the local fauna and flora like baobabs, birds… We visit also a natural park near the lagoon of Ranobe, the ‘village of the tortoises’. Ifaty the offers us the opportunity to explore the coral reef for snorkelling. We also discover spiky bush in which will come across didieracees, euphorbias, cactacea and enormous baobabs. Ifaty’s reef is called ‘the coral garden’ as it mixes together with channels that link the open sea to an exceptionally attractive lagoon.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 13
We will drive to the Grotte de Sarodrano. This natural rock pool cave, just beside from the sea, is of fresh water. We continue the cobbled road towards St. Augustin, a small fisher village. St. Augustin is full of history, and was the site of pirates. Later we take a pirogue for a two hours tour on the Onilahy River.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 14
Transfer to the airport of Toliara (Tuléar) and we board our one-hour flight that will take us across to Antananarivo. Night in Les Hautes Terres hotel.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 15
Transfer to Ivato Airport. If there is space we will have a walk around at the town of Antananarivo.
Included meals: breakfast,
Complementary Information:
Duration of the tour: 15 days
Car or minibus: 5 days
Trekking: 3,5 days plus one tour of two hours
Pirogue: 2 hours
Excursions: 3 days
Included: overnight in the hotels in double room, meals as mentioned (including 1 ½ l of mineral water per person per day), going by car or Minibus, all transfers, all entrance fees, English speaking tour leader, local guides in all visited parks, tip for local guides, waiters, porters. The tour can be changed according to circumstances.
Not included: flights, drinks except mentioned, private expenses.
Please note: for this tour is one inbound flight required that is not included in the tour price.
This tour is customizable.
Complementary Information:
Duration of the tour: 15 days
Car or minibus: 5 days
Trekking: 3,5 days plus one tour of two hours
Pirogue: 2 hours
Excursions: 3 days
Please note: for this tour is one inbound flight required that is not included in the tour price.
This tour is customizable.
Group departures guaranteed with a minimum of six persons, 22nd June and 20th July 2009, Price is 1700 Euro sharing
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Group departures guaranteed with a minimum of six persons, 22nd June and 20th July 2009, Price is 1700 Euro sharing
2 persons - 2750 Euro per person
3 persons - 2700 Euro per person
4 persons - 2500 Euro per person
5 persons - 2300 Euro per person
6 persons - 1990 Euro per person
7 or 8 persons - 1900 Euro per person
9 or 10 persons - 1800 Euro per person
11 or 12 persons - 1700 Euro per person
Single room surcharge 425 Euro
Prices in Euro per person.
Also see tour packages in:
Africa
Madagascar
Nature & Wildlife
Wildlife Viewing
Hiking & Trekking
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