Madagascar Wildlife Highlights

Arrive Antananarivo (Tana). Met on arrival and transfer to your hotel.

Today your holiday begins in earnest with a drive to the east (5 hours in total but with stops) from Tana to Andasibe.

In the evening, you can explore the community managed VOIMMA Reserve, part of Analamazaotra that receives fewer visitors than surrounding forest areas and is particularly good for night walks. This walk may reveal the nocturnal Goodman’s mouse lemur, the Eastern woolly lemur, and the furry-eared (Crossley’s) dwarf lemur, plus sleeping chameleons and frogs.

Today we rise early to drive 1 hour 30 minutes north on a bumpy track to Mantadia National Park. Here we can enjoy spending the morning exploring the wonderful primary rainforest of this vast protected area with its special wildlife.

The majestic old growth rainforest of Mantadia is the best location to spot the acrobatic black-and-white ruffed lemur. Colourful Baron’s mantella frogs may be seen as well as interesting array of insects and special birdlife. Avian highlights could include the beautiful pitta-like ground roller, nuthatch vanga and red-fronted and blue couas.

This afternoon you can return to the lodge to rest. In the evening take another night walk in the nearby Orchidee Park for nocturnal sightings.

Today explore the community managed Mitsinjo Reserve on morning and afternoon guided walks where there is an excellent opportunity to see the indri up close.

The local guides at Mitsinjo have habituated several groups of indris which often come lower in the trees to take a closer look and sometimes receive a handout of their favourite leaves. This intimacy makes for an unforgettable sighting and also photographic opportunity. Take a final night walk in the forest here once dark.

This morning visit the Analamazaotra (Perinet) Reserve to enjoy more lemur encounters. This section of forest is the best location to see the stunningly beautiful diademed sifaka as well as the common brown and eastern grey bamboo lemurs. Chameleons and endemic birdlife and fascinating insects will be other highlights.

In the afternoon return by road through rice growing country back to your hotel in Tana for the night.

Transfer to the airport and take flight to Tulear in the arid south of the country.

From Tulear, transfer 30 minutes to the Honko Mangrove Project for a guided tour of the sustainably managed and restored mangrove ecosystem of the Bay of Ranobe. On your leisurely and interpretative walk on boardwalks through the mangroves look out for mudskippers, mangrove crabs, dragonflies and Madagascar swamp warblers.

Later after lunch continue 10 minutes to your beachside hotel in Ifaty. Wetlands along the journey can offer sightings of Madagascar plover, painted snipe, greater flamingos and other waders. Enjoy time at Leisure.

Morning to explore the local spiny forest habitat, dominated by the thorny Didiereacae, or octopus, trees and the local baobab, Andansonia rubrostipa (fony).

As well as learning about the flora, this is a superb birdwatching area with a number of special endemic bird species to see including the sub-desert mesite and the brilliant long-tailed ground roller. There are also many reptiles ranging from the three-eyed lizard and warty chameleon to the blonde hog-nosed snake.

Later in the morning take a boat trip to hopefully spot humpback whales offshore.

Relax for the rest of the day. In the early evening return to the unique spiny forest to watch the sunset over the baobabs and stay till dark to spot the fascinating nocturnal wildlife of this forest.

This morning visit the Ifaty Tortoise Village where rescued radiated and spider tortoises are cared for before being released back to the wild.

Depart Ifaty and drive to the Antsokay Arboretum to learn about the medicinal uses of the spiny forest plants. Continue after lunch through vast open plains to Isalo National Park. A scenic journey of around 4 hours.

Today explore the spectacular Isalo National Park. The park is a runiforme limestone massif, with impressive scenery, unusual plants like the endemic ‘elephant’s foot’ Pachypodium rosalatum and is a sacred burial ground for the local Bara tribe.

Perhaps take the gentle walk through the Namahaza canyon home to ring-tailed and red-fronted brown lemurs. Or take a refreshing dip in the natural pools.

Today rise early to visit Zombitse National Park which acts as a transition zone between the dry and the humid forests of Madagascar. The flora is especially rich with bottle baobab trees and many orchids and the Appert's tetraka and Zombitse (Hubbard's) sportive lemur are both specialities of the park.

Other wildlife to look for includes the strikingly colourful standing's day gecko several species of vanga, the giant coua and the agile Verreaux's sifaka.

After the guided walk, return to the lodge for lunch. In the late afternoon perhaps visit another section of Isalo National Park for a sunset view or enjoy time at leisure.

This morning drive north through stunning mountain scenery and past small highland villages to the lovely Anja park. Here you can enjoy unforgettably close encounters with habituated groups of ring-tailed lemurs as they go about their day. With your guide's help you may also spot the giant Oustalet’s and a tiny brookesia chameleon here.

After lunch nearby continue the drive to Ranomafana National Park stopping at points of interest.

Today explore Ranomafana National Park on morning and afternoon guided walks to discover the rich biodiversity of this rainforest. Ranomafana is an exceptionally rich high-altitude cloud forest with an extraordinary range of lemurs, birds, frogs, and reptiles.

With the expertise of your local spotter search for the famous golden bamboo lemurs for which the park was created along with many other exciting species. The rare Milne Edwards sifaka and superbly camouflaged satanic leaf-tailed gecko could be other highlights of your walks.

In the evening take a night walk to spot tiny mouse lemurs, frogs and sleeping chameleons.

This morning take a drive and kayak along a stretch of beautiful the river en route to the nearby Kianjavato Forest Reserve, managed by the Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership.

Explore this little visited rainforest reserve with two local field researchers studying the greater bamboo lemur and black-and-white ruffed lemur.

In addition to its important research and educational work, the organisation also plants millions of native trees to reverse the decline in rainforest acreage, which you can help support through your insightful visit.

For those interested a special nocturnal excursion to look for radio collared aye aye and other lemurs and tenrecs can be arranged this evening.

Enjoy a second day of morning and afternoon walks in Ranomafana National Park or perhaps visit the village and Thermal bath. The gentle and flatter Vohipara Trail is a good choice for spotting the beautiful red-bellied lemur and many rare birds such as the brown mesite, ground rollers and sunbird asities as well as rare frogs.

Today will be the longest drive north (7-8 hours depending on local conditions) to Antsirabe, but with stops at points of interest along the way. These could include the woodcarving centre of Ambositra or highland villages or birdwatching spots.

Arrive at the handicraft market of Antsirabe; an attractive Hauts Plateaux spa town.

This morning depart Antsirabe after breakfast and a short tour of the city. Drive 4 hours back to the Antananarivo airport in time to take onward flights or overnight.