Upon your arrival in Antananarivo, you will be met and transferred to your hotel. Due to the late arrival time of most flights, our welcome briefing will take place after breakfast on day 2.
Overnight in Antananarivo.

After breakfast and our welcome briefing, we enjoy the scenic drive to Ambohimanga (Blue Hill)(UNESCO Cultural Site), where the former Merina monarchs had their summer palaces until the last century. It's a beautiful and peaceful place with lovely views over the highlands, and a perfect way of gaining some insight into the fascinating and turbulent history of the Malagasy (pronounced Malagash) people. You may taste your first Malagasy menu at Le Relais du Rova .

This afternoon, we visit the Akany Avoko orphanage , an eco-friendly refuge offering shelter, care and the opportunity to develop skills to enable their children to grow into self-sufficient adults.
Overnight in Antananarivo.

Today we leave the hotel and have a transfer to the  airport for our domestic flight to Morondava, on the west coast, which was the capital of Sakalava kingdom and their tombs in the past . We arrive at our hotel along the Mozambic channel on time to freshen up for lunch. In the afternoon visit of the city and later,  the “Baobabs Avenue” for our first ‘sundown’ pictures.  

 Overnight in Morondava .

 After an early breakfast we will take 4 wheel drive cars  to discover the dry deciduous  Kirindy Forest, one of the   most  rewarding natural areas in Madagascar. It is arguably ,the best place to see the wildlife of the western and if lucky , we may see some “fossa”(Cryptoprocta ferox ) Madagascar’s  largest carnivore ,the “giant jumping rat” (“Hypogeomys antimena “only found here) and the narrow-striped mongoose.  

After a picnic lunch we will head back to the “Baobabs Avenue “  for a second ‘sundown’ pictures.  

Overnight in Morondava.

 After breakfast we will leave Morondava and the Mozambic channel  to Miandrivazo one of the hottest place in the island. We will drive through typical Madagascar savannah  landscape , observing Malagasy lowland village with, its animated “Zebu market” (depending on the day) .  We arrive at our hotel on time to freshen up for lunch.      In the afternoon by walk and using canoes ,we will discover some aspect of  the Malagasy  life  through few visits of  fishermen village , gold miners at work and later , time permitting local rhum producers.

Overnight in Miandrivazo.

Today we will  leave slowly the lowland  to  the  highlands with its typical landscapes of rice fields and Malagasy architecture.  We can appreciate some Malagasy menu in a‘local hotely ‘(restaurant)  for  the  lunch .We will reach Antsirabe in the afternoon and explore this beautiful town  situated at an altitude of 4,900 ft (1,493 m) by pousse-pousse (rickshaw).

Overnight in Antsirabe.

After an early  breakfast, we continue our journey through the highlands, taking the RN.7  until Ambatolampy ,a charming High plateau town  ,where villagers are famous for their aluminium work mainly the “marmites”cooking pots . This part of RN.7  is particularly  lively in this  period . After the rice harvest  many rice fields are used for the manufacture of bricks by villagers  .  This is also the time  for the “Famadihana”  (“re-wrapping”of  ancestors)  , and the  “Didimpotra” (circumcision) for the boys. 

We will have lunch in La Pineta Restaurant (Ambatolampy)

After lunch we continue until Tana the capital ,through striking scenery of the Highlands with its terraced hill and colourful  bustling village markets ,selling various products :from raffia made handicrafts to … banjos.

Overnight in Antananarivo

Today we will take the RN.2 heading to the East , to reach Analamazaotra Special Reserve, driving  through mountains  till the Zahamena Corridor.      We stop enroute at “Peyreiras Exotic  farm”  to see various endemic reptiles such as : chameleons, geckos, boas.    The reserve was named after the river which traverses it, and  is an example of montane rainforest covering some 8 sq kilometers at an altitude between 930 to 1040m .Analamazaotra (or Perinet) is home to : 11 lemur species including the “Indri Indri”, the diademed sifaka  and  the black and white ruffed lemur (if Lucky) . More than 100 bird species have been identified in the park , Analamazaotra is also home to the locally endemic “Ravenea louvelii” palm tree. 

Late this afternoon, we will have the first of several nature walks in the region.

Overnight in Andasibe .

This morning after breakfast , we take the car and drive until the entrance of the Reserve ,from where start the walk to spot for the famous three foot tall “Indri Indri ”, the largest of the actual lemur species, which can live for up to 30 years and can jump upwards of 30 feet! Early in the morning, it is possible to hear their haunting song which can be heard for several miles. We will be on the watch as well  for grey bamboo lemurs, common brown lemurs, diademed sifakas and chameleons, of which eight species are found here. There are about some 24 species of endemic  amphibians and  reptiles ,plus 11 species of Tenrec to this reserve.  

After  lunch we enjoy some free time before an hour  visit to Andasibe Village .   

Overnight in Andasibe.

Today we go deeper into the Corridor by visiting the Mitsinjo Forest ,with a second  opportunity to see lemurs ,and  where Indri Indris sometimes come really close . Our visit will contribute as well ,indirectly to the support of conservation measures and reforestation promotion leaded by  Mitsinjo NGO , the villagers’association  managing this forest.

After  lunch we enjoy some free time before a  visit to “The Lemur’s island”.  .   

Overnight in Andasibe.

After an early breakfast we make our way down east to the Palmarium , situated on the west side of Ampitabe Lake ,also known as Akanin ny Nofy (nest of dreams) along the Pangalanes canal which is one of the quiet wonders of the island .  The Palmarium Reserve is a dense forest with 7 species of lemur to spot like the  Coquerel’s Sifaka ,the  black and white ruffed lemurs ,indri and crowned lemurs but the real draw  is the rare nocturnal  “Aye Aye ”.   

We  will leave the RN.2 (Route Nationale) after 30km north of Brickaville and take a 7km bumpy track to Manambato , where we take a boat to Palmarium.

 Overnight : Palmarium.

Visit of the Palmarium Reserve during the day observing several species of  lemur ,chameleons, frogs (If lucky we will find a “Stumpfiia vohibolensis” the smallest frog in the world)  ; a wide variety of palms and possibly the carnivorous pitcher plant  Nepenthes an insect eating . Later we will take the boat  for a nocturnal visit to find the “Aye Aye ”(Daubentonia madagascariensis) which scientist took to be a squirrel-like-rodent    lemur with wild boar skin,bat ears ,a squirrel tail and skeletonized finger    

Overnight :Palmarium

After  breakfast we make our way along the Pangalanes Canal  to Toamasina on a boat . Built between 1896 and 1904 the Pangalanes would be the world ‘s fifth longest canal used ,  interconnecting  the natural rivers and lagoons. This is for many local the only reliable means of transport compared to the surf-beaten shore and a vital source of livelihood. We will discover  another face of Madagascar ; a world where communities of fishermen live quietly ,under  their thatched wooden houses cluster around small landing places , canoes tied to the bank or the  slender  .From time to time deeply loaded ferry boats bring some fresh exotic smell of gloves ,vanilla or cinnamon  in the air .  Later we  will enter the Port Fluvial at the southwest edge  of Toamasina (Tamatave),in time for the lunch .

In the afternoon we will have an hour city tour of Toamasina  . 

Overnight in Tamatave.

Nosy Boraha  (the Island of Abraham) ,or Sainte Marie  “contains all the ingredients  for a great vacation ” in a tropical island  .    In  1503 Portuguese navigator discovered the island on Assumption Day , after having escaped a shipwreck ,and gave it the name of Santa Maria ,in honor of the Virgin Mary ,hence the name Saint Mary .Later between the 17th and the 18th   the island became the headquarters and hideout of world ‘s pirates ,because of its location , favorable for pirate activity ,being near East Indies maritime routes ,and its  bays and inlets procuring good protection against cyclone ,as well as its abundant  fruit  .  From 1680 to around 1720 these pirates dominated the seas around Africa 

 Some historians estimate that around 1000 pirates have found refuge on the Island. Among the very famous were : Adam Baldridge (?-1691), Thomas Tew (1649-1695), John Avery (1653-1696) , Robert Culliford (1617-1700 ),William Kidd (1645-1701), Thomas White (died 1708), David William  (1698-1709), John Pro or “John Rivers”(?- 1719), Olivier Levasseur “La Buse”(1688-1730), Condent Christopher or”Billy one hand” (1690s-1770).

After  an early breakfast  a bus will take us to Mahambo ,and from Mahambo we will use a boat to go to Ste.Marie island . 

This afternoon during a walk and canoe trip ,you will discover the graves where legendary piracy figures such as John Avery or Thomas Tew lie .You will also discover the local traditions through the Catholic Church of Sainte Marie (the first built in Madagascar) or the Palace of Queen Betty who was married to the French La Bigorne . 

Return to the hotel by bus (or tuk-tuk)  after the visit . .

 Overnight in :St.Marie island .

Today is a Whale watching Safari day .After breakfast, depending on the weather  we will leave the hotel  around 9:00  and take the Mantis Soanambo boat to observe these giant mammals with their impressive  jump breaching , lob-tailing and pec-flipper-slapping.But the humpback whale  most fascinating behavior is probably its singing . They are protected since 1966 and their numbers are recovering very slowly.      Our trip would be accompanied by a scientific eco voluntary trained and certified by the CETAMADA association .

We will be back to the Mantis Soanambo for the lunch .Afternoon at your leisure.

Overnight : St.Marie Island .

This morning we will take a boat  (or car and pirogue ) to discover  “Ile aux Nattes”(Nosy Nato) a little island off the South coast of Sainte Marie and experience small typical “Saint Marien” village ,with its crafts market , culinary specialities and its botanical varieties.

 Later ,we will have lunch at Mantis Soanambo’s private resort  and restaurant Napoleon to enjoy a barbecue meal with grilled meat ,fish and tropical fruits. After lunch we can swim, or  chill out  in hammocks under coconut palms .

 We will come back to the hotel around 04:30 Pm . Have time to relax  until  our farewell dinner.

 Overnight : St.Marie Island .

Today we take a domestic flight schedule to Antananarivo.
For guests with early flights, you will be transferred directly to the airport for your international flight home. For those with later flights, we will transfer back to our start hotel to enjoy some free time for last minute shopping. You will be transferred to the airport in time for your departure flight.

Day use in Antananarivo .