Lemurs & Tribes

Welcome to Madagascar! You will be met in the arrivals hall by one of our representatives holding a signboard with your name on it where you will then be transferred to your hotel.

Antananarivo, Madagascar's capital, known locally as Tana. This name come from an episode in Malgasy history in which King Andrianjaka, who had his royal palace and stronghold constructed called One Thousand Warriors, named this city Antananarivo. If you arrive early to explore the rich cultural, historical and architectural sites, be warned. There are hundreds of ancient stone steps to climb in this hillside city.  

Stay: Radisson Hotel Waterfront or similar (D)

Today we transfer four hours to Antsirabe, 170km south of Antananarivo. The beginning of your drive starts on the most famous scenic route, (National Road 7) which will give you a first taste of the Malagasy highlands scenery: rice fields, mountains, typical villages. The numerous fruit and vegetable stalls will show you that this is a very fertile region and you will have the opportunity to witness locals working in their fields.

Take time to stop at your leisure to interact with villagers. We will reach about 1500 metres of altitude by the time we arrive in Antsirabe. Due to the altitude, the climate of the region is very cool and temperatures can drop to 0 degrees Celsius during the winter. The city was founded by Norwegian missionary T.G. Rosaas in 1872 as a hill station to serve as a retreat centre because of the much cooler climate and the cities thermal baths were opened in 1917. This is also the city where the Moroccan King Mohamed V was exiled in 1955 – time dependent, you may make a quick stop at his former palace which is now the “Hotel des Thermes”.

Today, Antsirabe is a major industrial centre known for its production of beer (THB) and cotton fabrics. Spend time in a beautiful village of the Merina highlands. Betafo is located about twenty kilometres

west of Antsirabe. Its arcades and delicate iron decorations make it a fine example of highland architecture. This is where the first Lutheran church was founded by Norwegian missionaries, with a beautiful brick architecture at the end of the 19th century. The village is surrounded by terraced rice fields and lush plantations.

Today, you may have the opportunity to witness something truly rare. The ritual of the turning of the bones or famadihana.

Once every two to seven years, each family holds a huge celebration at their ancestral crypt where the remains of the dead are exhumed, wrapped in fine silk, sprayed with wine or perfume, and brought out for community festivities. In the Malagasy culture, the turning of the bones is a vital element in maintaining links with revered ancestors, who still play a very real role in daily life.

Family members come from far and wide to attend the famadihana, sometimes travelling entire days on foot to attend the two-day festivities. When everyone has gathered, the corpses are delicately pulled from the tomb or crypt and wrapped in straw floor mats. Groups of people heave the corpses above their heads and carry them off, before laying them side-by-side on the ground to be cleaned and dressed. Their dried burial garments are delicately pulled from their corpses and the bodies are dressed in fresh silk garments.

The ceremony is a chance for a family reunion. It is an evocation of being together again, a transformation so that the dead can experience once more the joys of life.

Stay: Couleur Cafe or similar (B/D)

Continue your journey heading south across the highlands to reach Ambositra, the Malagasy hand crafts' capital located 105 km from Antsirabe. In this city known for its Zafimaniry Art, you will visit different handicraft workshops, wood carvers who make beautiful statues, furniture and souvenirs.

After lunch in Ambositra, you will hit the road in the afternoon to reach the rainforest in Ranomafana. Once you get there, enjoy a night visit of the rainforest to find animals such as the Fosa (small puma), chameleons, frogs and the smallest lemur in the world: Microcebe!

At nightfall, enjoy a walk along the roadside, near the park entrance, to spot the small and shy brown lemur attracted by the smell of bananas. This is also a great time to search for frogs and chameleons using torches. If you are lucky, you can discover so many different species that are sheltered in the forest. Tread lightly to avoid disturbing the animals.

Stay: Hotel Thermal Ranomafana or similar (B/L/D)

In the the wet and dense forest of Ranomafana National Park, you can find still unknown flora and fauna. Until recently, new species of plants and animals were discovered. You will also see lemurs who have evolved here in their natural habitat.

Explore Ranomafana National Park which is located in the south eastern part of Madagascar in Haute Matsiatra and Vatovavy-Fitovinany. With more than 41,600 hectares (161 square miles) of tropical rainforest, the park is home to several rare species of flora and fauna including the golden bamboo lemur, the greater bamboo lemur, black and white ruffed lemur and Milne-Edwards sifaka, and over 120 species of frogs. Pitta like ground rollers, blue vangas, short-legged ground rollers and brown mesites can be seen.

The park was established in 1991 with the purpose of conserving the unique biodiversity of the local ecosystem and reducing the human pressures on the protected area. It is part of the World Heritage Site Rainforests of the Atsinanana. The flora and fauna of Ranomafana have been subject to extensive scientific research. Adjacent to the park is the Centre ValBio research station, established in 2003 and managed by Stony Brook University with a focus on Biodiversity research, community health and education, environmental arts and reforestation.

Stay: Hotel Thermal Ranomafana or similar (B/D)

Continue your road trip with the majestic Andringitra in the background. Leave the highlands of Madagascar and enter a new microclimate: the dry bush and semi desert of southern Madagascar. The first stop of the day is in the small town of Ambalavao, one of the cultural treasures with its architectural houses with verandas. There, you will visit the entirely natural Paper Factory Antemoro, an inlaid paper made from plants and flowers which is exported nowadays everywhere to make beautiful greeting cards. Visit the traditional mills. After lunch in Ambalavao, transfer to your hotel in the rock formations of Isalo.

Leave the highlands to continue your journey towards the south with its semi-dry landscape. Arrive in Ranohira later in the afternoon to enjoy a very unique landscape. Spend sometime at the Anja Community Reserve, located 13 km south of the district capital Ambalavao. It is a unique environmental and cultural preservation site in the south of Madagascar. As both a nature reserve and a growing Malagasy town, Anja is an example of how humans and nature can co-exist and flourish.

The forest in Anja was designated as a protected area reserve by the Government of Madagascar in 1999.

Management of the forest was officially transferred to the local association Anja Miray and the reserve extends over 30 hectares. The space is enriched with an ecological wealth of flora and fauna species, most notable for its dense population of semi-tame ring-tailed lemurs. Anja has become a vital example of how community management of natural resources can both effectively protect the area and benefit the community. At the end of the day, why not enjoy a cocktail in this lunatic landscape, specially prepared for you on the small hill called “Giorgio & s window”.

Stay: Isalo Rock Lodge or similar (B/D)

Enjoy a morning visit of Isalo National Park. Accompanied by your park ranger, hike through the canyons and oases of Isalo and its lunar landscape to reach some waterfalls. This environment was formed during the Jurassic age and where the unique flora has evolved adapting to the current  conditions. There are 77 species of birds which live in Isalo among which the rare and famous Benson rock-thrush (Pseudocossyphus bensoni) is one of them. During your hike, witness different species of lemurs, including the world famous ring tailed lemur.

Visit the village of the Bara tribe, a semi-nomadic, zebu-herding clan. The chief of the village will welcome you and share with you detailed information on their daily life and challenges. Feel free to answer any questions you may have about this unique lifestyle. Your guide will act as translator.

Drive from Ifaty. Ranohira – Toliara – Ifaty 293 km – (aprox 4h30 drive). This is a beautiful and smooth drive along a nicely paved road with large open spaces. On your way, you will cross one the numerous villages formed by the sapphire rush. You will also cross a dry deciduous forest and see the first baobabs on the National Road 7. Driving for 3.5 hours, you will cover the 240km separating Isalo from the Mozambique channel. Once you arrive in Toliara, continue 30 km further north following a sand track towards the small villages of Ifaty and Mangily.

Stay: Dunes d & Ifaty-Villa or similar (B/D)

Reniala Private Reserve is a small protected area of only 60 ha, managed by an environmental association called Reniala (which means baobab in Malagasy). It shelters an amazing, bizarre and unique ecosystem which only occurs in the south-eastern part of Madagascar: the spiny forest. The towering spiny bushes are home to more than 2000 plants species (many of them endemic), some spectacular and very old baobabs (there is a giant baobab of 12,5 m diameter) and a complete endemic plant family, the Didieraceae. Enjoy walking along the botanical trail and visiting the bird sanctuary. This reserve is a paradise for birders, who can easily observe some very rare endemic species, such as the long-tailed ground roller, the subdesert mesite, the red-capped coua or the blue vanga. There are 65 bird species in total within the reserve.

This coastline is a 90km long (approx 3 hours) sand track from Ifaty to Salary and is probably one of the best scenic drives you will ever take in Madagascar. Drive across spiny forests and along the shores with beautiful white sand beaches and the turquoise sea to reach the area of the Mikea tribes.

They are called “people of the forest”, a hunter-gatherer tribe still preserved from “civilization”. Come and discover an exceptional biodiversity and immerse yourself in their primitive lifestyle. For many years, they were spoken about as if they were a myth rather than a reality. Among their neighbours, some oral traditions depict them as strange and supernatural beings. Known for their mystical powers and a primitive way of life, they are associated with the legends of spirits of the forest (hako, lampihazo, kotoke, kalanoro).

Stay: Mikea Lodge-Luxury Tent or similar (B/D)

Your guide will take you on a walk in the Mikea forest, a mix of spiny forest, dry deciduous forest  and baobabs to find the encampment of a family from the most elusive tribe of Madagascar – the Mikea. The Mikea people's adherence to an ancestral way of life has contributed to a mystique and various myths and legends about them, and many Malagasy believe they are the descendants of Vazimba, the original inhabitants of the island. You will sit down with an elder from the tribe who will explain to you about their culture, the forest-dwelling, hunter-gatherer lifestyle and social organisation.

Stay: Mikea Lodge-Luxury Tent or similar (B/D)

In this very authentic and wild place, positioned outside major tourist routes, swimming and sunbathing on the beach are the only things to do. For those who dive, you can explore the reef or simply swim in the clear waters. Time stops, only the sound of waves can disturb your peace of mind. Relax, go walk, canoe, visit fishermen villages or introduce yourself to diving.

Stay: Mikea Lodge-Luxury Tent or similar (B/D)

Transfer from Mikea to Toliara (approx. 3h30 drive) and transfer to the airport. You will be transferred by air to the capital. You will visit the Old city and upper town of Antananarivo. The majestic Rova (The Queen's Palace) overlooks the capital from the highest point of the city. The Rova of Antananarivo is a royal palace complex that served as the home of the sovereigns of the Kingdom of Imerina in the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as of the rulers of the Kingdom of Madagascar in the 19th century.

The historic boroughs around the Rova (The Queen's Palace) have nice panoramic views of downtown. You will drive or walk the neighbourhood with your guide to enjoy the picturesque ambience of the noblemen residence area, with both well-kept traditional houses, the colonial houses, palaces, cathedrals, the charm of the narrow, curved, upslope cobblestoned streets and ensemble of cute traditional Malagasy houses built entirely of wood. Enjoy a beautiful sundowner with a spectacular vista over the city of Antanananarivo. Enjoy some local delicacies.

Stay: Radisson Hotel Waterfront or similar (B/D)

Your tour ends today after breakfast where you will be transferred to the airport for your onward departure. (B)