Madagascar
Poised atop Ambohimanga hill is the Rova, the fortress-palace. The walls of the compounds were constructed using cement made from sand, shells and egg…
Must-see attractions in Madagascar
Antananarivo
Tana’s rova (fortified palace), known as Manjakamiadana (A Fine Place to Rule), is the imposing structure that crowns the city's highest hill. Gutted in a…
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Western Madagascar
One of Madagascar's most recognisable images, this small stretch of the RN8 between Morondava and Belo-sur-Tsiribihina is flanked on both sides by…
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Madagascar
This 370,000-sq-metre reserve encompasses three mountain-size granite boulders (the three sisters) ringed at the base by a forest full of ring-tailed…
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Southern Madagascar
This 760-sq-km park protects some of the last remnants of rainforest in southern Madagascar, as well as spiny forest and a remarkable 12 species of lemurs…
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Madagascar
The Parc National Ranomafana is a steamy hothouse of jungle bio-diversity where the hum of insects of is ever present and the wail and squeal of a dozen…
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Madagascar
The oldest and most attractive part of town is the pedestrian Haute-Ville (known as Tanana Ambony in Malagasy). Utterly removed from the hustle of the…
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Madagascar
Parc National Andringitra is the pièce de résistance of the wider Massif de l'Andringitra. It encompasses a high-altitude granite plateaux of epic beauty,…
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Antananarivo
Opened in early 2018, this fabulous photography museum is Antananarivo's best museum. There are four small rooms showing films (in French, English or…
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Southern Madagascar
Isalo is one of Madagascar's most beautiful parks. It contains sculpted buttes, vertical rock walls and, best of all, deep canyon floors shot through with…
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Western Madagascar
If you visit one place in western Madagascar, make it Parc National Bemaraha. A Unesco World Heritage Site, its highlights are the jagged, limestone…
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Southern Madagascar
This gorgeous park, about 9km from the Total station on the road to Ambovombe from Fort Dauphin (Taolagnaro), covers 136 hectares, and with a budding…
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Western Madagascar
Dramatic Cirque Rouge is one of western Madagascar’s most famous sights. This amphitheatre of eroded rock is tinted in a rainbow hue of colours, including…
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Western Madagascar
This reserve, 60km northeast of Morondava, covers about 12,500 hectares and is a protected area that's popular with scientists and travellers for its…
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Madagascar
For 30 years this family workshop has been creating miniature objects (cars, rickshaws, bicycles etc) made from recycled materials – anything from…
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Northern Madagascar
This beautiful plantation, established in 1904, is a leading producer of organic cocoa, spices and essential oils, and a visit to this little slice of…
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Northern Madagascar
One of Madagascar’s most awesome natural wonders, these scraggly pinnacles – erosion’s work of art – are made of laterite, an iron oxide–rich soil with an…
Northern Madagascar
This is one of Madagascar’s flagship parks. Consisting of more than 550 sq km of pristine mountainous rainforest, it covers the Marojejy massif, an area…
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Nosy Be
Parc National Lokobe protects most of Nosy Be’s remaining endemic vegetation. The reserve is home to the black lemur (the male is dark brown, almost black…
Antananarivo
Antananarivo’s heart-shaped lake lies in the southern part of town. It's particularly lovely in October, when the jacaranda trees lining its shores are…
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Parcs Nationaux Baie de Baly et Tsingy de Namoroka
Western Madagascar
This isolated park is home to that peculiarly Malagasy landform, the tsingy, a dense forest of jagged rocky pinnacles interwoven with deep canyons filled…
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Western Madagascar
This series of subterranean rooms and galleries, some of them the size of buildings, are among Madagascar's most impressive. Stretching over 5km, and…
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Madagascar
You'll find nine species of lemur at this private reserve, 22km west of the capital. It's a good place to visit if you haven't yet seen lemurs elsewhere,…
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Parc National Montagne d’Ambre
Northern Madagascar
This wonderful national park is literally a breath of fresh air from the arid northern plains: at 1000m, it is generally 10°C cooler than Diego or…
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Parc National de Kirindy-Mitea
Western Madagascar
Not to be confused with the Réserve Forestière de Kirindy, the deliciously remote 72,200-hectare Parc National de Kirindy-Mitea, which surrounds Belo-sur…
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Antananarivo
In 1929 French engineer André Michelin, of tyre fame, patented the use of pneumatics on rail vehicles in a bid to improve passenger comfort. Trials were…
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Réserve Spéciale Cap Sainte-Marie
Southern Madagascar
Madagascar’s southernmost tip, Cap Sainte-Marie is a thought-provoking climax to the ‘eighth continent’, a stark and windswept place that, like so many…
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Parc National Marin de Nosy Tanikely
Nosy Be
Nosy Tanikely is a protected marine reserve 10km south of Nosy Be. It's one of the best snorkelling sites in the area, with coral, numerous fish and sea…
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Antananarivo
Housed in a magnificent pink baroque palace, this museum is the former home of Prime Minister Rainilaiarivony, the power behind the throne of the three…
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Northern Madagascar
Located 60km south of Diego Suarez, then 20km east, this camp is perched on a ridge overlooking the rainforest. This is the last refuge of the black…
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Madagascar
The grimy and utterly fascinating aluminium pot workshops are all gathered in one small area behind the market. The area is filled with small workshops…
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Mahavy-Kinkony Wetland Complex
Western Madagascar
The Mahavy-Kinkony Wetland Complex incorporates a diverse and fragile ecosystem consisting of marine bays, river, delta and 22 lakes, including Madagascar…
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Madagascar
Some 18km south of Manakara on the road to Vohipeno, you'll find Domaine Aavyland, a 31-hectare organic plantation and distillery producing medicinal and…
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Southern Madagascar
This well-known private reserve contains nearly one-third of the remaining tamarind gallery forest in Madagascar, nestled between the arms of a former…
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Madagascar
This is an unusual place: a commercial crocodile farm that breeds crocs, as well as a zoo where you can see the reptilian giants in all their basking…
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Northern Madagascar
Meaning 'hill of perfumes', the Domaine d'Ambohimanitra produces various types of vanilla on its 60 hectares along with cinnamon, ravintsara, allspice and…
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Madagascar
This international training centre for the study of biodiversity is housed in attractive buildings on the edge of the national park. If you have any…
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Western Madagascar
Best known as the home of the critically endangered ploughshare tortoise, this remote park has dense dry, bamboo and mangrove forests, sand dunes and…
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Northern Madagascar
This enormous coconut plantation extends across 50 sq km, where the trees march away into the distance in strict lines. On the two-hour visit you will see…
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Northern Madagascar
This striking and undeveloped fantasy land is home to uniquely Malagasy sights: psychedelic fields of spiky tsingy (limestone pinnacle formations) next to…
