9-Day Madagascar - Andasibe and Mandrare

• You'll be collected from the airport.
• Accommodation before the tour starts can be arranged for an extra cost.

Arrival in Madagascar

Upon arrival into Ivato Airport you will be greeted by an English speaking guide who will accompany you to your hotel in the upper town of Antananarivo. ‘Tana’ – as the locals call it has fascinating traditional architecture and a more Indonesian influence than the rest of Madagascar. Maison Gallieni is a restored colonial mansion with an elegant mix of modern and traditional décor. Take a dip in the pool and enjoy the lovely views over the city before dinner.

Main Destination:

Antananarivo (City)

Accommodation:

Maison Gallieni

• Luxury guest house located in Antananarivo (City)

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Meals & Drinks:

• Breakfast & dinner (Lunch not included)
• Drinks not included

Drive to Andasibe

After an early breakfast, your guide will take you east to Andasibe, a stunning rainforest park, about 5 hours’ drive from the city. The park consists of two protected areas, the Perinet Special Reserve and Mantadia National Park. Perinet is world famous for its population of Indri lemurs, which are the largest living lemur species. The journey to Andasibe offers first time visitors to Madagascar an introduction to rural life with rice fields, redbrick houses and roadside stalls selling seasonal fruits and vegetables lining the route. Check into hotel for lunch. This afternoon, visit a private reserve operated by local NGO Mitsinjo. The NGO funds reforestation, community education and sensitization to conservation issues as well as running Madagascar’s first amphibian captive-breeding facility. Here you will see a stunning array of wildlife and can also plant an indigenous species along the reforestation trail.

Main Destination:

Andasibe-Mantadia National Park

Best Time To Visit April, May, October and November (Best weather, less rain)

High Season July, August and December holidays (The park is busy)

Best Weather April, May, October and November

Wildlife in Andasibe-Mantadia NP

Indri Common

Common
Brown Lemur Common

Other
Chameleons Common

Leaf-tailed
Geckos Common

Diademed Sifaka Occasional

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Red-bellied
Lemur Occasional

Grey
Bamboo Lemur Occasional

Mouse Lemurs Occasional

Sportive Lemurs Occasional

Parson's
Chameleon Occasional

Painted Mantella Occasional

Black-and-white
Ruffed Lemur Rare

Madagascar
Tree Boa Rare

Fossa Very Rare

Accommodation:

Mantadia Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located outside Andasibe-Mantadia NP

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Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Drive to Mantadia national park

After breakfast you will head to Mantadia National Park (1.5 hour drive) with a picnic lunch. Look for some of the lemur species in this stunning park including the Indri indri, diademed sifaka, grey bamboo lemur, red-bellied lemur and white ruffed lemur. While the trails are slightly more difficult, the rewards are great as the forest is taller, wilder and less crowded than Perinet. There are an abundance of birds including the scaly ground roller, the pitta-like ground roller and the red-breasted coua. This is a naturalist’s goldmine with many seldom seen species of mammals, reptiles and birds. Enjoy a picnic by the Rianasoa Waterfall before hiking back to the vehicle and return to the lodge. A night walk will be organized in late evening in the forest surrounding the reserve with a local guide. You will see a variety of nocturnal lemurs: mouse lemurs, white footed sportive lemur, fat-tailed dwarf lemur, as well as the woolly lemur.

Main Destination:

Andasibe-Mantadia National Park

Accommodation:

Mantadia Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located outside Andasibe-Mantadia NP

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Drive to Perinet Reserve

After breakfast, enjoy a visit to the 810 ha Perinet Reserve with a local guide in search of the Indri Indri. With a barely visible tail, black and white markings and a surprised teddy–bear face, this lemur is one of the few animals in the world that cannot survive in captivity. There are another 11 species of lemur to spot as you walk through the rainforest. You may find a troop of grey bamboo lemurs, common brown lemur, diademed sifaka and the black and white ruffed lemur. Birdwatchers should look out for the velvet asity, the blue coua and the Nuthatch vanga and many more endemic species. Perinet is home to many reptiles, invertebrates, and some of Madagascar’s over a thousand orchid species. After lunch, drive back to Antananarivo.

Main Destination:

Perinet Special Reserve

Accommodation:

Nosy Manga Hotel

• Mid-range hotel located in Antananarivo (City)

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Meals & Drinks:

• Breakfast & dinner (Lunch not included)
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Fly to Mandrare

After breakfast, transfer to Ivato Airport for a morning flight to Fort Dauphin with Madagascar Airlines (2hrs). In Fort Dauphin you will be met by a guide and vehicle from Mandrare River Camp who will escort you to a local restaurant in Fort Dauphin. After an early lunch, drive to Mandrare River Camp (2hrs 30 min). Upon arrival at the camp settle into your tent and enjoy the majestic views over the Mandrare River. Around 5pm depart for a night walk in the Forest of Analoalo or Ambovo. This is a fantastic way to see diurnal lemurs bedding down, and the nocturnal lemurs begin to wake in the eerie and prehistoric Spiny Forest. You will spot sifakas and sleeping white-foot sportive lemurs, then once the sun has set, two mouse lemur species, sleeping birds, chameleons, owls and now active sportive lemurs.

Main Destination:

Fort Dauphin (Town)

Accommodation:

Mandrare River Camp

• Luxury tented camp located just outside Ifotaka Forest

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Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• All drinks (Premium wines & liquors might be excluded)

Activities in Mandrare

After breakfast you will head out to the stunning sacred gallery forest to the south of the camp. Depending on the river depth, you will walk or take a boat across the Mandrare River to reach this largely deciduous forest. Inquisitive groups of ring tailed lemurs and the always entertaining Verreaux sifaka are the highlight of this excursion. Return to camp for lunch and a relaxed afternoon by the pool. In late afternoon, head for a walk through the sacred spiny forest filled with the ancestral tombs of the local Antandroy tribe, as well as an extraordinary array of flora and fauna, unique to the spiny forest. Your English speaking guide and a tracker from the local community will give you an introduction to Antandroy culture and customs. Your visit is followed by sundowners on the Mandrare River banks.

Main Destination:

Ifotaka Forest

Best Time To Visit April to November (Less rain and humidity)

High Season July to November (High-season rates apply)

Best Weather April to October

Wildlife in Ifotaka Forest

Ring-tailed
Lemur Abundant

Verreaux's Sifaka Common

Madagascar
Flying Fox Common

Three-eyed
Lizard Common

White-footed
Sportive Lemur Occasional

Show more

Grey
Mouse Lemur Occasional

Grey-brown
Mouse Lemur Occasional

Warty
Chameleon Occasional

Jewel Chameleon Occasional

Big-headed Gecko Occasional

Plated Lizard Occasional

Madagascar
Hissing Cockroach Occasional

Lesser
Hedgehog Tenrec Rare

Mocqard's
Ground Gecko

Rare

Accommodation:

Mandrare River Camp

• Luxury tented camp located just outside Ifotaka Forest

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• All drinks (Premium wines & liquors might be excluded)

Activities at Mandrare River Camp

After a cup of tea or coffee head to the spiny forest for an early morning walk. Witness the sunlight break through the octopus trees while looking out for the many endemic birds such as crested coua, a variety of vangas and the running coua. Head back to camp for a sumptuous breakfast followed by a visit to the local market or the local village to meet the fascinating Antandroy tribe. Lunch will be served at the camp followed by a relaxed afternoon watching life along the river from your tent terrace. At 5pm, depart for a sundowner amidst the baobabs. Watching the sun set and moon rise with a view across the baobabs to the mountains beyond is a magical experience. In the evening the local village may come to perform beautiful traditional dances, accompanied by singing and music. Song and dance is at the heart of Antandroy culture and is used to accompany the major rituals and events of everyday life.

Main Destination:

Ifotaka Forest

Accommodation:

Mandrare River Camp

• Luxury tented camp located just outside Ifotaka Forest

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• All drinks (Premium wines & liquors might be excluded)

Fly back to Tana

After breakfast, drive to Fort Dauphin (2hrs 30 min) in time for your Madagascar Airlines flight back to Tana (2hrs). On arrival you will be met by your guide and transfer to your hotel in the historic upper town.
Please note that this itinerary is prepared based on the days that Madagascar Airlines flights operate, and not the exact times. We are therefore unable to plan advanced itineraries with exact flight times. Please also note that flight schedule changes occur on a regular basis and we always adapt on the ground to these changes, which can be made at very short notice. Should these changes necessitate an unexpected hotel overnight we commit to covering the cost of this on your behalf as part of our commitment to ensuring the guests are looked after to the best of our abilities during their stay. However, we cannot be held responsible for missed International or National departures due to schedule changes in advance or last minute.

Main Destination:

Antananarivo (City)

Accommodation:

Maison Gallieni

• Luxury guest house located in Antananarivo (City)

Meals & Drinks:

• Breakfast & dinner (Lunch not included)
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Fly back home

Today, transfer to the airport in time for your international flight.

Main Destination:

No major destination visited

Accommodation:

No accommodation (End of tour)

Meals & Drinks:

• Breakfast (Lunch & dinner not included)
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

• Additional accommodation can be arranged for an extra cost.
• You'll be dropped off at the airport.