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Perinet + Ranomafana + Isalo + Ifaty (East & South)
RPF14A

14 NIGHTS
FROM $3,467
International flights quoted separately
This private tour combines the highlights of eastern and southern Madagascar, exploring with a private driver/guide the fascinating lemur forests of the Andasibe-Mantadia Reserve, as well as Ranomafana rainforest; ancient Fianarantsoa & the Ambalavao wine region; the unique wildlife of Isalo National Park; & the Indian Ocean beaches of Ifaty. Less 10% for 4+ pax.
HIGHLIGHTS
Madagascar Vacations Madagascar Tour Madagascar Indri Lemurs Madagascar Perinet Ranomafana Isalo
• Andasibe Mantadia • Lemurs • Chameleon • Frogs
• Reptiles • Ranomafana • Andringitra • Fianarantso
• Isalo • Ifaty
Day 1
You will be met at Antananarivo Airport and transferred to your hotel in the capital city of the enormous island of Madagascar.
 
Check in to your hotel and relax in your warm surroundings.
 
Before leaving the airport, remember to withdraw local currency from the cash machine for lunches along the way (approx 15,000 ariary per person) and buy plenty of bottled drinking water for your journey
Day 2
Today depart from Antananarivo and travel 5-hours with your private driver/guide to the wonderful Andasibe-Mantadia region.
 
Travelling through abundant rice paddies and local villages, you will get a good feel for traditional Malagasy life with their long red clay houses and many roadside markets. Visit a farm along the way where you can see reptiles and butterflies, before arriving at Andasibe in the afternoon.
 
After checking into your lodge, we visit the Vakona Private Reserve and Lemur Island to observe nocturnal lemur species - a very special experience (headlamps recommended).
Day 3
Today enjoy a full day exploring Andasibe National Park, a huge rain forest that includes the National Park of Mantadia and the Special Reserve of Analamazoatra (also known as the Perinet Reserve).
 
Here we hope to see the Indri-Indri, the largest species of lemurs that are easily seen and heard because of their impressive shrieks. There are 9 endemic species of lemurs in this great wildlife sanctuary, 28 species of reptiles and over 100 bird species. Also tenrecs (similar to hedgehogs) and chameleons.
 
The indigenous flora is also outstanding and includes hundreds of species of orchids that blossom in October & November, many species of ferns, sacred creepers, lichens and dwarf palm trees.
Day 4
Today we travel 5-hours from Andasibe Mantadia to Antananarivo, the capital city of this enormous island.
 
Check in to your hotel and relax in your warm surroundings.
Day 5
Today we leave Antananarivo and travel 5-hours past terraced rice paddies and traditional red clay houses to Ambositra in the central highlands.
 
We pass through the small city of Ambatolampy, an agricultural centre known for its aluminium factory, and stop at the foot of the Ankaratra Massif, which is the third highest summit on the island.
 
We travel through the thermal springs city of Antsirabe, established by Norwegian missionaries and today the agricultural and industrial centre of Madagascar, where we view local arts & crafts, including embroidery and the cutting of semi-precious stones.
 
We continue  to Ambositra, noted primarily for its master woodcarvers and furniture manufacturing. We check into our hotel in the capital of the Zafimaniry region, which is a veritable work of art - with many shutters and walls carved in geometric designs.
Day 6
Today we leave Ambositra and drive 2.5-hours to Ranomafana, stopping along the way at the Lalatsara Reserve, before continuing our drive through high altitude rain forests.
 
We check into our hotel in Ranomafana (meaning "hot water"), a thermal spring that is home to one of Madagascar's best known national parks and in the evening enjoy a visit to the Ranomafana Rainforest hoping to see nocturnal species such as the microcebus red mouse lemur (the smallest primate in the world) and the fossa, a member of the civet family and the largest carnivore in Madagascar.
Day 7
Today we visit Ranomafana National Park, a huge rain forest and one of the most important national parks in Madagascar, as it is home to 12 different species of lemurs including two of the rarest in the world - the greater bamboo lemur and the golden bamboo lemur, which has strange eating habits.
 
This rain forest is also home to 29 species of mammals, several species of viverrids, ring tailed mongoose, about 100 species of birds and a wide variety of butterflies, insects and unusual reptiles including lizards, chameleons and frogs.
Day 8
This morning we travel from Ranomafana to the old city of Fianarantsoa, a World Heritage site, for a guided tour of this ancient regional capital with its Royal Palace and Lac Anosy.
 
We continue through the winelands of Ambalavao where we can visit a hand made papyrus factory, where papyrus made from the trees of the rain forest was formerly used by astronomers but is now mainly used for decoration. After 3-hours of travel, we check into our hotel in Andringitra.
Day 9
Today we spend a full day exploring the Tsaranoro Massif in Andringitra National Park, that stretches across some of the most spectacular granite terrain in the southern hemisphere.
 
The region is a primary habitat of the ringtailed lemur, or lemur catta. These loquacious creatures with their distinctive striped tails will inevitably be encountered during any trekking or climbing expedition. The area is also home to over thirty species of orchid, several species of falcon, innumerable lizards, chameleons, snakes, and spiders. This exceptionally rich biodiversity is partly the result of the collision of subtropical and alpine climates within an ecosystem found nowhere else on earth, and partly due to Andringitra’s unique variety of landscapes and habitats.
 
The national park is criss-crossed by hundreds of kilometres of hiking trails and is a walker’s paradise, with numerous excursions possible from a mildly demanding walk to a full day hike. Full blown wilderness expeditions are also possible, for which a high level of fitness and a local guide are essential. The Tsaranoro Massif has also been explored by rock climbers worldwide in search of big-wall climbing adventures.
Day 10
This morning enjoy a short walk in the granite Tsaranoro Valley, known as the Yosemite of Africa and home to ring-tailed lemurs. We then travel 5-hours from Andringitra as we take the road across the Plateau of Horombe, a rocky expanse of land known as the "Door of the South" to Ranohira.
 
Time permitting, along the way we also visit Anja Private Reserve - a scenic landscape of forest, hills and valleys located on 8 acres of community land famous for its endemic maki catta (ring tailed) lemurs, which are one of the most vocal of the 33 species in Magagascar. The small nocturnal microcebus lemur can also be spotted here. Anja also boasts wonderful rock formations and is home to some of the country’s rarest plants and many different chameleons (there are about 150 types of chameleons in the world, half of which are found in Madagascar).
 
The landscape changes into rocky mountains and savannah as we travel to Ranohira, where we arrive in the late afternoon and check into our hotel.
Day 11
Today enjoy a full day exploring on foot the vast Isalo National Park, an eroded sandstone mountain whose rocks have been carved into many strange formations by the winds.
 
The ruiniform massif has many deep and narrow canyons and a 1-hour walk will take you to the lush palm-lined oasis of Piscine Naturelle. A 3-hour walk across deep canyons with riparian forests will take you to the Canyon des Singes.
 
The canyons of the park shelter over 55 bird species, including the red vanga, 3 species of lemur (the maki catta or ring tailed lemur, the sifaka and the varika), geckos, chameleons and many other reptiles and amphibians. You will also see many endemic flora, including succulent plants such as pachypodium, tapia, aloes and pandanus.
Day 12
Today we travel for 5-hours from Ranohira to the southern town of Ifaty, travelling through the dry forests of the west and the spiny deserts of the south.
 
We pass through the sapphire mining village of Ilakaka and along the way you will see giant baobab trees, whose strange bare branches look like they are planted upside down. You will also see the spectacular Mahafaly tombs - unusual funeral carvings unique to the southern region, which express the life and fertility of the deceased.
 
We stop at Tulear, before continuing through the village of Vezo to Ifaty, where the beach is protected by coral reef and where migrating whales may be seen from June to September. After you have checked into your hotel, your driver/guide will leave you and return to Antananarivo.
Day 13
At leisure to relax and enjoy the beautiful coral beaches of Ifaty.
 
Note: Please do not buy any shells or corals from local markets, as this will encourage the further plundering of reefs around Tulear and Ifaty
Day 14
This morning transfer 45-minutes to Tulear Airport for your flight to Antananarivo.
 
You will be met at Antananarivo Airport and transferred to your airport hotel.
Day 15
Transfer to Antananarivo Airport, where you will have the use of a hotel dayroom in need before your flight home.
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