Departing from Cape Town, we headed to Johannesburg to connect to the Air Madagascar flight to Antananarivo. Upon arrival, we were transferred to our hotel in Antananarivo.
We checked in and had a cup of Jasmine Tea and went straight to bed. The next morning, we met our tour group and embarked on a tour of the city of a hundred warriors!
Our next step was to embark on our tour bus which we were all very excited about. We stopped at the local reptile park on our way East to Andasibe or the Perinet reserve – this is where we saw reptiles in every imaginable colour and shape. After 2 nights in Andasibe National Park (known for its abundance of lemurs) we headed to Antisirabe.
On day 6, we travelled further south on long winding roads to Fianaratsoa, the second largest city in Madagascar. Along the route we saw the most amazing stereotypical Madagascar sights; lush vegetation, friendly Malgasy and picture-perfect views. Day 7, from Fianaratsoa, we drove to the biggest national park in Madagascar – Massif De L’Isalo. Armed with water and mosquito repellent we hiked through the Maki and Rat Canyons and swam in a natural rock. This was one of my all time favourite highlights… nothing can quite compare to walking through the beauty that Madagascar holds – the scenery, animals and views made it worth the hike!
We checked out of our fantastic hotel and said good bye to Isalo, on our way to Tulear we witnessed our first Baobabs also known as roots of the sky. They really are magnificent! After a refreshing swim and a scrumptious meal, we headed to bed for an early start to the next day. We arrived 2 hours early for our flight and arrived mid afternoon in Antananarivo, for our day of leisure. We spent the day exploring the town and shopping in the local markets… Local crafts like baskets, purses, placemats etc were beautiful and if you love vanilla then you can’t leave Madagascar without getting some (I bought a huge bunch about 30 sticks for about ZAR 20).
Day 11, we had an early morning transfer to Ivato airport for our morning flight to Johannesburg and then on to Cape Town.
It was such a great trip and I learnt a lot, can’t wait to go back! Next time I think I will go to Nosy Be and explore the underwater world of Madagascar!
