18-Day Madagascar Expedition: Self-Launched

Land at Ivato Airport, change money (Ariary — cards are patchy outside Tana), buy a local SIM (Telma or Orange, ~£8 for data), and take a taxi into the Haute-Ville or Ambatobe area (~£10-12, agree the price first). Rest up, then a short orientation walk around Lac Anosy and Independence Avenue. Book your first internal flight or taxi-brousse ticket tonight for tomorrow — seats on Air Madagascar/Tsara Dia charters sell out in peak season.

🚌Airport taxi to city ~£10-12

🛏Guesthouse in Antananarivo (e.g. small family-run hotel in Ambatobe or Isoraka), double room ~£20-28

• →Lac Anosy walk
• →Independence Avenue stroll
• →SIM card & currency set-up

Take the morning internal flight Antananarivo–Toliara (Air Madagascar or Tsaradia, ~£120-160 booked direct). From Toliara, a shared taxi-brousse or a private 4x4 transfer gets you to Ifaty in about an hour (~£8-15 shared, £40 private). Afternoon at Reniala Reserve's spiny dry forest (entry ~£8 plus local guide ~£4) — baobabs, octopus trees and didierea. Sunset on the beach with the Vezo fishing community.

🚌Internal flight ~£140; Toliara–Ifaty shared taxi ~£10

🛏Beach bungalow in Ifaty, ~£18-25

• →Reniala Reserve spiny forest walk
• →Baobab forest
• →Vezo fishing village visit

Long transfer day north on the RN7 — shared taxi-brousse Toliara to Ranohira takes 4-5 hours (~£10-14), or split a private car (~£50-60 total). Check into a Ranohira guesthouse near the park gate. Afternoon short walk to the Window of Isalo viewpoint for sunset, then dinner in the village.

🚌Taxi-brousse Toliara–Ranohira ~£12

🛏Guesthouse in Ranohira, ~£18-25

• →Window of Isalo sunset viewpoint
• →Ranohira village evening

Full day in Isalo with a compulsory local park guide (~£12-15 for a group, split between travellers; entry ~£12). The classic circuit hits the Piscine Naturelle natural pool, the Canyon des Singes and the Namaza canyon formations. Bring 2L of water and lunch — there's nowhere to buy food inside the park. Ring-tailed lemurs and Verreaux's sifakas are commonly seen on the trail.

🚌Short 4x4 or moto-taxi to park gate ~£4

🛏Guesthouse in Ranohira, ~£18-25

• →Piscine Naturelle trek
• →Canyon des Singes
• →Namaza canyon trail
• →Lemur spotting

Taxi-brousse or shared car north to Ambalavao (~4 hours, ~£9-12). Drop bags at a guesthouse and head to Anja Community Reserve (~£8 entry plus guide) — a community-run granite outcrop with a large habituated ring-tailed lemur troop and short walking circuits. Back in town, visit the Antaimoro paper workshop and the wild-silk (lamba landy) weaving cooperative, both a few pounds in donations.

🚌Shared taxi/van ~£10; local tuk-tuk transfers ~£3

🛏Guesthouse or small local hotel in Ambalavao, ~£15-22

• →Anja Community Reserve lemur walk
• →Antaimoro paper factory
• →Wild silk weaving workshop
• →Ambalavao town

Wednesday is Ambalavao's huge zebu market — free to walk through, unforgettable. Then a short taxi-brousse hop to Fianarantsoa (~1.5 hrs, ~£4) for a wander through the old colonial upper town and the cathedral viewpoint. Continue down to Ranomafana village (~2 hrs, ~£5) and check in. Evening night walk with a local guide (~£8) for mouse lemurs, chameleons and tree frogs.

🚌Two taxi-brousse legs ~£10 total

🛏Guesthouse in Ranomafana village, ~£15-22

• →Ambalavao zebu market
• →Fianarantsoa upper town walk
• →Ranomafana night walk

Half or full day in Ranomafana NP with a compulsory local guide (entry ~£10, guide ~£10 split). Your target is the golden bamboo lemur plus Milne-Edwards' sifaka and black-and-white ruffed lemur. Trails are steep and muddy — decent shoes essential. Afternoon transfer to Ambositra (~3-4 hrs, ~£7), the Zafimaniry wood-carving capital, for an evening stroll through the marquetry workshops.

🚌Taxi-brousse ~£7

🛏Guesthouse in Ambositra, ~£15-22

• →Ranomafana guided trek
• →Golden bamboo lemur spotting
• →Ambositra craft workshops

Morning taxi-brousse down to Antsirabe (~3 hrs, ~£6). This is Madagascar's pousse-pousse (rickshaw) capital — hire one for an hour (~£3) to loop Independence Avenue, the old thermal baths (Hôtel des Thermes) and the zebu-horn workshops. Antsirabe is cooler and higher; great market for gems and sweets.

🚌Taxi-brousse ~£6; pousse-pousse ~£3

🛏Budget hotel in Antsirabe, ~£15-22

• →Pousse-pousse city tour
• →Hôtel des Thermes
• →Zebu horn factory
• →Antsirabe market

This is the hardest logistics day: either take the long taxi-brousse/bush-taxi route via Miandrivazo (10-14 hrs, ~£18, better split across two days) or fly Antananarivo–Morondava internal (~£130) and work backwards. Realistic self-launched plan: fly Tana–Morondava, then a shared 4x4 or taxi to the Avenue of the Baobabs for sunset (~£10 shared, ~£40 private) and on to Kirindy (~1.5 hrs). Evening night walk in Kirindy Forest Reserve (~£10) for fossa and giant jumping rats.

🚌Internal flight ~£130; shared 4x4 Morondava–Kirindy ~£15

🛏Basic lodge or camp at Kirindy, ~£20-30

• →Avenue of the Baobabs sunset
• →Kirindy night walk
• →Fossa & jumping rat spotting

Morning guided walk in Kirindy Reserve (~£10) — seven lemur species are possible, plus more fossa tracks. Then back to Morondava for the afternoon flight to Antananarivo (~£110-130). Evening in Tana; pick up supplies for Andasibe.

🚌Shared 4x4 back ~£10; internal flight ~£120

🛏Guesthouse in Antananarivo, ~£20-28

• →Kirindy guided day walk
• →Lemur & fossa spotting
• →Morondava beach

Shared taxi-brousse or a hired car east on the RN2 to Andasibe (~3-4 hrs, ~£8 shared, ~£45 private). Stop at Peyrieras Reptile Reserve en route (~£6 entry) — chameleons, geckos, leaf insects and butterflies in a small private collection. Check in at Andasibe village. Guided night visit to Andasibe-Mantadia NP (~£10 plus guide) for mouse lemurs and the eerie calls of indri.

🚌Taxi-brousse or hired car ~£10

🛏Guesthouse in Andasibe village, ~£18-25

• →Peyrieras Reptile Reserve
• →Andasibe night walk

Early morning 3-4 hour hike in Andasibe-Mantadia NP with a local guide (entry ~£10, guide ~£10) to hear and see indri indri — the largest living lemur, and famously loud. Walk through Andasibe village afterwards. Then head east to Manambato on the Pangalane lakes (~2 hrs) and take a motorboat (~£25-35) across to Palmarium Lodge on the Ampitabe lake.

🚌Local bus/hired car ~£8; motorboat transfer ~£30

🛏Eco-lodge at Palmarium, ~£30-40 (mid-range, worth the splurge)

• →Indri indri hike
• →Andasibe village walk
• →Lakeland motorboat to Palmarium

Guided day walk in Palmarium Reserve — a private lemur sanctuary with ten species including aye-aye (night) and black-and-white ruffed lemurs that come down to eye level. Endemic palms everywhere. Afternoon visit to a lakeside fishing village and a chat with the local community. Optional night walk for aye-aye (~£12).

🚌On foot and by boat

🛏Eco-lodge at Palmarium, ~£30-40

• →Palmarium guided day walk
• →Ten lemur species
• →Endemic palms
• →Fishing village visit

Motorboat south along the Pangalane Canal through coconut-fringed lakes and reed channels to Toamasina/Tamatave (~£30-40, half day). From Tamatave, a taxi-brousse north to Mahambo (~1.5 hrs, ~£4). Afternoon browsing Tamatave's old town — Creole stilt houses, Independence Avenue and the regional university museum (~£2).

🚌Canal motorboat ~£35; taxi-brousse ~£4

🛏Beach bungalow in Mahambo, ~£18-25

• →Pangalane Canal boat trip
• →Tamatave old town
• →Regional Museum
• →Ivoloina Zoological Park (optional add-on)

Take the ferry or fast boat from Soanierana Ivongo or Tamatave to Sainte-Marie (~£20-30, 1.5-3 hrs). Note: sailings are frequently cancelled in rough weather (July-Sept is best for whales but also windier) — build in a spare day. Afternoon on the beach; whale watching is possible from the ferry between July and September.

🚌Shared bus to ferry port ~£5; ferry ~£25

🛏Beach bungalow on Sainte-Marie, ~£20-30

• →Ferry crossing
• →Whale spotting (seasonal)
• →Beach time

Rent a scooter or quad (~£15-20/day) or hire a local guide with a motorbike and loop the island: the pirates' cemetery at Ambodifotatra, Île aux Nattes by pirogue (~£5), mangrove channels, rice paddies and vanilla, cinnamon and clove smallholdings. Bring cash — ATMs are unreliable on the island. Beach and lagoon swimming in the afternoon.

🚌Scooter hire ~£18

🛏Beach bungalow on Sainte-Marie, ~£20-30

• →Pirates' cemetery
• →Île aux Nattes pirogue trip
• →Mangrove & rice field walk
• →Vanilla and spice plantation visit

Morning flight Sainte-Marie–Antananarivo with Air Madagascar/Tsaradia (~£130-170) — check in early, flights are small and luggage limits are strict (15-20 kg). Alternatively ferry back to the mainland and a long taxi-brousse, which saves money but costs a day. Afternoon in Tana: the artisanal market at La Digue for souvenirs, plus a panoramic viewpoint over the city.

🚌Internal flight ~£150; airport taxi ~£10

🛏Guesthouse in Antananarivo, ~£20-28

• →Artisanal market at La Digue
• →Antananarivo panorama
• →Souvenir shopping

Half-day trip to the Royal Hill of Ambohimanga, a UNESCO site and the spiritual heart of the Merina kingdom (~40 mins out, ~£10 taxi each way; entry ~£5 plus guide). Walk the royal compound, the Queen's Palace and the sacred gates. Back to Tana for Lac Anosy and a final lunch, then taxi to Ivato Airport for your flight home.

🚌Taxi to Ambohimanga and back ~£20; airport taxi ~£10

🛏None (departure day)

• →Royal Hill of Ambohimanga
• →Queen's Palace
• →Lac Anosy
• →Independence Avenue