Self-Launched Madagascar Wildlife Adventure: Baobabs, Tsingy & Lemurs

Land at Ivato International Airport, complete the arrival health declaration, and grab a taxi into the city (~60,000-90,000 ariary / £11-16) or pre-book a hotel transfer. Stay in the Talatamaty or Antaninarenina area so you're close to good food. Spend the evening wandering the Analakely market steps and having a first Malagasy dinner — try romazava or a zebu steak. Sort your Ariary cash at an ATM or exchange bureau today; ATMs are scarce outside the capital.

🚌Airport taxi to city centre, ~£13

🛏Budget guesthouse in Antananarivo (e.g. small family-run hotel in Talatamaty), ~£20

• →Airport transfer to city
• →Analakely market and Haute-Ville viewpoint
• →First Malagasy dinner

Book the morning Tsaradia/Air Madagascar flight Tana-Morondava directly online (approx £90-130 one way; book well ahead — seats are limited and flights shift). At Morondava arrange a shared 4x4 with driver for the Kirindy leg (most guesthouses can organise this, ~£55-70 per vehicle per day split between travellers). Stop at the Avenue of the Baobabs en route, then reach Kirindy late afternoon. Book a night walk directly with the reserve guides (~£6-8 entry + guide fee) and look for fork-marked lemurs, sportive lemurs and the famous fossa.

🚌Domestic flight ~£110; shared 4x4 ~£25 pp share

🛏Kirindy Reserve bungalows / Relais du Kirindy equivalent, ~£22

• →Domestic flight to Morondava
• →Avenue of the Baobabs photo stop
• →Guided night walk in Kirindy Reserve

Early morning guided walk in Kirindy — good light, more lemurs including Verreaux's sifaka if you're lucky. Then continue in your shared 4x4 to Belo-sur-Tsiribihina, cross the Tsiribihina on the vehicle ferry (pay per vehicle, ~£10-15), and bump along the dirt track to Bekopaka at the gate of Tsingy de Bemaraha. It's a long, dusty day — stock snacks and water. Organise tomorrow's park permits at the FTM office in Bekopaka on arrival (per day fee ~£8 plus guide fee ~£10-15 per group).

🚌Shared 4x4 day ~£30 pp share, ferry ~£6 pp share

🛏Guesthouse/bungalow in Bekopaka (Orchidée du Bemaraha equivalent), ~£20

• →Guided Kirindy forest walk
• →Vehicle ferry across the Tsiribihina
• →Dirt-road drive to Bekopaka

Start with a two-hour pirogue trip on the Manambolo River — arranged locally in Bekopaka with a Bara boatman, who explains the river's caves and the Bara people's customs and funerary traditions (~£20-25 per pirogue, split). Afternoon: hike the Small Tsingy with a park guide — needle-like limestone, ladders and ring-tailed lemurs. This is your practice run for tomorrow's Big Tsingy.

🚌Local 4x4 to trailheads, ~£10 pp share

🛏Guesthouse/bungalow in Bekopaka, ~£20

• →Manambolo River pirogue trip with Bara guide
• →Small Tsingy hike
• →Ring-tailed lemur spotting

The big one: a full day with a park guide through the 60m limestone pinnacles, including harnessed via ferrata sections, scrambling and crawling. Entry plus guide roughly £20-25 per person, allow 5-6 hours. Take a packed lunch and plenty of water from your guesthouse the night before. Note the harnesses and equipment are provided by the local park association — check condition and confirm the ferrata route is open the day you visit.

🚌Local 4x4 to park entrance, ~£10 pp share

🛏Guesthouse/bungalow in Bekopaka, ~£20

• →Big Tsingy circuit with harnessed via ferrata
• →Park guide wildlife spotting
• →Packed lunch with canyon views

Long, bumpy drive back over the open plains with the ferry crossing again (vehicle ~£10-15). Arrive Morondava late afternoon and take a tuk-tuk or shared taxi out to the Avenue of the Baobabs for sunset (local transport ~£5-8). There's a small community fee at the site. Reward yourself with a cold THB beer and seafood at a beachside restaurant.

🚌Shared 4x4 day ~£30 pp share, ferry ~£6 pp, tuk-tuk ~£4

🛏Hotel Trecicogne equivalent, Morondava, ~£20

• →Return drive with Tsiribihina ferry
• →Sunset at Avenue of the Baobabs
• →Seafood dinner on the coast

Today is a public-transport day: taxi-brousse (shared minibus) from Morondava to Miandrivazo, hot, crowded and slow but very cheap (~£8-10). Buy your ticket at the station early; departures fill from dawn. Miandrivazo is the jumping-off point for the Tsiribihina river trips, so there's a relaxed riverside feel. Optional evening riverside stroll.

🚌Taxi-brousse Morondava-Miandrivazo, ~£9

🛏Simple guesthouse in Miandrivazo (Princesse Tsiribihina equivalent), ~£15

• →Local taxi-brousse journey
• →Riverside walk in Miandrivazo

Another taxi-brousse day through spectacular changing scenery from dry western plains to the green central highlands (~£10-12, 8-9 hours). Antsirabe is cool at 1,500m — bring a fleece. On arrival take a guidebook-style self-orientation walk past the old thermal baths, the cathedral and the pousse-pousse (rickshaw) lined streets, and eat at the market food stalls.

🚌Taxi-brousse, ~£11

🛏Chambres du Voyageur equivalent, Antsirabe, ~£18

• →Taxi-brousse to Antsirabe
• →Self-guided town walk
• →Pousse-pousse ride

Hire a bike from a local operator or your guesthouse (~£8-10 per day, or join a small group cycle tour booked directly for ~£25 including guide and lunch). Follow the dirt road south-west for ~7km to Lake Andraikiba, looping past rice paddies, brick kilns and vegetable plots. Pause in villages for photos, and have a simple lunch of rice and zebu stew. A local guide adds real context about highland farming life — ask your guesthouse to arrange one for £10-15.

🚌Bike hire ~£9

🛏Chambres du Voyageur equivalent, Antsirabe, ~£18

• →35km cycling loop
• →Lake Andraikiba
• →Village visits and brick-making workshops

Taxi-brousse or a seat in a shared minibus south to Ambositra (~£5), where you can break the journey to browse the woodcarving workshops of the Zafimaniry artisans. Then continue to Ranomafana (another ~£6-8, roughly 5 hours of bumpy road). Arrive before dark; the park entrance, guides' office and thermal pool are all within walking distance of most guesthouses.

🚌Two taxi-brousse legs, ~£13

🛏Hotel Ny Tanàna equivalent, Ranomafana, ~£20

• →Ambositra woodcarving workshops
• →Scenic highland-to-rainforest transfer
• →Evening around the thermal pool

Hire a park guide at the entrance (~£10-15 per group plus ~£10 park entry) for a full day on the trails — black-and-white ruffed lemurs, golden bamboo lemurs, greater bamboo lemurs, and an absurd number of frogs and chameleons. Trails are slippery; boots or good grip essential. Book a night walk (~£8-10) with a local guide for mouse lemurs, leaf-tailed geckos and tree frogs after dinner.

🚌On foot

🛏Hotel Ny Tanàna equivalent, Ranomafana, ~£20

• →Full-day guided rainforest hike
• →Bamboo and ruffed lemur spotting
• →Night walk for nocturnal wildlife

Every visit is different — go back in with a guide for a shorter morning walk targeting species you missed (2-3 hours, ~£8-12 total with entry). Afternoon: soak in the hot spring pool in the village or visit the ValBio research centre to learn about the park's conservation work. Optional second night walk if you're still hungry for geckos.

🚌On foot

🛏Hotel Ny Tanàna equivalent, Ranomafana, ~£20

• →Morning guided walk for missed species
• →Thermal pool soak
• →ValBio research centre visit

The longest transfer day: taxi-brousse or shared minibus via Fianarantsoa and Ambalavao to Ranohira on the edge of Isalo (~£12-15, 8-9 hours) — leave at dawn. Break the journey at Anjà Community Reserve near Ambalavao, where you can easily spot ring-tailed lemurs on the rocks and climb to the Betsileo cliff tombs with a community guide (entry and guide ~£6-8; arrange the stop with your driver or take a local taxi-moto from Ambalavao).

🚌Shared minibus ~£14, Anjà stop ~£6

🛏Isalo Ranch equivalent, Ranohira, ~£20

• →Anjà Community Reserve lemurs and tombs
• →Long-distance shared transport south
• →Arrival at Isalo

Full-day circuit with a park guide (entry ~£8, guide ~£10-15 per group) through the ochre canyons: the Piscine Naturelle, the Namaza circuit, Bara cliff tombs, and ring-tailed and sifaka lemurs. It's hot — start early, carry 2-3 litres of water and hats. Lunch at a local restaurant near the park entrance or pack a picnic.

🚌Local taxi-moto and guide, ~£8

🛏Isalo Ranch equivalent, Ranohira, ~£20

• →Isalo canyon and Piscine Naturelle hike
• →Lemur and Bara tomb visits
• →Canyon sunset from the hotel terrace

Shared minibus or taxi-brousse from Ranohira to Toliara (Tuléar), then a short ride on to Ifaty (~£10-13 total, 6-8 hours including the coastal stretch through the spiny forest). Arrive early afternoon and do nothing of note except swim, eat grilled fish and watch the sunset over the Mozambique Channel. Ifaty is the base for spiny forest — if you're keen, a local guide can take you out before dark for the bizarre octopus trees and long-tailed ground rollers.

🚌Minibus and local transfer, ~£12

🛏Le Paradisier equivalent budget bungalow in Ifaty, ~£22

• →Coastal shared transport
• →Beach and channel sunset
• →Optional spiny forest walk

Transfer to Toliara airport (~1 hour, £10-12 by local taxi) and fly back to Tana on the Tsaradia/Air Madagascar afternoon service (~£100-130 booked direct). Check in to your city guesthouse, then head out for a last dinner in Tana — flavoured rum, grilled fish, and a toast to 17 days of lemurs.

🚌Taxi ~£11; domestic flight ~£115

🛏Guesthouse in Antananarivo (Relais des Plateaux equivalent), ~£22

• →Airport transfer from Ifaty
• →Domestic flight Toliara-Antananarivo
• →Farewell dinner in Tana

Breakfast, last-minute market shopping for vanilla, rum and raffia crafts, then a taxi to Ivato for your international departure. If you have a late flight, the Lemurs' Park at Mitsinjo (about 40 minutes west of the city) makes a lovely final wildlife stop for ~£15-20 including transport and entry.

🚌Taxi to airport ~£13

🛏None (departure day)

• →Market shopping
• →Optional Lemurs' Park at Mitsinjo
• →Airport transfer