Self-Launched Wild Madagascar: Antananarivo to Nosy Be

Arrive at Ivato Airport and take a taxi into the city (around 30-45 min, £8-12 shared or £15 private). Check into a budget hotel in Antananarivo's Haute-Ville or Antanimena area. Spend the afternoon walking the Analakely market steps, the old town and the Queen's Palace viewpoint (Rova) if time allows. Sort a local SIM (Telma or Orange, ~£5 for data) and change money — Ariary cash is king outside the capital. Meet no group; this is entirely your own trip.

🚌Airport taxi (~£8-15)

🛏Budget guesthouse/hotel, Antananarivo (e.g. Le Logis or similar, ~£20-30 double)

• →Airport taxi to city
• →Analakely market and Haute-Ville wander
• →Rova of Antananarivo viewpoint

Take a shared taxi-brousse from Antananarivo's Ampasampito station to Moramanga (~4-5 hrs, £4-6), then a local taxi-brousse or moto-taxi the last 30 km to Andasibe village (£2-3). Alternatively a private car transfer booked through your guesthouse costs around £45-60. In the afternoon take a guided walk (1.5-2 hrs) in the community-run Vondron'olona Miaro Mitia Ala (VOIMMA) reserve with a local guide (~£8-10 plus park entry ~£5) to spot indri, diademed sifakas and chameleons. After dark, join a night walk (1.5 hrs, ~£10) to look for mouse lemurs, nose-horned chameleons and frogs.

🚌Taxi-brousse ~£6-9 total

🛏Sahatandra River Lodge or equivalent budget lodge, Andasibe (~£25-35)

• →Shared taxi-brousse to Moramanga/Andasibe
• →VOIMMA community reserve guided walk
• →Night walk for lemurs and chameleons

Get an early start (park gates open around 6-7am) for the best indri chorus. Hire a local park guide at the Analamazoatra (Perinet) reserve entrance (~£10-12 for a half-day plus entry ~£7-9) and walk 4-5 hours on the main trails. The indri, Madagascar's largest lemur, is the star here, alongside black-and-white ruffed lemurs, diademed sifakas and abundant birdlife. Bring water, a packed lunch and sturdy shoes — trails get muddy. Afternoon free to rest in the village.

🚌Walk/local moto-taxi within Andasibe (~£2)

🛏Sahatandra River Lodge or equivalent, Andasibe (~£25-35)

• →Analamazoatra/Perinet reserve guided hike
• →Indri and sifaka spotting
• →Birdwatching

Arrange a private car or shared vehicle from Andasibe to Manambato village (~5 hrs, £40-60 private, or ~£8-10 shared via Moramanga and Brickaville). At Manambato, take a boat along the Canal des Pangalanes to Ankanin'ny Nofy (Le Palmarium Reserve, ~1.5 hrs, ~£10-15 per person). Check into Le Palmarium or a nearby lake-side guesthouse. In the late afternoon, boat to Aye-Aye Island (~£8-10 with the reserve guide) to observe aye-ayes in semi-free conditions at dusk. The reserve also shelters chameleons and rare plants.

🚌Private car/shared vehicle £40-60 split, boat £10-15

🛏Le Palmarium Reserve or nearby lakeside guesthouse (~£30-45)

• →Drive to Manambato
• →Canal des Pangalanes boat transfer
• →Aye-Aye Island evening visit

Hire a motorised canoe with a local boatman for a half- or full-day exploration of the canal (~£25-40 per boat, split between 2-4 people plus a lodge guide fee). Glide past fishing villages, water hyacinth and dense vegetation, spotting kingfishers, herons and the occasional crocodile. Stop at a riverside village for a short walk and, if arranged in advance, a packed-lunch picnic on a lakeside beach (no swimming — the water has crocodiles and bilharzia risk). Other options include forest walks in the Palmarium reserve itself.

🚌Boat charter ~£25-40 split

🛏Le Palmarium Reserve or nearby guesthouse (~£30-45)

• →Motorised canoe canal trip
• →Village visit
• →Beach picnic lunch

Boat back to Manambato early, then a long private car or shared taxi-brousse journey back to Antananarivo (~8-9 hrs, £8-12 shared or £50-70 private). Break the journey at Moramanga or Brickaville if you prefer a slower pace. Arrive in Tana in the late afternoon or early evening — stock up on cash and snacks ahead of the northern leg tomorrow. Pre-book your hotel near the airport if you have an early flight.

🚌Shared taxi-brousse ~£8-12 or private car £50-70 split

🛏Budget hotel Antananarivo (~£20-30)

• →Canal boat back to Manambato
• →Long-distance road transfer
• →Evening in Antananarivo

Fly Antananarivo to Antsiranana on Air Madagascar or Tsaradia (~£90-160 one-way, book at least a month ahead — this route sells out). Check into a mid-range hotel in Diego-Suarez. In the afternoon, hire a local taxi for a half-day tour of Diego-Suarez Bay — the second-largest bay in the world. Drive up French Mountain for the 360° viewpoint, then continue to the Baie des Sakalava, Baie des Pigeons and Baie des Dunes. A taxi for the afternoon costs ~£25-35 and can be shared.

🚌Internal flight ~£90-160; local taxi half-day ~£25-35

🛏Hotel de la Poste or equivalent, Antsiranana (~£35-50)

• →Internal flight to Antsiranana
• →French Mountain viewpoint
• →Diego-Suarez Bay beaches drive

Hire a local guide and arrange transport (taxi or hired 4x4, ~£30-40 return from Diego-Suarez, 45 min) up to Amber Mountain National Park. The 4-5 hour guided walk takes you to waterfalls, crater lakes and viewpoints through dense montane rainforest, cooler than the coast. Look for crowned lemurs, Sanford's brown lemurs, leaf-tailed geckos and the endemic Amber Mountain chameleon. Park entry is around £8-10 and guides ~£12-15 for the day. Head back to Diego-Suarez or stay in Joffreville for an early start tomorrow.

🚌Taxi/4x4 return ~£30-40 split

🛏Hotel de la Poste or Joffreville guesthouse (~£35-50)

• →Amber Mountain guided hike
• →Lemur, chameleon and gecko spotting
• →Waterfalls and crater lakes

Drive south from Diego-Suarez to the eastern entrance of Ankarana National Park (~4 hrs, ideally in a hired car ~£50-70 or a shared taxi-brousse to Mahamasina). En route, detour to the Red Tsingy — an easy one-hour round-trip walk on a maintained trail to dramatic red-and-ochre rock formations carved by the Irodo River (~£5 entry plus guide). Continue to Ankarana and check into Ankarana Lodge or a local guesthouse. Evening free to relax before tomorrow's long hike.

🚌Hired car/shared taxi-brousse ~£15-25

🛏Ankarana Lodge or equivalent (~£30-45)

• →Drive south to Ankarana
• →Red Tsingy walk
• →Sunset at the lodge

Enter Ankarana National Park in the cool of the morning with a local guide (park entry ~£8-10, guide ~£12-18 for a half-day). Spend 3-4 hours crossing hanging bridges over the tsingy limestone pinnacles, exploring sacred caves with stalactites and underground rivers, and looking for crowned lemurs, Sanford's brown lemurs, Ankarana sportive lemurs and reptiles. Trails are moderate but need proper walking shoes. After lunch, drive ~2 hrs to Iharana Bush Camp — rustic cabanas built from traditional Malagasy materials, with views over the nearby tsingy and spectacular sunsets.

🚌Hired car/4x4 ~£30-45 for the transfer

🛏Iharana Bush Camp or equivalent (~£35-55)

• →Ankarana guided hike
• →Hanging bridges over tsingy
• →Sacred caves and underground rivers
• →Emus to Iharana Bush Camp

Spend the morning exploring the tsingy of Iharana — dramatic limestone pinnacles, chasms and dry forest — on guided walking trails. For the adventurous, book the zip-line over the karst peaks and an abseil descent into a cave (activities roughly £15-30 each depending on operator, usually arranged through the camp). More relaxed alternatives: gentle walking trails or a cycling tour of the surrounding area. Return to the bush camp for another sunset over the tsingy.

🚌Local transfers/walking

🛏Iharana Bush Camp or equivalent (~£35-55)

• →Iharana tsingy guided exploration
• →Zip-line over karst peaks
• →Cave abseil
• →Optional cycling

Drive ~4 hrs north-west through lush vegetation, villages and the Tsaratanana massif to the fishing village of Ankify. En route, stop in Ambanja — Madagascar's cocoa capital — to wander the open-air market and take a tour of a cocoa plantation (plantation tours ~£8-12 per person; ask the camp or local operator to arrange). From Ankify, take a ferry or shared speedboat across to Nosy Be (~45 min-1 hr, ~£5-8 on the public ferry or ~£15-25 private speedboat). Settle into a guesthouse near Ambatoloaka or Andilana beach.

🚌Hired car ~£40-55 split; ferry/boat £5-8

🛏Guesthouse or mid-range hotel, Nosy Be (~£30-50)

• →Drive to Ankify
• →Ambanja market and cocoa plantation tour
• →Boat crossing to Nosy Be

Take a full-day snorkelling boat trip to Nosy Sakatia and Nosy Tanikely. Sakatia, known as the 'marine green land', has shallow protected bays where green sea turtles feed on seagrass — you can swim alongside them. Nosy Tanikely is a marine protected area with vibrant coral and abundant reef fish, starfish and the occasional turtle. Day trips run ~£25-40 including snorkel gear and a beach picnic lunch. In October and November only, you can add a whale-shark marine safari with the Madagascar Whale Shark Project (extra cost, minimum numbers).

🚌Boat trip included in day-tour price

🛏Guesthouse or mid-range hotel, Nosy Be (~£30-50)

• →Boat to Nosy Sakatia
• →Swimming with green turtles
• →Snorkelling at Nosy Tanikely
• →Optional whale-shark marine safari (Oct-Nov)

Enjoy a final breakfast by the sea, swim or have a last morning on the beach, then head to Fascene Airport for your flight out (Nosy Be has direct connections to some regional hubs; otherwise fly back to Antananarivo first). If you have time, add a few extra beach days on Andilana or a visit to the Lokobe Reserve. This is the end of the self-launched route — no group farewell, but the same wild Madagascar.

🚌Taxi to Fascene Airport ~£8-12

🛏None (departure day)

• →Final beach morning
• →Airport transfer
• →Optional Lokobe Reserve visit