Madagascar itineraries for 1, 2 or 3 weeks
What fits in one, two or three weeks, with real drive times and the combinations that waste days on the road.
Plan your trip
Madagascar travel guides
Plain answers to the questions people ask before they book, from a local team that plans private trips all over the island.
We're a small Malagasy team in Antananarivo, and we drive these roads every season. These guides cover what a trip costs, how long you need, when to go and whether it's safe, plus the parks and lemurs people come for, trade-offs included. Anything that changes, like park fees, comes with a date, and where we can't be sure, we say so.
Every guide ends with the trips that fit it. If none of them is quite right, tell us your dates and we'll shape one around you. We reply within 24 hours.
Planning your trip from France? Our guide to Madagascar holidays from France connects flights, calendar days and the complete budget. Still choosing a region? Compare northern and southern Madagascar against real tour durations, walking and beach time before requesting your quote.
Planning
Before you book
How much does a trip to Madagascar cost?
What a private Madagascar trip costs, what our prices include, and what goes on top: flights, the visa, meals and tips, plus park fees if you travel on your own.
The best time to visit Madagascar, month by month
Month by month and region by region: dry roads, cyclones, the Tsingy's short season, whales, lemur babies, birds and chameleons.
Getting around Madagascar: car hire with a driver, self-drive or flights
Car hire with a driver-guide, self-drive, domestic flights or taxi-brousse: the trade-offs, drive times in 2026, and why the west needs a 4x4.
Is Madagascar safe for tourists?
What the US, UK, Canadian and French advisories say (October 2026), and what to actually do about crime, night roads, malaria and cyclones.
Flights to Madagascar: routes, airlines and flight times
The 2026 routes into Antananarivo and Nosy Be, flight times from London and New York, landing at Ivato, open-jaw tickets, and domestic flights whose times change.
Travelling to Madagascar: what to know before you go
The visa, cash and the ariary, malaria and water, slow roads, power cuts and SIM cards, fady and photos, packing, tipping and the seasons: what to know before a first trip.
Madagascar visa: how to get one, and what it costs
Who needs a Madagascar visa, what it costs in 2026, the official eVisa and the airport counters, passport rules, extensions and the look-alike visa sites to avoid.
Vaccinations and malaria tablets for Madagascar
The jabs the CDC and the UK recommend, the yellow fever certificate rule, malaria by region and season, the tablets, rabies, bilharzia, plague and evacuation cover.
Money in Madagascar: the ariary, cash, cards and tipping
The ariary and its rate in October 2026, euros or dollars, cash machines and their limits, cards in hotels, what things cost, tipping, and how much cash to carry.
Where to stay in Madagascar: hotels and lodges by region
What hotels in Madagascar cost, what to expect from the hot water, power and wifi, and where you sleep at each stop, from Antananarivo and Andasibe to Bekopaka and Nosy Be.
What to pack for Madagascar
Clothes for each region and month, shoes for the Tsingy and Isalo, night walks, malaria, boats, plugs and power cuts, the domestic flight limit, and what to leave at home.
Your trip
Trip types and months
Planning a Madagascar honeymoon
Three private routes that end on a beach, the months to pick and avoid, how long, rough costs, and an honest comparison with Mauritius and the Seychelles.
Madagascar with kids: a family trip that works
Which ages Madagascar suits, lemurs and night walks, long drives and malaria tablets, the school-holiday months, and how to pace a private family trip with a beach at the end.
All-inclusive holidays in Madagascar: what's possible
Where all-inclusive exists in Madagascar, how touring prices differ, what our prices include, what meals cost on the road, and how to end a tour at a beach resort.
Madagascar holidays from the UK: how to plan one
A UK package, a local operator or going it alone: what each costs, what ATOL covers, flights from UK airports, the visa, pounds, school holidays and a sample two-week trip.
Planning a Madagascar vacation from the US
Flights and journey times from the US, jet lag, the visa, the State Department advisory, insurance, costs in dollars, and a US package against booking locally.
Madagascar or Tanzania? How to choose for a wildlife trip
Lemurs and forest walks or lions and game drives: what each trip is like on the ground, what a day costs, when to go, and how to combine the two.
Combining Madagascar with Mauritius or Réunion
Flights from Mauritius and Réunion to Antananarivo and Nosy Be, how to split the days, the months that suit both islands, the visas, and when a Madagascar beach will do instead.
Cyclone season in Madagascar: when it is, and how to plan around it
When cyclones come and which coasts they hit, what recent storms did to roads and towns, what the rains close, and how to plan a trip in the wet months.
Madagascar in July: weather, wildlife and what to book
July region by region: cold highland nights, dry roads in the west and south, rain and whales on the east coast, the busy season, and the trips that fit it.
Madagascar in August: weather, whales and crowds
August region by region: dry roads and open parks, whale calves off Sainte-Marie, the wind at Diego's bays, lemur babies, peak-season prices and what to book first.
Madagascar in October: lemur babies, jacarandas and warm days
October region by region: warm dry days, heat in the west and south, lemur babies, jacarandas, birds breeding, the last weeks of the Tsingy, and the trips that fit.
Madagascar in December: rain, heat and where it still works
December region by region: the first heavy rains, cyclone risk, the closed Tsingy, green forests and frogs, Christmas crowds and prices, and the trips that still work.
On the mainland
Parks and routes
The best places to visit in Madagascar
Andasibe, the Tsingy, Isalo, Nosy Be and the rest, region by region: what each place is like and how long it needs.
Madagascar's national parks: which ones to visit
Andasibe-Mantadia, Ranomafana, Isalo, the Tsingy, the north and the remote parks: what each is for, how long to give it, the months that work and the trips that go there.
Andasibe National Park: indri, night walks and how to visit
The indri, how to arrange a guided night walk, Mantadia, Vakona and Peyrieras, rain and leeches, and how many days to give Andasibe.
Ranomafana National Park: bamboo lemurs, steep trails and how to visit
The golden bamboo lemur and Ranomafana's other lemurs, how hard the trails are, guided night walks, the fees, Centre ValBio and how many nights to stay.
Isalo National Park: hikes, pools and how to visit
How the Isalo walks compare, how many days to give it, when the heat bites, the 2026 park fees and where it fits between Anja and the coast.
Tsingy de Bemaraha: visiting the Grand and Petit Tsingy
Grand or Petit Tsingy, the road from Morondava, the opening season, what the climbing involves and how many days to allow.
Andringitra and the Tsaranoro valley: hiking in the south
The climb to Pic Boby, walks and ring-tails in the Tsaranoro valley, the tracks from Ambalavao, frosty nights, the best months and how to add it to the Classic South.
Madagascar's rainforests: where to see them
Where Madagascar's rainforest grows, how much is left, what lives in it, the forests you can walk in and how hard each one is, plus the leeches and the best months.
The RN7: Madagascar's classic road trip, stop by stop
Antsirabe to Ifaty stop by stop: road-day allowances, optional visits, the flight back and how to fit the Classic South into your total calendar days.
The Tsiribihina River: the descent and current travel advice
The Tsiribihina descent from near Miandrivazo to Belo: barge or pirogue, sandbank camps, the gorge, the season, the safety advice and how it leads to the Tsingy.
Places to stay
Islands, coast and towns
Nosy Be: things to do, when to go and how to get there
Lokobe, Nosy Komba, Tanikely and Iranja, when the rains and the whales come, flights and the Ankify boat, and how many nights to give Nosy Be.
Île Sainte-Marie: whales, beaches and how to get there
Whale season and the rules boats follow, Île aux Nattes and the pirate cemetery, the rain and cyclones, the flight or the boat, and how many nights to give Sainte-Marie.
Nosy Iranja: the sandbar island and how to visit
Two islets joined by a sandbar at low tide: the boat from Nosy Be, timing the tide, turtles, the lighthouse walk, and whether to stay the night.
Nosy Komba: the lemur island off Nosy Be
The black lemurs that come close and why not to feed them, the boat from Hell-Ville, crafts, snorkelling at Nosy Tanikely, half a day or a night, and Nosy Komba against Lokobe.
The islands off Madagascar worth the boat ride
Nosy Be and its neighbours, Nosy Iranja, Mitsio, Sainte-Marie, Nosy Hara and Nosy Ve: what each island is for, the boats, the best months, and Mauritius or Réunion next door.
The best beaches in Madagascar, and when to go
The beaches worth building a trip around, from the Nosy Iranja sandbar to Anakao, with the dry months for each coast, honest notes on swimming, and the trips that finish on the sand.
Antananarivo: what to see in the capital, and how long to stay
What to see in Antananarivo, from the Rova to the craft market, the half-day trips out of town, the airport drive, where to stay, and why one night is usually enough.
Antsirabe: pousse-pousses, crater lakes and the road south
The highland spa town on the RN7: pousse-pousses, zebu horn and tin-can workshops, the Lake Tritriva crater walk, cold July nights, and how long to stay.
Diego Suarez: the Three Bays, Amber Mountain and Ankarana
Diego Suarez and the far north: the Three Bays, the Emerald Sea, Montagne d'Ambre, the Tsingy Rouge and Ankarana, the dry windy months, and how many nights to give it.
Ifaty and Tulear: the reef, the spiny forest and the end of the RN7
Ifaty's lagoon and reef, the baobabs and birds of the Reniala spiny forest, Tulear and its flights, Anakao by boat, the heat and whale months, and how many nights to stay.
Morondava: the base for the baobabs, Kirindy and the Tsingy
The flight or the long road in, Kirindy to the north, Belo-sur-Mer to the south, the beach the sea is eating, the dry months and how many nights to stay.
Avenue of the Baobabs: how to visit, and when
When to go, how to get to Morondava, what the rains change, and how to fit the Avenue in with Kirindy and the Tsingy.
In the forest
Wildlife and baobabs
Madagascar animals: what you can see, and where
Lemurs, tenrecs, chameleons, frogs, birds, whales and, with luck, the fossa: what you can realistically see in Madagascar, where each lives, and how close you get.
Where to see lemurs in Madagascar
Indri, ring-tails, sifakas, the aye-aye and mouse lemurs: where each one lives, when to go, and how close you really get.
Where to see ring-tailed lemurs in the wild
Where ring-tailed lemurs live, how a visit to Anja works, Isalo and the Tsaranoro valley, when babies ride on their mothers' backs, and how close you should get.
Sifakas: where to see Madagascar's dancing lemurs
The nine sifakas, why they dance on two legs, which forest holds which species, the months for babies and how close you really get.
Where to see a fossa in Madagascar, with luck
What the fossa is, where and when you have a real chance to see one, and how Kirindy Forest fits between the baobabs and the Tsingy.
Chameleons in Madagascar: where to see them
Panther, Parson's and leaf chameleons: where to find them, how the night walks work, what the colours really mean, and the months they're most active.
Night walks in Madagascar: what comes out after dark
Mouse lemurs, sportive lemurs, sleeping chameleons and frogs: where night walks run, access rules, what to bring and the months when there's most to find.
Birds of Madagascar: what birders come for, and where
Ground-rollers, mesites, vangas and couas: how many birds Madagascar has, which ones live only here, where to look for them, and the best months for a birding trip.
Are there dangerous animals in Madagascar?
Snakes and boas, crocodiles, spiders, scorpions, leeches, the fossa, the sea and the mosquito: what can actually hurt you in Madagascar, and the habits that prevent it.
Madagascar's baobabs: the species and where to see them
The six baobabs found only in Madagascar, where each one grows, when they flower and drop their leaves, how threatened they are, and the trips that reach them.
Daily life
Food, culture and language
Malagasy food: what you'll eat in Madagascar
Rice and laoka, romazava, ravitoto and zebu, mofo gasy and koba from the street stalls, seafood on the coast, lychees, THB and rum, and what meals cost in 2026.
Malagasy culture and customs: what visitors should know
The ancestors and famadihana, fady, the lamba and other dress, savika and the zebu, religion, crafts to bring home, and the manners that matter on a trip.
What language do they speak in Madagascar?
Malagasy, French and how much English you'll hear, the link to Borneo, the Malagasy words worth knowing, with rough pronunciation, and the place names visitors get wrong.
Ready when you are
Tell us what you want to see
Send your dates and a rough idea. We reply within 24 hours with a written itinerary and a firm price. No deposit to ask a question.