Top things to do

Some 18km south of Manakara on the road to Vohipeno, you'll find Domaine Aavyland, a 31-hectare organic plantation and distillery producing medicinal and fragrant essential oils such as ravintsara, niaouly, clove, c…

The oldest and most attractive part of town is the pedestrian Haute-Ville (known as Tanana Ambony in Malagasy). It's famed for its architecture – two-storey brick houses with steep roofs, balconies and tumbling plan…

This cafeteria is one of the busiest in town, with reason: its bakery is the best for kilometres (the croissants get top marks, as does the bread), and the restaurant out back churns out tasty, great-value Madagasca…

For gastronomic fare at average prices, make sure you book a table at La Rizière. The restaurant is a working culinary school and the chefs and waiters are all perfecting their trade. Service is charming (the chefs …

Hands down the best restaurant in town, Chez Jenny is a winning combination of colourful decor, delicious food, warm service and atmosphere, complete with a well-stocked bar and a cosy fireplace for cold winter nigh…

This cheap and cheerful eatery heaves with young locals every night of the week. It serves the best brochettes (kebabs) in town, cooked on a street-side BBQ (don't miss the peanut dipping sauce). The huge mi sao are…

Ranomafana appears after a fantastic entrance through a dry rocky valley, and after a long day’s travel, it feels like you've reached a mysterious island. The air is fresh and cool and the forest, with all of its st…

This 370,000-sq-metre reserve encompasses three mountain-size boulders (the three sisters) ringed at the base by a narrow forest full of ring-tailed lemurs. Anja's lemurs are famous for sunning themselves on the bou…

This international training centre for the study of biodiversity is housed in attractive buildings on the edge of the national park. If you have any interest in the scientific research going on in and around Ranomaf…

Parc National d'Andringitra is the pièce de résistance of the wider Massif de l'Andringitra. It encompasses high-altitude plateaux of epic beauty, small tracts of primary rainforest, scenic trails along mountain str…