Madagascar in Oct-Nov.

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topresch
topresch

Hey

Me, my girlfriend Anja, and another couple are going to Mauritius for a friend's wedding, but thought we should take a trip to Madagascar when we're "in the neighbourhood". We plan on leaving 22.10 and stay till 4 or 5.11, although Anja has to go back to Mauritius 28 or 29.10. We don't really know what to see and where to visit, but have looked through the Bradt guide and think we should divide the trip into two - one Tana-Nosy Boraha/Ile St. Marie-Tana with stopover at Andasibe (22-28.10), and one possibly southwards for 5-6 days. Now then.. does this seem like a feasible plan or too ambitious? Can we get to Ile St. Marie in two days incl. one night at Andasibe, and is it worth it? Can we get back to Tana in one day by car? Any good suggestions on where to stay there.. we prefer budget, but not fundamentalists..

We plan to rent car+driver I guess, possibly through someone I know, but this might not work due to her workload. Can anyone (travellers hopefully) recommend any drivers? And is the Air Mad-plane from ISM-Tana reliable to book at arrival in Madagascar or should we book ahead?

Secondly, any good suggestions on where to go southwards (after Anjas departure for Maurice)? I've seen many in here say good things about the far south, but that might be a bit too far for vehicles? The word is up for grabs. If there are any Norwegians in here I can call about this (maybe BeritK - the name suggests so ;) ), please tell me (if you wish) on: fantomas@operamail.com

We're quite green when it comes to Madagascar, although we've travelled quite a lot before, so hopefully we don't see problems, only challenges :)

Thanks
Torbjørn (w. Anja, Alex and Silje)

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mpomorski
mpomorski

Topresh, questions very similiar to yours have been rolled over many times on this forum. Maybe you put some effort and read the previous threads first?

Plan - it surely can be done

If you have a private car waiting in Soaniara-Ivongo you can come back in one day (if one of the bridges doesn't collapse which is not so infrequent in that region). Same applies to 2-days-to Boraha. As a matter of fact it took me less than 20 hours to get to St. Marie from Tana using public transport (3 busses - because a bridge collapsed between Toamasina and Foulpointe and a cargo ship - be aware that they might try to overcharge you for it)

Drivers - a few posts earlier I recommended good agency, so did the others.

Airline Tickets - as always and everywhere, if you are sure that you gonna fly, the sooner the better.

Interesting places in the south - well depends on what you want to focus on. wildlife? treks? people?. My favourites were Anja, Fianarantsoa and Isalo. I've heard good words about Andrinigintra (or however it's supposed to be spelled). and found places off the RN7 (Mahafaly territory for instance) more rewarding and very few people go there.

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mpomorski
mpomorski

BTW, drivers recommendations from people just recently registered, writting just one post, like one thread below, should be treated with some caution...

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topresch
topresch

Thanks. I did read the previous threads, but didn't seem to find any identical with my plans, but it must be there somewhere if you say so. Since I don't exactly nag, I don't see the problem with the post containing questions that might have been answered before though.

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peterg123
peterg123

OK Presh, maybe it can be done back to Tana from Ile St M in a day but like is said here, pushing the "maybe" in Madagascar is a sure way to find a fallen dbridge or some other "sorry can't do" situation.

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xarli
xarli

Hi topresh!

Maybe it's a little late but I recommend you to do the downward of the Tsiribihina river by wooden boat for three days, in the west of Madagascar. It's an amazing experience. We did it in September, with Rijatours company from Madagascar

web: http://www.rijatours.mg/ )

They are very nice people and we enjoyed a lot the river trip. We saw lemurs, crocodiles, camaleons,... and a very amazing landscapes. It was one of the best experience that we have. If you visit the webpage you will see that they have another tours in Madagascar.

Don´t hesitate to contact me if you have more questions.

Xarli.

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