Madagascar

Hello, I am planing to spend 7 weeks in total backpacking through Madagascar starting late August and finishing mid October. I will spend the majority of the time in West, central and southern Madagascar. This includes the following: 2-3 day journey through the Tsiribihina river, Tsingy de Bemarahana National Park, Morondava, and Belo Sur Mer ( if I have time). after this I will spend 3 weeks in Andavadoaka volunteering for Blue Ventures. After I will travel along the RN7 starting in Tulear to…

Hello,

I was hoping to get some jewellery in Tana, particularly with Madagascan gemstones such as Sapphire and Tourmaline. I am looking for some finer jewellery with nicely cut stones embedded into gold rings and the like. Is it easy to find shops selling such products or are the gems generally all shipped abroad? Does anyone have any recommendations for reliable, reasonable and ethical shops?

Thanks!

Hiya,

Yeww! Madagascar! My rough idea for 7-31 of Oct (would love a travel bud..even more so a climbing buddy!)

I'm heading North to Nosy Be and would be stoked if I could get my PADI Open water diving and spend a bit of time exploring (how long is good?). Any advice for Nosy Be?

Really really really want to climb up around Nosy Hara and Diego Suraez, should I bring a full trad rack, sport or just hope that there are some tour companies or good boulders?

Wandering around PC de Marojejy is…

What is the weather like in Ile Ste-Marie in July/ August? Would it rain there? And is the water warm enough for swimming?

Hi,
Looking for advice on the following itinerary for three weeks in August . We are two experienced travellers in our early 30s, with reasonable/functional French. Pretty flexible in terms of budget, level of luxury etc. (generally from backpacker – mid range, with a couple of nicer places if it is worth it).

Particular questions:
–do we need to book any parts of this (Tsingy?) in advance or can we sort it out all in country (our preference, if it's feasible).

- does anyone know if…

Hi, we still need to challenge some 5000m passes on the Markha Valley trek in Ladakh this summer, but I cannot avoid looking ahead to upcoming adventures.

My daughter of 20 would want to visit Madagascar, because of the baobab, the lemur and the white sandy beaches. I strongly feel for it too, but if I look at the travel advice of the Belgian department of foreign affaires, they are truly negative about the situation of travellers to Madagascar. Unless you book an expensive travel agency which…

Hello.

I have a flight scheduled from Ivato airport in Antananarivo to Morondava at 7:10 AM on a weekday morning in a few weeks. I have heard conflicting stories about which time I need to arrive at the airport and how long it will take me to get there from a hotel in the Antananarivo city centre.

What time would you say I need to arrive at Ivato airport for a domestic flight at 7:10 AM on a weekday morning? How long would it take to get there from the city centre?

Thanks,

Rob

My husband and I are heading to Madagascar next month for 18 days and after spending a bit of time in Antananarivo we would like to take a 2-3 day trip down the Tsiribihina River (by pirogue) finishing in Belo. Then the plan is to visit Reserve Forestiere de Kirindy, Allee Des Baobabs, and Morondava.
I have contacted a couple of tour companies over email but the quotes I'm getting seem very expensive (over 1000 EUR for 2 people, meals not included!). I'm wondering if it will be possible to…

Hi,

I cannot find much information about the Daraina reserve in the north of the country.

From a post in 2012 here, it says that aye ayes are seen on a regular basis.
http://hilarybradt.com/madagascar-updates/chapter-14/

Does anyone have any experience of this being true? Is it a worthwhile reserve to go to for this and other reasons? Finally, how do you actually get there. I understand you reach it from Vohemar, but without private transport, how would you do this?

Finally, I would love to…

Hi Folks,

I'm planning a trip to Madagascar in Dec. and hope to see Ile Sainte Marie towards the end of the trip. I've read mixed reviews about traveling by ferry to get there. I would really rather not take a flight out there because of the expense. Does anyone have advice about taking the ferry during that time of year? Will I get stranded for days waiting to get across?

Thanks!
Monica