Madagascar Escorted Tours

Escorted Tours to Madagascar

Known as the ‘Land of the Lemurs’, credited as one of the very few ‘Megadiverse’ countries on earth, filled with unique flora and fauna, and cloaked in colour from orchids to brilliant birdlife, this far-flung island Eden is a world of its own.

Why choose a tour in Madagascar?

The largest island in the Indian Ocean, with terrific topography, and fantastic wildlife found nowhere else on earth, Madagascar sits in splendid isolation off the east coast of Africa. Its remoteness has protected the extraordinary environment, where rivers and rainforests, baobabs, aloes, and ferns shape the habitats of endemic and endangered species of amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, including 70+ species of lemur. Its culture is similarly unsullied, with each of its diverse ethnic groups continuing the customs and cuisines of their heritage. The result is an almost lost world of unbridled nature, woven with a tapestry of towns and traditions.

The country’s capital is Antananarivo, aka Tana. By far the largest city, set in the central highlands, it is Madagascar’s melting-pot, with a pink Baroque palace at its Haute Ville core, jacarandas hemming its heart-shaped lake, and multi-coloured buildings, rustic and modern, tiered on its mountain slopes.

Antsirabe is a spa town amid spectacular scenery, a magical mix of thermal baths, French colonial façades, craft workshops, a busy market, and brightly painted rickshaws on its broad avenues.

Andasibe is a rural, farming community, its eponymous national park cloaked in primary rainforest, where chameleons camouflage themselves in the trees, and night creatures include dwarf lemurs.

Within Andasibe’s surrounds, Vakona Reserve is set on the aptly named Lemur Island; Voi Forest has cleared paths to track the animals; Maromizaha, ‘the dragon tree forest’, hosts arboreal rodents and twelve lemur breeds; and Analamazaotra Special Reserve is home to brilliant birdlife, unique reptile species, and the largest and loudest of lemurs, the howling Indri Indri.

Ranomafana National Park forms part of the UNESCO-listed collection of Rainforests in Atsinanana. Its name translates as ‘Hot Springs’, and its altitudes range from 800 to 1200m, providing different micro-climates for the diverse flora and fauna. With thirty bird species unique to this area, and frogs, little and large, in coats of many colours, the park’s lemur population includes Aye-ayes, the rare Golden Bamboo, and the strikingly marked Milne-Edwards sifakas.

Secluded and serene, at the southeastern tip of the country, Ifotaka seamlessly intertwines the region’s culture and nature, teaming its local markets with the ancestral tombs and amazing flora of the Sacred Ifotaka forest, and the tamarind trees and ring-tailed lemurs in the Sacred Gallery.

Fort Dauphin (aka Tolagnaro) is the city on the sea. An important port since the Middle Ages, and the first French settlement on the island, it is now a vibrant place with a lively tempo, complemented by lovely beaches and a modern harbour.

When to go on Madagascar holidays

Madagascar’s sub-equatorial, tropical climate varies with regions and altitudes but can be summed-up as arid in the west, wet on the east coast, and temperate in the mountains. Its two seasons are hot and rainy in summer (late November to April), cooler and drier between May and October. In the highland northern areas around the capital, average daytime temperatures are 23° in the rainy season, dropping to 15° in the dry; while the coastal southeast is wetter and 8-10° warmer.

Our journeys are planned for the months most comfortable for touring, and best suited for seeing the wildlife.

Who are Madagascar tours suited to?

Madagascar is a place of pure magic for botanists and birdwatchers, adventurers and animal lovers, hikers and hill walkers. It is also one of the world’s poorest countries, so while there are well-surfaced roads between major towns, they meet with rough tracks when you take off at tangents. Exploration in rural areas may require a fairly good level of fitness, a little patience, and ready humour.

Revealing lush landscapes and local culture, Jules Verne’s journeys here are in sociable, small groups of like-minded travellers.

Why book Madagascar tours with Jules Verne?

With 45 years’ experience and a passion for creating extraordinary adventures, Jules Verne finds the most intriguing, adventurous, and inspiring places to explore. Our journeys in Madagascar feature forest walks with a picnic lunch, a stay in a well-placed tented camp, meeting the locals for an insight of their lifestyle, and a performance of traditional music and dance.

Our guided tours to Madagascar are ABTA and ATOL protected, so you can book with complete confidence.