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Things To Do In Madagascar

Madagascar, a country famed for lemurs, baobab trees, birding, and jungles, offers visitors a rich playground to explore. I was enthralled by its beauty: the sweeping canyons and gorges, the grand waterfalls, and the sheer diversity of the landscape.

One day you’re in a tropical jungle, the next you’re in an arid plain, and a few hours later you’re in a subtropical forest! Plus, there really are seemingly endless varieties of lemurs.

Though Madagascar is remote and finding cheap flights is tricky, with only 350,000 visitors per year, you get a lot of the country to yourself. (And it’s always better to go to a place sooner rather than later because you never know where the next “it” destination is going to be!)

Though I didn’t get as much time there as I’d like (the roads are terrible; it takes eight hours to go 250 kilometers/155 miles), here are some of the wonders you can expect on your visit!

1. Avenue of the Baobabs
Baobab trees are massive trees that can grow 98 feet tall (that’s about the height of an eight-story building) and 36 feet wide and can live up to 1,000 years. The reason they get so wide is so that they can absorb and store water since the climate is so dry (as much as 1,000 gallons of water can be stored in a single tree).

While there are similar trees in the genus, baobabs are completely unique to Madagascar. They’re an impressive sight, especially when your guide casually mentions that the massive one you’re hugging is just a baby — at 400 years old. Unfortunately, the trees are an endangered species due to clearcutting and agriculture.

While the trees can be found throughout the country, this road lined with them (just an hour outside Morondava) — and straight out of a postcard — is one of those iconic images of Madagascar. The best time for photos is during sunrise or sunset. The worst time for crowds? Those same times. Pick your poison.

2. Tsingy
This park, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990, is near the western coast and is not an easy place to visit. It takes one complete day via four-wheel drive on very rough terrain to get here. It’s very remote, with few tourists.

The plus side? It’s one of the most incredible sites in the country.

Water and wind spent over 200 million years carving the limestone into jagged peaks that look like a row of never-ending knives (hence the name Tsingy, which means “where one cannot walk barefoot”). To get around, you use rope bridges, ladders, and fixed cables. The area also has a lot of caving, and often people pair a trip here with a slow boat down the Tsiribihina River (send photos of that if you go, because sadly, due to time, I missed visiting the river).

3. Isalo National Park
Created in 1962 and located in the south-central part of the country, this park features multiple rugged hiking trails (bring water and a hat, as you are exposed most of the time); cliffs, ravines, gorges, and canyons; and plentiful fauna (there are over 100 species of birds here). It’s a Westworld-like park and it blew me away. It was my favorite place in Madagascar.

There are three waterfalls you can cool off in after your walks and a variety of lemur species (they get pretty close as they are desensitized to humans, so watch your food!). You are required to hire a guide (they are found at the entrance), but they were great explainers of the land and the local culture.

Added bonus: the clear sky and lack of light pollution make for some incredible sunsets and star-filled nights. I never saw the Milky Way so clearly.

4. Nosy Be
Nosy Be is the place to go for Madagascar’s trademark beaches. Located five miles off the coast of the main island, Nosy Be is a volcanic island that spans over 310 square kilometers (120 square miles). While it is a volcanic island, no eruptions have occurred in recorded history.

Here you’ll find white-sand beaches and a more upscale, Western environment. There are expensive restaurants, big resorts, and lots of couples and families (which is generally who visits Madagascar). Beach parties erupt each Sunday, and there’s some amazing snorkeling, diving, fishing, and whale watching (the waters around Nosy Be are home to humpback and dwarf fin whales). It’s the quintessential tropical island paradise — with the quintessential cost (but it’s the best beach in the country!).

5. Île Sainte Marie
While everyone goes to Nosy Be for the better beaches and fancier resorts, if you want something a little more local, cheap, and relaxed, check out Île Sainte Marie off the eastern coast.

Known as Nosy Boraha, this former pirate capital (Captain Kidd, the 17th-century Scottish pirate, sank nearby) is a cool island full of little coves, a pirate graveyard, delicious seafood, and a laid-back Caribbean-like atmosphere. It’s home to over 26,000 people and spans over 220 square kilometers (85 square miles). While the beaches aren’t as good as Nosy Be, there’s a beautiful, pristine white-sand beach in the south of the island near the airport that few people visit. This is also the best part of the country for whale watching too (humpback whales come here to breed between July-September).

When coming here, fly. The slow boat is almost always late and lands nowhere near a major town on the mainland. Taking the boat wastes an entire day.