This Madagascar small-group wildlife journey is designed for travelers who love adventure, rare wildlife, remote landscapes, and a true island escape. It combines the Avenue of the Baobabs, Kirindy Reserve, Andasibe National Park, the Pangalanes Channel, Palmarium and its nocturnal Aye-Aye experience, and Sainte Marie whale watching into one highly distinctive Madagascar departure.
Because this route depends on domestic flights, lodge space, whale season, boat transfers, and specialist guiding, early planning is strongly recommended. Each departure is limited to a maximum of 12 travelers, which keeps the experience more personal, better supported, and easier to manage in Madagascar’s complex travel conditions.
Price from: USD 5,994 per person, based on double occupancy.
Group size: Limited to 12 pax maximum.
Best for: Travelers who love adventure, wildlife, rare species, baobab landscapes, lemurs, Aye-Aye viewing, whale watching, and a comfortable escape through western and eastern Madagascar.
These departures are designed around the strongest seasonal windows for wildlife, baobab scenery, and Sainte Marie whale watching. Places are limited, and availability can tighten quickly once domestic flights and lodge rooms begin to fill.
Private upgrade available: If you prefer a private version of this journey, HT Agency Tours can adapt the route, lodge level, dates, pace, and guiding style for couples, families, photographers, or private groups.
Madagascar is extraordinary, but it is not a simple destination to organize alone. Domestic flights, road conditions, boat connections, park timing, local guiding, and seasonal wildlife movement all need careful coordination. Therefore, booking with a locally experienced team gives you a smoother, safer, and more rewarding journey.
Before confirming your place, we can review the preferred departure date, room type, number of travelers, flight timing, and any comfort expectations. Once availability is checked, you receive a clear proposal with the booking process, payment steps, cancellation conditions, and what is included.
Because this journey depends on domestic flight seats, lodge rooms, and small-group space, we recommend requesting availability before flights and lodge space tighten. This creates urgency without discount pressure and helps protect the best travel flow.
Travelers choose this journey because it feels different from a standard Madagascar tour. It offers baobab landscapes, rare nocturnal wildlife, rainforest lemurs, Aye-Aye viewing, and whale watching in one compact route. Moreover, the small-group format gives guests the benefit of shared travel while still feeling carefully guided and supported.
DURATION: 12 days
AREA: Western and eastern Madagascar
PLACES TO VISIT: Antananarivo, Morondava, Kirindy Reserve, Avenue of the Baobabs, Andasibe, Palmarium, Pangalanes Channel, and Sainte Marie
ACCOMMODATION TYPE: Comfort accommodation with meals as specified in the itinerary
TRANSPORT TYPE: Private car, speed boat, and domestic flights
ASSISTANCE: Professional English-speaking driver/guide and local specialist guides
Kirindy Forest is one of western Madagascar’s most important dry forest wildlife areas. It is known for fossas, nocturnal walks, dry forest species, lemurs, reptiles, and rare endemic wildlife. In addition, it pairs beautifully with the Avenue of the Baobabs, making this western section one of the strongest highlights of the journey.
The Avenue of the Baobabs is one of Madagascar’s most recognizable landscapes. Ancient Grandidier’s baobabs rise from the western plains, creating an unforgettable sunset setting. For many travelers, this is the emotional signature moment of the tour.
Andasibe is one of Madagascar’s best rainforest destinations and an excellent place to encounter the Indri, the largest lemur in Madagascar. Guided walks can also reveal chameleons, birds, orchids, frogs, and the rich atmosphere of the eastern rainforest.
The Palmarium area, reached by boat through the Pangalanes Channel, offers a very different Madagascar mood. Lemurs, lakeside scenery, tropical vegetation, and the famous Aye-Aye experience make this one of the most unusual stages of the journey.
Sainte Marie is one of Madagascar’s best-known whale watching areas. The July departures are especially attractive because they align with the whale season, making this route a strong choice for travelers who want both land wildlife and marine encounters.
This is a small-group journey with limited availability, and the best departures can fill as flights and lodges tighten. If July 2026 is your preferred date, we recommend requesting availability early so we can confirm seats, rooms, domestic flights, and the best travel flow.
Upon arrival at Ivato International Airport, you will be warmly welcomed by your dedicated HT Agency Toursrepresentative for a personalized meet-and-greet experience. Once you have passed customs formalities, it is to the Guide to smooth through the rest of the arrivals process - changing money, setting up your phone with a new SIM card, and anything else you need. This will make our contact easier. Once completed, transfer to your hotel with a private car.
LOCATION: ANTANANARIVO
ACCOMMODATION: NOVOTEL | RADISSON BLU
INCLUSION: DINNER AND BREAKFAST
DRIVE: ABOUT 30MN
After breakfast, transfer to the airport for flight TNR to the west coast of the island, destination to Morondava MOQ. Then, check-in at your hotel. After lunch, enjoy the rest of the day in Morondava: Relax on the beach for the rest of the day, and admire the incredible sight of sunset.
LOCATION : MORONDAVA
ACCOMODATION : PALISSANDRE COTE OUEST| VEZO BEACH
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
FLIGHT DURATION: ABOUT 1H10MN
After breakfast, drive directly to the North, about 42 km following the secondary road which a bit dusty, to reach the famous Kirindy Park. Today we drive through the Baobab Avenue during the daylight. After about 2h30mn drive, beginning of the Guided visit at Kirindy National Park. Kirindy Reserve is home to seven species of lemur. The most common are the common brown lemurs and the Verreaux's sifakas. These long-legged, seven-pound lemurs, white with dark patches, leap among tree trunks high in the canopy, propelled by their powerful hind legs but continually maintaining an upright posture. 40 bird, 50 reptile and 15 amphibian species are also found in this magnificent forest. After Kirindy’s Reserve visit. Following your visit and lunch, return toward Morondava with a stop at the “Baobab Amoureux,” before continuing to the iconic Avenue of the Baobabs. This extraordinary site features ancient Grandidier’s baobabs, some over 800 years old, standing as remnants of Madagascar’s once-dense forests. End the day with a sunset over this spectacular landscape before returning to your hotel.
LOCATION: MORONDAVA
ACCOMODATION : PALISSANDRE COTE OUEST| VEZO BEACH
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
After breakfast, transfer to the airport: you will flight back to the capital Antananarivo. Upon arrival, drive directly to Andasibe. On the RN2 "highway" east we enjoy panoramic views of the stepped rice fields and the Merina Tombs of the Highlands of Madagascar. We see villages of the Merina tribe in the rocky hills and then continue east through green and luxuriant vegetation, with stops along the scenic rainforest route in world-renowned Andasibe-Perinet National Park, seeing primary forests and lakes. Check in at the hotel. Around 6:30PM, you end this day with a guided night visits which will take 1 hour and half, and then drive back to the hotel.
LOCATION : ANDASIBE
ACCOMODATION : MANJARANO | MANTADIA LODGE | RELAIS DE MANTADIA
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
DURATION: ABOUT 1H10MN +ABOUT 4 TO 5 HOURS DRIVE¬
After the breakfast, you start with a guided day visit at the Analamazaotra National Park. It is better to leave the hotel early (about 7:30AM) to meet easily the Indri-Indri and the Diademed Sifaka in their forest home. The visit takes about 3 hours. Within a mile of the park, you can hear the peculiar call of the indri very early in the morning until noon and again in the late afternoon. Indris (called Babakoto in Malagasy) are the largest living lemurs at all reaching up to 1 meter. Andasibe is the best place to observe the Indris given that there are a couple of families habituated to humans. It lives in small groups and cannot survive in captivity. There are several legends trying to explain its origins since it is considered a sacred animal in the whole Madagascar. Apart from the Indri, another 13 lemur species inhabit these forests, such as woody lemur, grey bamboo lemur, diademed sifaka, brown lemur, red mouse-lemur, red-bellied lemur, black and white ruffed lemur. In the afternoon we visit Andasibe village, known as "the City of Waters", and stroll through the local market to see some Malagasy craftspeople working. Then, we enjoy an amazing up close and personal experience with lemurs on the private Lemurs Island and then on to view many other species in the Vakona Reserve Zoo, where you will see many crocodiles in the huge river enclosure, native birds, and other wildlife in well-kept surroundings. After the visit, we drive back to the hotel.
LOCATION: ANDASIBE
ACCOMMODATION : MANJARANO | MANTADIA LODGE | RELAIS DE MANTADIA
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
After breakfast, you are going to join the Palmarium Reserve. Your trip will take around four hours with some stops for photos or breaks if it is necessary. You need to take boat to get there (From Manambato to Palmarium). You will arrive there at the end of the day so you will check-in at the hotel and then begin the guided night walk.
LOCATION: PANGALANES
ACCOMMODATION: PALMARIUM BEACH
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
DRIVE DURATION: 4H
In the morning, you will start a guided day walk at the Palmarium Reserve. It is a little island where inhabit ten species of lemur as Indri, Sifaka, Coronatus, Varécia, variegata, Propithèques, particularly the wellknown Aye-Aye. There is also the best and endemic Madagascar palm tree as Dypsis, Ravenea, Orania, Voanioala and Lemurophoenix).
LOCATION: PANGALANES
ACCOMMODATION: PALMARIUM BEACH
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
This day is dedicated to transfer you to Tamatave by following the Pangalane Chanel. So, after breakfast, embarkation on a motor boat. On this boulevard, we will cross barges, "bush-boats" (taxis-bush fluvial), canoes ..., local transport ... Spontaneous greetings between sailors ... The shouts of joy of the children on the banks accompany us all along our navigation. We are spectators of unusual and unforgettable scenes of life. On rout to go to Toamasina with some stops to enjoy the landscape, for photos. Then transfer at the airport for your flight to Sainte Marie (Via Antananarivo). Upon arrival, a private car will be arranged to insure your transfer to your hotel.
LOCATION: SAINTE MARIE
ACCOMMODATION: SOANAMBO MANTIS | VOAARA HOTEL
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
DURATION: about 2H to 2H30MN BOAT +2H 45MN FLIGHT via TNR
Today is devoted to the cultural and historical treasures of the island, offering a fascinating glimpse into its rich past. Begin your exploration with a visit to the museum of Queen Betty, followed by the island’s first Catholic church, reflecting the early influences that shaped this unique destination. Continue to the historic pirates’ cemetery, where stories of maritime legends and centuries-old trade routes come to life. Your discovery extends to the nearby Île aux Pirates, accessible by foot or traditional canoe, offering both scenic beauty and historical intrigue. At midday, enjoy a lunch featuring local flavors, allowing you to experience the island’s culinary heritage in a relaxed setting. The remainder of the day is at leisure: an opportunity to unwind, explore further, or simply enjoy the tranquil atmosphere of the island at your own pace.
LOCATION: SAINTE MARIE
ACCOMMODATION: SOANAMBO MANTIS | VOAARA HOTEL
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
Excursion day in the isle of Mats, swimming and snorkeling. Encircled by its turquoise lagoon, the isle of Mats is a harbor of peace in which stretched out a beautiful fine sandy beach. You come alongside a private garden of the Resort, a privileged area, where you can enjoy a barbecue-based dishes and tropical fruits. After that you can explore the interior of the land with a guide. Back to the hotel by the end of the afternoon.
LOCATION: SAINTE MARIE
ACCOMMODATION: SOANAMBO MANTIS | VOAARA HOTEL
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
Enjoy a relaxed morning at leisure before your transfer to the airport for your flight to Antananarivo. Upon arrival, and depending on your flight timing, you may have the opportunity to visit the city for a final shopping experience, including the renowned La Digue Craft Market, where authentic Malagasy souvenirs can be found. Thereafter, transfer to your hotel and settle in for your final evening in Madagascar.
LOCATION: ANTANANARIVO
ACCOMMODATION: NOVOTEL | RADISSON BLU
INCLUSION: BREAKFAST AND DINNER
DURATION: ABOUT 1H FLIGHT + ABOUT 30MN DRIVE
This final day is dedicated to your international departure. At the scheduled time, you will be privately transferred to the airport to connect with your onward flight. Our services conclude today, and we sincerely thank you for choosing to travel with us.
END OF OUR SERVICES
