River trip and trek in the Tsingy

TThis short adventure and discovery tour will give you the right feeling of adventurous. We will enjoy the beauty of the wild, the voice of the natures and the best and vitality dish in the middle of nowhere. It is fantastic!!! New unforgettable experience again.

The wilderness of the west Malagasy offered us new experiences in adventure by a traditional wooden boat tour before we enjoy the challenge adventure in the world heritage site “Tsingy de Bemaraha”. During the canoeing we see a wonderful waterfall, where you can refresh yourselves, nice landscape and baobab and the fauna and flora beside the river. We visit the mineral forest Tsingy de Bemaraha with its limestone needles. The west is also well known for the fabulous Avenue of the Baobabs near Morondava and its nice beaches. The trip is an exciting combination of tarmac road, Tsiribihina River and dusty red-earth off road trails to the Tsingy. Far away from the modern comforts of daily life, this will be an unforgettable experience.

Highlights

Fauna and flora along the Tsiribihina River in a traditional wooden boat, Anosin’ Ampela waterfall, Daily life in the western region of Madagascar, Tsingy de Bemaraha NP, The sacred baobab tree, Baobab in love, Avenue of the Baobabs, Walks and Exploration of the baobab forest

Day 1

Antananarivo – Antsirabe

Pick-up at Antananarivo airport or your hotel. Drive to Antsirabe. The drive takes us across the highland landscape with its beautiful rice fields and its spectacular eroded hills called ‘lavaka’ and through a lush green landscape where vegetables and fruits are farmed. We will take a tour of the city, wandering through wide, palm-lined boulevards. Also we visit some artisan production.

Day 2

Antsirabe – Miandrivazo

Antsirabe, from where we start, is a lovely town and a stroll around its streets will bring you in contact with some fantastic little shops selling Malagasy artefacts and handicrafts. It is a very peculiar town because of its charming characteristics. Industrial town – agricultural town – tourist town. After a short visit of the town we drive to Miandrivazo, about 220 km. We pass typical landscape of the west. Here is the starting point of the pirogue tour.

Day 3

Start of the River tour

We begin our calm water river journey on the majestic Tsiribihina River. We travel approximately 160 km on the river, using traditional boats made out of one trunk of wood. Those trees are endemic to Madagascar or the region. Nowadays pirogue builders are rare as more and more motorboats are coming up. The trip is slow and you can relax and enjoy calls of birds such as bee-eater, coucal, pied crow… We will occasionally work together to lift the boat over high sand banks. Our trip will take us about 160km along the river, finally arriving in Tsaraotana, a small village 100 km north of Morondava. Meals are served on the shore; camp-sites on the Tsiribihina River are usually large sandbars with smooth and clean tent sites.

Day 4

Canoeing down the Tsiribihina River – Anosin’ Ampela waterfall

On the river we pass several ranges of wooded hills on our way. Today we continue passing the Gorge of Bemaraha with its steep rocks before we stop at Anosin’ Ampela, a wonderful waterfall where we can refresh ourselves. Also cloth washing is fast done. We will see dense vegetation along the riverbanks, towering cliffs and baobab forests. Water birds, fruit bats and lemurs will accompany our journey.

Day 5

Canoeing down the Tsiribihina River

This morning we rise early for our relaxing boat trip downstream along the Tsiribihina River. Passing through diverse landscapes, isolated natural wilderness beside the Tsiribihina River, reminding us how far away we are from home. We continue to pass by some villages where on the way long the river kids wave their hands with their smiles saying: hello.

Day 6

Arrival in Tsaraotana – Tsingy de Bemaraha

A last two hours before we say ‘Good bye’ to the Tsiribihina. Also this last part of the pirogue trip leads us to beautiful landscapes with rice fields on banks. We arrive in the morning in Tsaraotana where we unload the pirogues and embark into 4WD. We continuing in direction to the Tsingy de Bemaraha, which is classified as one of the world wonders by UNESCO. The fascinating raised limestone plateau is decorated with sharp pinnacles. Areas of deciduous forest also provide the chance to see brown lemurs as well as Sifaka lemurs and a variety of birds. Bemaraha contains an original flora. The dry dense forest has several types of vegetable formations. We arrive in the afternoon and check-in our hotel.

Day 7

Tsingy de Bemaraha excursion

Bemaraha is a plate of moderate altitude, with the shredded relief, consists of a limestone deposit massive Covered by the dense and dry forest, the erosion of water carved there a tight network of deep cracks separated by grooved blades and acute points. Today we have a full day trek with a local guide in the park. There are some different ways to the valleys. The limestone needles are up to 60m where we can probably find once more Sifaka (Propithecus verreauxi).

Day 8

Tsingy de Bemaraha – Avenue of the Baobab – Morondava

After we crossing the Manambolo River by ferry we travel south by 4WD to Belo sur Tsiribihina, We enjoy a lunch there. We stop at the sacred Baobab, the Baobab in love and try to catch sunset at the ‘Avenue of the Baobab’ between Belo sur Tsiribihina and Morondava. More than a dozen majestic old giant baobabs (Adansonia grandidieri) growing next to the track. The day’s last golden rays strike the bloated trunks from the west.

After your installations in hotel, your tour manager will say “Veloma”, this is the End of our services.

The tour ends in Morondava, you may book another module that starts here or travel to Antananarivo, Antsirabe or Toliara..

Complementary Information:

Prices in Euro per person: please request

Duration of the tour: 8 days 7 nights
Requirements: you should like camping, teamwork.

Included

-English speaking tour manager
-Overnight in the hotels in double room, mostly with private facilities, during the river tour in tent,
-Meals: day 1breakfast, day 2 to 8 full board and 1 ½ l of mineral water per person per day
-Going by traditional pirogue, car or 4WD, all transfers,
-All entrance fees
-Local guide at the visited park

Not included

–International and domestic flights
–Drinks except mentioned
–Private expenses

TIPS : Information’s about the hotels, lodges and camp sites: On this tour you should like camping and modest hotels and lodges with less comforts, but clean and with private facilities. If you have other suggestions, we listen to you.

Don’t Miss Out

Book your adventure with us today

Start Your Journey