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Madagascar: The Eighth Continent

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Itinerary & Map

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Tuesday, September 21

USA / Johannesburg, South Africa

Depart the USA on your independent overnight flight to Johannesburg.

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Wednesday, September 22

Johannesburg

Arrive Johannesburg International Airport and walk to the InterContinental Sun Hotel, located outside International Arrivals. The afternoon is at leisure. This evening we gather at our hotel for a welcome briefing followed by dinner and overnight.

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Thursday, September 23

Johannesburg / Antananarivo (Tana), Madagascar

After breakfast at our hotel, return to the airport for the flight to Tana. Upon arrival we transfer to the Hotel Colbert and overnight.

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Friday, September 24

Tana / Maroantsetra

This morning we depart for our flight to the sleepy coastal town of Maroantsetra. We check in at the Relais du Masoala, then board a boat to explore a nearby river delta and the private forest reserve of Andrifotra. Malagasy fishermen pole their canoes past verdant rice paddies thronging with egrets and raiding flocks of Madagascar red fodys. We may also encounter a male panther chameleon—in his breeding condition he is a sure contender for the title of “world’s gaudiest reptile!” A spotlighting excursion after dinner will hopefully reveal some of Maroantsetra’s lesser known, but no less spectacular, creatures such as bizarre tomato frogs and lowland striped tenrecs, small hedgehog-type creatures. Overnight at our hotel.

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Saturday, September 25

Maroantsetra / Masoala Peninsula

Today we set out with our local guide on a speedboat ride across the emerald-green Antongil Bay to the Masoala Peninsula for a full day’s exploration. The peninsula encompasses one of the finest tracts of primary forest, rain forest, and coastal forest in the country as well as four protected marine areas. Ten species of lemurs are found here, including red-ruffed and eastern fork-marked lemurs. We also have the opportunity to spot tenrec and mongoose, as well as the rare serpent eagle and Madagascar red owl. Return across the bay for dinner and overnight at our hotel.

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Sunday, September 26

Maroantsetra / Nosy Mangabe / Farakaraina

We embark on another early boat ride across Antongil Bay for a morning excursion to the island of Nosy Mangabe. Past visits to this area have been sensational, with magnificent black-and-white ruffed lemurs visiting our picnic table. Be sure to bring your macro lens for some exciting photographic opportunities of the peculiar leaf-tailed geckos, tree frogs, or perhaps even a Madagascar ground boa. We also hunt for the world’s smallest vertebrate—the thumbnail-sized chameleon, Brookesia minimi. Following lunch we cross over to Farakaraina, which offers us our best chance to see the endangered aye-aye, the world’s largest nocturnal primate. We return to Maroantsetra for dinner and overnight at out hotel.

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Monday, September 27

Maroantsetra / Tana / Périnet Reserve

After breakfast we explore the bustling Maroantsetra market, with vanilla pods drying in the sun and a bewildering variety of fish. Return to our hotel for lunch before departing for the airport and our flight to Tana. From here we drive to Périnet Reserve, one of the wildest and densest rain forests on the planet. We arrive at the Vakona Forest Lodge for dinner and overnight.

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Tuesday, September 28

Périnet Reserve

Our day begins at dawn as we await the morning call of the indri—the largest of all lemurs. One of its Malagasy names is babakoto, referring to the ancient being that first separated the ancestors of lemurs and men. Each animal sings in its own voice, so the echoes and re-echoes tell each group where every indri is located on the hill. Both eerie and haunting, its call is never to be forgotten. Other primate species we may find include common brown lemur and small-toothed lepilemur. Reptiles are especially well represented and we hope to find short-horned chameleons stalking insects, or an iridescent Madagascar tree boa basking in the sun. Birding is equally spectacular with endemics such as Madagascar paradise-flycatcher and the brilliant blue vanga. Dinner and overnight at the lodge.

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Wednesday, September 29

Mantadia National Park

Today we visit Mantadia National Park, situated at a slightly higher altitude and endowed with lush, mossy forest. Home to lemurs rarely encountered around Périnet, such as the rare and spectacular diademed sifaka, the area also offers excellent sighting opportunities of the red-bellied lemur and gray bamboo lemur. In the early evening we embark on a walk to look for nocturnal wildlife. With luck, our spotlight will catch the eyeshine of the diminutive brown mouse lemur, greater dwarf lemur, or even the larger eastern avahi (or woolly lemur). We return to the Vakona Forest Lodge for dinner and overnight.

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Thursday, September 30

Périnet Reserve / Tana

This morning includes a visit to Lemur Island on the grounds of the Vakona Forest Lodge before departing on our return drive to Tana. En route we stop at La Mandraka Nature Farm and enjoy a picnic lunch before continuing to our hotel for check-in. Dinner at a local restaurant and overnight at Hotel Colbert.

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Friday, October 1

Tana / Diego Suarez

Following an early breakfast, transfer to the airport for our flight to Diego Suarez. Upon arrival we set out to explore Montagne d’Ambre National Park, a mountain paradise replete with waterfalls, pristine forests, endemic birds, and close encounters with lemurs. During our visit we hope to see and photograph crowned lemurs, Sanford’s brown lemurs, ring-tailed mongoose, and a wealth of birds, including the highly localized amber mountain rock-thrush. We return to Diego Suarez for dinner and overnight at the Hotel La Note Bleue.

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Saturday, October 2

Diego Suarez/ Ankarana

We depart overland for the Ankarana Special Reserve this morning, renowned for its dramatic landscapes: karst pinnacles, or tsingy; deep forest-filled canyons; a labyrinthine cave system with the only known cave-dwelling crocodiles on the planet; and a vast network of underground rivers. Wildlife is profuse in this park and we have excellent opportunities to encounter multiple lemur species such as crowned, Sanford’s brown, and northern sportive lemurs, as well as birds typical of dry forest such as the strange white-breasted mesite and the Torotoroka scops-owl. The reserve is also known for its rich diversity of reptiles including leaf-tailed geckos. We return to Diego Suarez for dinner and overnight at our hotel.

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Sunday, October 3

Diego Suarez / Tana / Fort Dauphin

This morning we visit Montagne d’Francais, where we can see and photograph the red-barked Suarez baobab, perhaps the rarest and most impressive of the six species of baobabs endemic to Madagascar. We are also on the lookout for gray-headed lovebirds and the bizarre sickle-billed vanga. Returning to the airport we fly to Tana, connecting with our onward flight to Fort Dauphin, an isolated paradise squeezed between rolling green hills and sparkling blue sea. Transfer to the Croix du Sud hotel for dinner and overnight.

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October 4–5

Fort Dauphin / Berenty Reserve

We depart the hotel after breakfast for the three-hour drive to Berenty. Along with Périnet, Berenty is another of Madagascar’s most celebrated reserves and one of life’s great experiences in the natural world. For photographers, Berenty is a visual feast—ring-tailed lemurs show no fear and seem to pose just for you, while the gibbon-like Verreaux’s sifakas are just an arm’s length away from the camera lens. Birding is also phenomenal, and past trips have recorded such specialties as Madagascar sandgrouse, white-browed owl, and the stately giant coua. Spend the next day exploring the reserve including an evening walk. Dinners and two overnights at the Berenty Lodge.

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Wednesday, October 6

Berenty Reserve / Fort Dauphin / Tana

After an early breakfast we return to Fort Dauphin in time for our flight to Tana. Transfer to the Hotel Colbert for check-in and lunch. In the afternoon we visit Lac Alarobia, a private sanctuary which protects large numbers of breeding herons and egrets. Its central island, teeming with Madagascar squacco herons and egrets in breeding plumage, provides a truly memorable spectacle. During our visit we are also on the lookout for such endemics as Madagascar’s wagtail, white-eye, and malachite kingfisher. Our farewell dinner and overnight is at our hotel.

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Thursday, October 7

Tana / Johannesburg, South Africa

After breakfast we can relax or embark on a shopping expedition to the local artisans’ market. Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant before transferring to the airport for your flight to Johannesburg, and continuing independent flights to the USA.

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Friday, October 8

USA

Arrive in the USA and connect with flights homeward.

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