My encounters with wild animals have been some of my absolute favorite travels. So Madagascar became a bucket-list destination, and I finally made it happen in 2026.
I booked a tour with Explore!, the same company I traveled to Colombia with in 2023. I anticipated a non-stop parade of lemurs over two weeks. But to go all that way for just two weeks seemed nuts, so I started looking for other nearby destinations. In the end, I decided on five nights in Mauritius and four nights on Réunion.
The Explore! tour covered a lot, but not the Avenue of the Baobabs, which I was eager to see as long as I was traveling halfway around the world. So I started looking for a tour that I could do at the end of the Explore! tour. And I found Haja on TourHQ. His tour included not only the Avenue of the Baobabs, but also Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park. This was a place I knew nothing about, but I decided to sign up with Haja and see a little more of Madagascar.
This entire experience was almost perfect from start to finish. Mauritius was fascinating. Réunion was one of the most spectacularly beautiful places I’ve ever been. And Madagascar was so much more than lemurs, and all amazing. And Tsingy de Bemaraha turned out to be the highlight at the end of a fabulous four-week adventure.
Photos and Videos
Madagascar
Analamazaotra National Park (65 items)
Andasibe (91 items)
Antsirabe and Lake Tritriva (46 items)
Ambositra (30 items)
Ivato (23 items)
Ranomafana National Park (63 items)
Anja Community Reserve (51 items)
Isalo National Park (138 items)
Zombitse National Park (30 items)
Southwestern coast (76 items)
Antananarivo (60 items)
Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park (257 items)
From Morondava to Tsingy and back (96 items)
Miscellaneous (along the road) (157 items)
Blog Posts
Up Next: Madagascar and More (5/31/2026) - Two of my favorite trips have been adventures where animal encounters were the point. I love observing wild animals, whether on land, in the air, on the water, or under the water. So it should be no surprise that Madagascar… more…
Stopover in Istanbul (6/10/2026) - Turkish Airlines offers a free hotel if you have a long layover at IST. I took advantage and I’m now at the Renaissance Polat Hotel enjoying a stopover in Istanbul. The last time I flew through Istanbul, on my way… more…
I made it to Mauritius (with some Mauritius history) (6/11/2026) - It took from early afternoon Monday to early afternoon Thursday (albeit with a ten-hour time change), but I finally made it to Mauritius. I want to share a little about the journey and how I’ve settled in, and I want… more…
Mauritius: “The North” and “The South” (6/14/2026) - Mauritius is small enough that you can drive from one side or one end to the other in about an hour. And based on the road signs I’ve seen, it is divided into two zones: “The North” and “The South.”… more…
Mauritius by boat, plus a day of rest and a smidgen of history (6/16/2026) - My last two days in Mauritius included a day of rest, a speedboat tour of neaerby islands, and a visit to Aapravasi Ghat. I sorely needed the day of rest. Seeing Mauritius by boat was definitely worth doing. Aapravasi Ghat… more…
Réunion: More beauty per square meter than your average island (6/20/2026) - I had no idea what to expect on the island of Réunion. I don’t know anyone who’s ever been here, and I didn’t really do a lot of advance research. But what I’ve discovered is that this is one of… more…
Madagascar Part One: Antananarivo to Andasibe (6/23/2026) - On Saturday I flew from Réunion to Madagascar, arriving in the afternoon at Ivato International Airport. After spending the night there, we got an early start for the drive to Andasibe. We had three separate visits to Analamazaotra National Park… more…
Madagascar Part Two: Andasibe to Ranomafana (6/26/2026) - Not everything on this tour of Madagascar is about lemurs. After we left Andasibe on Tuesday morning, we spent a few days of non-lemur-related activities. Yesterday we arrived in Ranomafana, and we got back to lemurs (as well as other… more…
Madagascar Part Three: Ring-tailed lemurs (6/28/2026) - The ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) is the poster child for Madagascar. If you do an image search for “Madagascar wildlife,” you will find the ring-tailed lemur more than any other animal. The Wikipedia article on “Wildlife of Madagascar” has a… more…
Madagascar Part Four: Isalo National Park (6/30/2026) - After several lemur-rich experiences, we spent a day at Isalo National Park, where the focus was on the gorgeous landscape. This was the scenic highlight of the trip (so far). The Bara people, one of eighteen official ethnic groups in… more…
Madagascar Part Five: To the beach! (7/2/2026) - After almost two weeks of mostly nature and villages, constantly on the go, we arrived at the beach on Monday evening, and we’ve had two full days of relaxation. Never has that felt so good! This Madagascar beach is so… more…
Madagascar Part Six: From the beach back to Antananarivo (7/5/2026) - After driving well over 1,000 kilometers, starting in Antananarivo two weeks ago, we’re back in the capital city once again. We flew from Toliara Airport in the afternoon after enjoying three leisurely days by the beach on Madagascar’s southwestern coast.… more…
Madagascar Part Seven: Tsingy de Bemaraha (7/8/2026) - In my life, I’ve been to two places where I thought I might be on another planet. The first was Wadi Rum in Jordan. As I wrote at the time, the only word I could come up with to describe… more…
Madagascar Part Eight: Baobabs and Beach (7/11/2026) - My last few days in Madagascar involved heading back down the “road” from Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park to Morondava. The long, bumpy drive included some nice encounter with baobabs, including the renownded sunset at the Avenue of the Baobabs.… more…