This site uses cookies. More info

Thank you for your interest in our holidays. To help us provide the best service for you, please tell us a bit more about what you are looking for, including details of activities or particular holidays you are interested in. Our expert will then begin planning your perfect visit to Madagascar.

We really excel at tailor-making your trip to your needs. You may want to see certain species or visit particular parks, reserves or lodges. You may want a private plane or helicopter and high class car, or need to travel at a certain time of year. Tailor-making works whether you are an experienced traveler or trying out a wildlife holiday for the first time, wanting to enjoy a wildlife experiences as part of an occasion like a birthday, honeymoon or anniversary, or a busy executive in search of a short wildlife fix.

Have you always wanted to design your own tour but let someone else handle all the nitty gritty of organizing it? Do you run specialized tours where you'd like us to put them together for you? Keen birders, scuba divers, conservationists, volunteers, photographers, surfers, medical adventurers, hikers, bikers, historians and geologists – no matter what your specialty is, we can tailormake accordingly! We also offer unique tours which you're more than welcome to join us on!

Do you have a large family or group of friends that you would like to travel? Does your company want to run its own set of branded series tours? The NDAO-i-Travel tailormade services and charter team can do organize all of this for you, and more! Whether it be in an air-conditioned bus, a minivan or a 4 x 4 vehicle, we will tailor a tour for you to ensure that your dream holiday takes in everything you're expecting from it.

Our team of well-travelled and dedicated individuals will provide you with a detailed itinerary, suggested accommodation, professional, friendly service and all the support you need to make travelling in Madagascar an absolute pleasure.

Whether your party is made up of two or two hundred travelers, we'll pull something special out of the bag, just for you!

You can enjoy complete flexibility in planning and booking on all our tours for a truly customized Madagascar holiday that is in your budget and personal style. Traveling around a theme or exploring something in particular? Our tailor-made holiday experts are eager to assist in planning an experience that fits your requirements putting you in complete control of your next Madagascar holiday.

This page is under development.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST DURING A TRIP?

WHAT TYPE OF ACCOMMODATION DO YOU PREFER?

WHEN YOU WANT TO TRAVEL?

HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL TRAVEL TOGETHER?

WILL THE CHILDREN TRAVEL WITH YOU?

PREFERRED PAYMENT CURRENCY

REQUEST TOUR

TOUR NAME

YOUR MESSAGE

How did you hear about "NDAO-i-Travel"?

Cruise on the Pangalanes Canal
from East to Ranomafana NP

This Pangalanes Canal cruise begins at Mahanoro in the East of Madagascar, and offers you completely different experiences than you have already got in the East of the Red Island. This charming and soothing journey to Canal des Pangalanes via Mananjary will take you to the Ranomafana National Park, located in the Highlands, and will open the way for the next destination of your Madagascar holidays (with us) of the Highlands and the South of the Big Island. The Canal des Pangalanes is a series of sweet water lakes and lagoons parallel to the coast of the Indian Ocean, separated by a narrow stretch of land. The lakes are connected by a man-made channel system that forms an inland waterway from Tamatave through to Farafangana, making it the longest canal in the world. This trip offers you to live along the spices road from old times!

This 4–day trip Mahanoro - Ranomafana National Park (trip can be done both ways – same stops): The river trip from on the Pangalanes Canal in 180 km, и 200km by land, 2 days of cruise, 1 night in bivouac, and two nights at the hotel. Discover a wonderful nature, a magnificent spectacle, wild and luxurious. The trip may start from any place of our last stop in the East, from a hotel in the Zahamena National Park or the Andasibe-Mantadia National Park, or Akanin’ny nofy (Palmarium) as an option. We will use motor pirogues made of wood, 10m length and covered by a removable roof for the part of the channel where nature is boundless. The maximum capacity is 6 passengers. Meals are served hot, made of fresh products.

Do not hesitate to visit villages to discover the daily life of the villagers turning mainly on the fishing but also the braiding of mats and the construction of canoes and new huts. On board a traditional dugout canoe, discover a luxuriant and wild vegetation dotted here and there with fruit trees and in the air exotic perfumes mixing coffee, lemon grass, mango, vanilla...

ENJOY THIS... Cruise on the Pangalanes Canal via Mahanoro к Ranomafana National Park:

Please wait. We are loading the pictures...
/
Please wait. We are loading the pictures...

Day 1: Start in the morning, after travelling through the stunning natural scenery on very beautiful paved roads, we arrive in Mahanoro in the evening. The cottages where we stay are close to the beach. Swimming is possible but only where the current is not too strong.

Day 2: Mahanoro - Nosy Varika: Today begins the cruise on the "Canal des Pangalanes". Meeting at 7-00 am at your hotel. In the morning we continue our trip to Ambohimahatsinjo. Today we sail between 7 and 9 hours through the channels. We will stop at Masomeloka and Asohihy, between Indian Ocean and Pangalanes Channel. You can swim! Along the way you'll meet local fishermen and families who may be travelling by pirogue to go do their shopping. Sometimes the low water level in the canal means that you may have to give the boat a push! Along the way you see women doing laundry or washing the dishes, or even taking a bath. Children are swimming and the geese and ducks are at play. The men go fishing with large nets. Without roads in this area, the channels are the only way to get anywhere. By the evening we arrive in Ambohimahatsinjo. Nosy Varika is, in fact, not a real island, it's a small village, so we will have bivouac in Ambohimahatsinjo, close to the mouth of Sakaleona river. Those who are looking for a big adventure can head for Sakaleona Falls. For this you need 3 days of trekking. These are the highest and most spectacular falls of Madagascar (with a height of 200 m). They do deserve a real expedition of a few days. From Nosy Varika, should drive to the village of Ampasinambo in all-terrain vehicle about 60 km. From here there is 30 km walk to the falls (we will have to hire a local guide and porters in Ampasinambo). Bivouac near the falls.

Day 3: Nosy Varika - Mananjary. Today you sail between 8 and 12 hours. In Nosy Varika we visit a “Betsabetsa” fabric. En route we meet some small villages on the banks of the canal, including Ampadimanana и Ambohitsara with its extraordinary sculpture Vato Sarilambo. The soft sound of water laps against the lake shore. It's wonderful to hear the sound of the nature. Also you will see birds in large numbers - kingfishers, guépiers, fody, egrets and herons, and all the seabirds which come there to make an incursion. First stop at Ambohitsara. Here you will find a stunning sculpture called "Vatolambo" (the stone boar), cut in a white stone by Indians from Mangalore in the early twelfth century. You will be surprised of the statue of the “white elephant”, its origin isn't clear, the archeologists have different opinions about it. Others defend that statue dates back to the time of Arab and Persian immigrations around the year 900. Some say that the ancestors brought it from Mekka. A German researcher says that the statue is not an elephant but a special kind of pig, and that it has been made locally from a stone found nearby, by Chinese adventurers who came there before Jesus Christ was born. The statue is enclosed in a wooden gate which is locked. The village head requires an entrance fee for the open and tell his story. The second stop at Ampadimanana for a visit. By the evening we arrive in Mananjary. For your accommodation in Mananjary, we suggest you rooms at Hotel Jardin de Mer or Hotel Vahiny Lodge. These hotels offer services which will meet your expectations. A veritable garden of exoticism, Mananjary will delight nature lovers. Mananjary is home to Lake Mahela directly overlooking the sea. After a trip have a rest at the hotel, or take a city tour. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Day 4: After breakfast, to satisfy your escape desires, lose yourself in the plantations of coffee trees and clove trees, and then learn about the region’s biodiversity! Located away from the hustle and bustle of large cities, Mananjary is the perfect place to go for an innovative trip. On the edge of the Canal of Pangalanes, this small village in the southeast of Madagascar will answer all your desires. Enjoy a refreshing treatment at the beach of Sidi Eden! During your visit, you will always be welcomed by the local people with a smile which you will find nowhere else. These people with their exemplary kindness are always ready to serve you. A stop by the river port and the marketplace will help you to better imbibe the lifestyle of the Antambahoaka people. In the afternoon we continue our trip to Ranomafana, about 3 hours away. The road is lined with the travellers palm and the area we drive through is famous for the mining of gold. In the villages you will see women with gold teeth; the sign of wealth. In Ranomafana you stay in hotel near the Ranomafana National Park to discover it the next day and continue your Madagascar holidays.

About meals: Full Board (except breakfast at D1 and dinner on the last day) with wine and aperitif during cruise. Meal plan: generous and well-balanced meals with fresh food mixing savors and spices. Meals are served hot. Aperitif and snacks. Generous dinner for a deserved rest. Beverages: bottled water, juice, tea, coffee, wine and aperitif, rums, beer.

About accommodation: In tents, mattress and blankets provided in bivouacs/camps; at hotels. Our team take in charge almost everything in the camp. However, your help may be needed if lateness during the tour.

This package includes: Full Board (except breakfast at D1 and dinner on the last day) with beverages: bottled water, juice, tea, coffee, wine and aperitif, rums, beer; Accommodation in bivouacs/camps; The crew: 2 guides, cook, skipper during the navigation, porters; All the camping equipment; 4×4 car transportations.

About safety: We always brief our customers before we go on a trek. We strongly advise you to subscribe to an individual insurance more efficient than our local insurance.

Not included: Sakaleona Falls hike; Personal expenses, tips, phone; Sanitary evacuation policy. In option: to be specified during your order.

All activities