Timings of international flights make an overnight here a necessity, but it does allow time to recover from the journey and a flavour of just how different this extraordinary country is to mainland Africa.

Take advantage of the exceptional food on offer at a number of Tana’s hotels where you’ll find an interesting blend of French and Indonesian cuisine.

Head to the airport early this morning to get the three hour scheduled charter flight straight down to the Ifotaka Community Forest. Stay at Mandrare River Camp - a small tented camp with excellent guiding and the option to do both day and night walks, exploring the Spiny Forest for lemurs, sifaka and birds.

Leave Mandrare for another hop on a light aircraft - only an hour this time - down to Fort Dauphin. Then drive along the coast to Manafiafy, another small tented camp with a distinctly safari style.

The ecosystem is entirely different here being rainforest, mangrove and coast and while there is the option to simply flop on the beach there is also a lot of wildlife to be found in the area - including marine mammals.

A beautiful beach resort with a difference - located on a long, private beach with spacious bungalows nestled in the forest line. This intimate resport offers a host of activities out on the water as well as daya nd night walks in the surrounding coastal rainforest. 

The forests around Manafiafy are home to numerous species of lemurs, amphibians and reptiles as well as excellent birding, especially in the extensive mangrove and wetland eco-system.