Isalo National Park

In general the trip was good. I enjoyed the scenery. We had a small group, only 7 people which was good. If there had been the full 16 guests, the bus would have been far too small. I loved seeing the Lemurs and the various treks that we did, especially the Tsingy. The hotels were very basic, quite disappointing in many places. The hotel at Ifaty Beach (La Plage) was the worst that we experienced. It is neglected, dirty, very poor quality beds, my room was musty, the fans didn’t work, the bedside lights didn’t work, we were there for two days and had no hot water. There was a smelly dog in the public area. The covers on the sun loungers were dirty. As a solo traveller, as usual with Exodus, I got the worst room, that is compared to what the couples in the group get. One hotel we stayed in, (Les chambers du Voyageur) the room was so small, I couldn’t open my suitcase inside the room, unless I put it right up to the entrance door of the room! There was no wardrobe, no place to put anything, so I had to put my rucksack on the bed beside me, I didn’t want to put it on the floor. The breakfasts were also very poor, quite often stale bread and an omelette made with just one egg! There was no toiletries in any of these hotels, just soap! The other big negative for me, was the extremely long drives on such poor roads. We had breakfast each morning and within minutes of eating, we were on these really bumpy roads. As a result, we all had stomach problems throughout the trip. One day we were on the bus for 13 hours and for the final five hours, we never stopped, neither to stretch our legs nor for a comfort stop! If the bus was full with 16 people, it would have been close to torture!

mary dunne Madagascan Discoverer

The main objective of this wildlife trip was met in that we saw 14 species of lemur thanks to the efforts of the local guides and their spotters. This was interspersed with about 90 species of birds over two thirds of which were endemic species with examples from most of the endemic families. Other wildlife such as reptiles and other mammals were few and far between mainly because the majority these are nocturnal. The travel between the National Parks enabled us to have a good insight into the culture, beliefs and customs of the local people together with visiting various historical sites. We found the hotels better than we might have expected and particularly enjoyed the 3 nights at the beach hotel at Anakao. The food also was generally good especially the fish and seafood at Anakao. Wifi was available everywhere we stayed. Insects didn’t seem to be a problem. You should easily have enough local currency if you follow the Exodus advice and most of us changed currency back to Euros at the airport before coming home.

David and Lesley Knass Highlights of Madagascar

Cycling through the small towns and villages where locals pour onto the streets with a ready smile to greet you is something we shall never forget. Throw in a visit to a local school, a church service, a woodturners, the amazing scenery of the National Parks and the cheeky lemurs within touching distance and you have the perfect holiday! This holiday is culturally rich with dramatic scenery and this was every bit as good as seeing the lemurs close up.

Jacqui Cottom Cycle Madagascar