Must See

Antananarivo

Often abbreviated to 'Tana', this interesting capital set among the rugged Hauts Plateaux mountain chain has a distinctly French feel. French is widely spoken, and road and shops signs are mostly written in French. The city's most striking building is the Queen's Palace, once the residency of the 19th century Merina Dynasty and now a national monument, along with its associated Royal Village or Rova. Other sights include the Zuma Market, which claims to be the second largest in the world. Nearby, Lac Itasy and Perinet Reserve, for lemur spotting, are also worth a visit.

Amabalavao

The fascinating, if somewhat macabre, village of Amabalavao is said to be the 'home of the departed'. The famous antaimoro paper and lamba aridrano silk are made here, and nearby are Ifandana and Ambondrome crags, where the bones of exhumed ancestors may be seen (Ifandana was the site of a mass suicide in 1811).

Ambohimanga

Just 20 km from Antananarivo, this pretty former capital is surrounded by forests and known variously as the 'forbidden city', the 'holy city' and the 'blue city. The area contains a ruined city, burial sites and assorted sacred places, and has been a place of historical and religious significance in the culture of the Malagasy people for the last 500 years. The citadel was an important Merina stronghold and several structures associated with their ceremonies have been preserved. Its main gate consists of an enormous stone disc, which required 40 men to roll it into position.

Nossi Bé

Also known as Nosy Be, this island is located just off the northwest coast of Madagascar in Antsiranana Province. Surrounded by a number of smaller islands, Nossi-bé is the country's most important, and busiest, resort. Coffee, cocoa, vanilla and cinnamon are intensively cultivated all over the island, and their exotic scents hang in the air, along with lemon grass, patchouli and fragrant ylang-ylang. There are some luxurious beaches, great diving and a spot popular with whale watchers.

Markets

Madagascar has many lively markets, including the ones such as the Bazary Be found in Toamasina, the country's main port and a provincial capital, 8 hours drive from Antananarivo. In the capital itself, visitors can see the daily Zoma Market, which is thought to be the second largest in the world.

Wildlife

Madagascar is nicknamed the 'eighth continent' because of the diversity of its species. Indeed, as recently as 2005, two new species of lemur were discovered. Like much of the country's wildlife, these endangered primates are found nowhere else on earth. As an indication of this tremendous wealth of flora and fauna, there are 3,000 endemic species of butterfly on the island. There is a similar diversity of reptiles, amphibians and birds.

As to be expected then, Madagascar has a number of nature reserves and National Parks. These include Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve, which is spread across 152,000 hectares and located 60 to 80km inland from the west coast, of the Manambolo River Gorge. The reserve consists of undisturbed forests, lakes and mangrove swamps, which are home to a variety of endangered and rare lemurs and birds. Ancient cemeteries can also be found in the Gorge. Visitors are currently restricted to the forests in the north or to the pinnacle region to the south; both of these areas are accessible overnight with guides based at Bekopaka and Antsalova.