The Classic RN7

Start: Antananarivo
Destination: Andasibe
Drive: 150 km | 5 hours

Your roadtrip starts on the RN2 to Andasibe. You bypass Antananarivo city centre via the ring road. The RN2 is a smooth asphalt road and the most important road in Madagascar, connecting Tana with the port of Tamatave, so it can be busy with slow trucks. Be aware of dangerous overtaking on the windy roads. It is a lovely drive, through rainforest covered hills. Coq d'Or in Moramanga is a good coffee stop (try their eclairs!) for a lunch break. 

Accommodation options in Andasibe:  

Budget: Feon' Ny Ala (€12-23/night)

Mid-range: Grace Lodge (€28/night)

High end: Vakona (€100/night)

Restaurants: Feon' Ny Ala, especially their Chinese dishes

Enjoy: Andasibe

Andasibe is the prime location to search for the Indri Indri. With its 'surprised teddy bear' face it looks more like a gone-wrong panda than a lemur. Even if you don't see them (99% chance you will), you will definitely hear them. They make an eerie, wailing sound that carries for kilometres. Each Indri Indri only cries up to three times a day as it costs them so much energy. It really is mind blowing to witness this ritual. 

Start: Andasibe
Destination: Antsirabe
Drive: 300 km | 7 hours 

Today is a long drive to Antsirabe via Antananarivo, from where you'll start your roadtrip on the famous RN7. Expect windy roads passing rice paddies and small, highland villages. You can have a terrific lunch stop at Coin de Foie Grass in Behenjy, the foie gras centre of Madagascar. Or try a really good paella (we're not kidding), at El Torro in Ambatolampy.

Accommodation options:

Budget: Camping allowed at Green Park and Madalief (out of town) 

Mid-range: Trianon (pictured) - €26/night, Madalief - €26/night

Deluxe: Couleur Café - €37/night

Restaurants: Chez Jenny and Zandina (best pizza), Trianon (classic French), Vatolahy (classic French) and Conterno (pastries, baguettes)

Enjoy: Antsirabe

Explore Antsirabe town and surroundings. Take a pousse pousse (the Malagasy version of the Asian rickshaw) tour to the craft workshops, which arehard to find on your own. Hike or mountain bike around Lake Tritriva, an emerald-green crater lake.

Antsirabe is considered the pousse pousse capital of the country. There are three major ''species''. The basic model is a cart pulled by a man. It may feel uncomfortable to be towed around by someone in this fashion, who may even be barefooted. But this is the driver's living, so your pay is most welcome. The cyclo-pousse, in which the cab is attached to a bicycle, is a step up, at least as far as the driver is concerned. And on top of the food chain is the kinga, the motorised pousse-pousse. 

Start: Antsirabe
Destination: Ranomafana National Park
Drive: 227 km | 5 hours

Drive to Ranomafana National Park. It's another lovely windy road, passing highland villages, rice paddies and rainforest-covered hills. Ambositra makes for a good coffee stop. For those interested in community tourism and highland culture, this is an interesting region to linger around for longer. Stay at Grand Hotel or Motel Violette (both budget) or continue to Ambalavao and stay at Betsileo Country Lodge (mid-range), close to Anja National Park. 

Our favourite picks in Ranamofana:  

Budget: Camping allowed at park entrance, Ihary bungalows - €15/night

Mid-range: Setam Lodge - €30-50/night

Restaurant: Manja

Enjoy: Ranomafana 

Ranomafana is a small but lively tropical town with a stunning riverside setting surrounded by rainforest-covered hills and the lovely scent of flowers in the air. It's the place to search for the golden bamboo lemur, only discovered in 1986. Park entrance costs €16 pp plus €31 per guide for a group up to four. Half of the proceeds go to the guide. A tip is still appreciated.

We were lucky on our hike, as we spotted a greater bamboo lemur, of which there are only two in the park. We also saw the golden bamboo lemur, red-fronted brown lemur, Sifaka Eduardo, leaf-tailed gecko, brookesia chameleon, paradise bird, queen fisher, a snake and leeches... 

Start: Ranomafana National Park
Destination: Andringitra National Park
Drive: 110 km | 4 hours 

Drive to Andringitra National Park. Perhaps the most scenic drive thus far, especially beyond Ambalavao when the highland plateau gives way to deserted grassland with big sandstone massifs and distant horizons. Ambalavao is an interesting village to stop in and a base from which several community tourism initiatives are offered. 

The exit to Camp Catta and Tsara Tented Camp is 20 km after Ambalavao. Then it's 1 hour of off-road driving towards the park, with some rough parts. 

Our favourite picks: 

Budget: Camping allowed at Camp Catta 

Mid-range: Camp Catta, which has a natural pool (€27-€55/night), Tsara Tented Camp (€40/night), Varangue Betsileo, which has a swimming pool (€40/night). 

Enjoy: Andringitra

If you like hiking, this is a breath taking area. Several hikes can be organised from the camps in this area, ranging from a few hours to multiple days. We did the real Andringitra, a tough full day walk up to the peak. Bring plenty of water, sunscreen and a hat, as the sun is remorseless. Consider factoring some extra days to complete the Imarivolanitra trekking (2-3 days). 

Start: Andringitra National Park
Destination: Isalo
Drive: 255 km| 5 hours 

Once you're out of Andringitra National Park again, the drive to Isalo is a smooth journey on good asphalt. No more windy roads, but far horizons and deserted grasslands with some rocky peaks. Bring packed lunch as there are no places to buy or eat something en route! 

Accommodation in Isalo

Budget: ITC lodge (Momo Trek) - €15, camping allowed

Mid-range: Isalo Ranch, with swimming pool - €42, camping allowed

Deluxe: Le Relais de la Reine (pictured), with pool & spa - €72-105 

Enjoy: Isalo National Park

The combination of sandstone rocks cut by deep canyons, waterfalls and natural pools, with all sorts of native plants make Isalo Madagascar's most visited national park. The piscine and cascade hiking trail can become crowded during high season. Consider a more off the beaten track experience with Momo Trek, who organise multiple-day hikes with camping into remote sections of the park. Further activities include horse riding or climbing the Via Ferrate (enquire with Relais de la Reine).  

Start: Isalo National Park
Destination: Tulear
Drive: 237 km | 4 hours 

It's an easy 4 hour drive to Tulear. On the way, you'll pass through sapphire ''boom'' towns. We found it impressive and thought-provoking. At Ilakaka you can take a tour through the mines with Color Lines. 

The beach at Ifaty/Mangily, 24 km north of Tulear, is nicer, but we prefer the vibe at St Augustine's Bay, south of Tulear. For the best beaches in Madagascar, you have to go North (Nosy Be), East (Ille Sainte Marie) or West (between Salary Bay and Belo sur Mer). 

Accommodation options:

Mid-range: Famata Lodge, with pool (€35/night), Residence Eden Lodge in Sarodrano fishing village (€35/night)

Deluxe: Bakuba Concept (pictured), with swimming pool (€115-175/night) 

Spend a few days at the beach around Tulear before you fly back to Tana, and perhaps onwards to another beach destination (Nosy Be, Ile Sainte Marie, Mauritius, Seychelles). Continue your roadtrip along the West Coast of Madagascar (see the Grand Circuit) or go to Anakao. Combine this route with the following and you have an adventurous, off the beaten track loop: Drive back to Ranohira (Isalo) - visit Zombitse -Vohibasia - exit the RN7 and take the inland RN10 to Anakao (6.5 hours, rough road) -visit Lake Tsiamanapetrosa National Park (50 km south of Anakao) - make your way back to the RN7 (full day drive). 

Book your domestic flights with Air Madagascar or Madagasikara Airways. Delays and cancellations can occur, so factor in one additional day in Antananarivo in order not to miss your international flight.