MG · Curated travel guide
Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve, Ambohimanga, Maromokotro and 7 more — what each one is, and why it is worth the detour.
Chosen from everything Wikidata knows about Madagascar and ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions describe them, which is about as close to "famous" as open data gets. 2 are on UNESCO's World Heritage list.
World Heritage
Strict nature reserve of Madagascar
A nature reserve near Madagascar's west coast, in Melaky Region, made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990 for its unusual geography, its preserved mangrove forests and its wild birds and lemurs.
Photo: My father (who approves of its use), CC BY-SA 3.0
World Heritage
Traditional fortified royal settlement (rova) in Madagascar
A hill in Madagascar crowned by a traditional fortified royal village (rova), approximately 24 kilometers (15 mi) northeast of Antananarivo, the capital, in Ambohimanga Rova commune.
Photo: Olivier Lejade, CC BY-SA 2.0
Highest mountain in Madagascar
Also spelled Maromokotra, a volcano in Madagascar, and at 2,876 meters (9,436 ft) the island's highest peak.
Photo: Yann Mayette, CC BY-SA 4.0
Protected area in Madagascar
Also called the Alley of the Baobabs, a striking row of Grandidier's baobabs along the unpaved Road No.8 between Belon'i Tsiribihina and Morondava, in western Madagascar's Menabe region. Its landscape draws travellers from around the world, and it is one of the region's most visited spots.
Photo: Hiroki Ogawa, CC BY 3.0
Royal palace complex in Madagascar
A royal palace complex (rova) in Madagascar. In the 17th and 18th centuries the rulers of the Kingdom of Imerina lived here, and in the 19th the rulers of the Kingdom of Madagascar. It stands in Antananarivo, in the central highlands, on the highest point of Analamanga, once the highest of the city's many hills.
Photo: Dalbergiaada, CC BY-SA 4.0
Protected area in northern Madagascar
A protected area in northern Madagascar, created in 1956: a small plateau, partly covered in vegetation, made of middle Jurassic limestone 150-million-year-old.
Photo: Florantsika, CC BY 4.0
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Canal in Madagascar
A canal made up of natural rivers, waterways and man-made lakes, running over 654 kilometres (410 mi) down Madagascar's east coast from Toamasina to Farafangana. It is used mainly for transport and fishing, and tourists visit its unspoilt natural beaches.
Photo: User:Hardscarf, CC BY-SA 3.0
Lake in Madagascar
Madagascar's biggest lake, on the island's northern central plateau in Alaotra-Mangoro Region. Its basin holds shallow freshwater lakes and marshes ringed by dense vegetation.
Photo: NASA, Public domain
National park in Madagascar
On the south-eastern side of Nosy Be, an island off Madagascar's north-west coast: a national park.
Photo: Fox-Talbot at English Wikipedia, Public domain
Lighthouse in Madagascar that is the tallest in Africa
Also called Île aux Prunes Light, an active lighthouse on Île aux Prunes, Toamasina Province, Madagascar. At 197 feet (60 m), it is Africa's tallest "traditional lighthouse" and the twenty-fourth tallest in the world.
Photo: maxsnet, CC BY 2.0
Officially the Republic of Madagascar, an island country in the Indian Ocean made up of the island of Madagascar and many smaller islands around it. Lying off Africa's southeastern coast, it is the fourth-largest island on Earth, the second-largest island country and the 46th-largest country. Antananarivo is its capital and biggest city.
Officially The Republic of Madagascar. Known locally as Madagascar, Madagasikara.
Based on the Wikipedia article, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0: the facts are Wikipedia's, the wording is this site's.
This guide lists 10: Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve, Ambohimanga, Maromokotro and Avenue of the Baobabs and others. Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve and Ambohimanga are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
By machine, from open data, with no human ranking them and nobody able to pay for a place on the list. Everything Wikidata records in Madagascar that is a building, a landform, a protected area or a tourist attraction, has coordinates, a photograph and an English Wikipedia article, is ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions wrote about it. Provinces, cities, airports, stations and stretches of sea shared with the neighbours are filtered out.
2 of the 10 in this guide: Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve and Ambohimanga. That is not the full count for Madagascar, only the listed sites that made this guide.
French, Malagasy. The currency is MGA.
A travel eSIM is usually the cheapest way, and avoids a roaming bill. The plans suggested at the foot of this guide start at $9.88 for 1GB for 7 days. The eSIM is data-only and sits alongside your normal SIM, so calls, texts and WhatsApp keep working on your own number.
Airtel and Orange. Your phone picks whichever has the best signal where you are, the same way a local phone does.
Maps, tickets and translation all want data, and roaming is the expensive way to get it. A Computatus eSIM eSIM connects to Airtel and Orange once you land, and installs by QR code before you leave.
| Plan | Data | Valid | Price | Order |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GB for 7 days Cheapest | 1 GB | 7 days | $9.88 | Get it → |
| 3GB for 15 days | 3 GB | 15 days | $26.37 | Get it → |
| 5GB for 30 days | 5 GB | 30 days | $43.94 | Get it → |
| 10GB for 30 days | 10 GB | 30 days | $87.91 | Get it → |
No app needed. Install by QR code before you fly, keep your own number for calls, and it connects the moment you land.
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