Avenue of the Baobabs

The island's least-visited region is possibly its most iconic. The sun-drenched West offers all the ingredients necessary for a memorable visit and creates a great add-on to trips to pretty much anywhere in Madagascar.

A hallmark image of the West is the famed Avenue of Baobabs, a prominent group of Grandidier's baobabs lining the dirt road between Morondava and Belon'i Tsiribihina, Madagascar’s first natural monument. Indeed, it's the best place to see baobabs in Madagascar. Whilst participating in an Avenue of the Baobabs tour, we invite our guests to contribute to ongoing habitat restoration work by planting an endemic, endangered baobab sapling.

Our favourite west Malagasy protected areas include Kirindy Forest and nearby Marofandilia Forest, where night walks can produce sought-after species such as fossa (the island's biggest carnivore), endangered giant jumping rats and a variety of lemurs which includes Madame Berthe's and pygmy mouse lemurs, the world's smallest primates.