The hook
Madagascar's main beach island, a laid-back tropical escape of white sand, warm turquoise water, and the scent of ylang-ylang, with more islands, reefs, and lemur-filled reserves within easy reach.
01Why it's worth it
After the effort of Madagascar's rough overland travel, the north offers a gentler, more resort-flavoured island idyll. Nosy Be ("big island") is fringed with beaches and calm, warm water, dotted with plantations of ylang-ylang and vanilla whose perfume hangs in the air, and set up for relaxed tourism with lodges, seafood, and a slower pace. Its real appeal, though, is what surrounds it: a scatter of smaller islands, from the marine reserve of Nosy Tanikely with superb snorkelling to the sacred, tortoise-inhabited Nosy Komba and the castaway sands of Nosy Iranja, all reachable on day boat trips, plus seasonal whale sharks and humpback whales offshore. Back on the mainland nearby, Amber Mountain National Park is a lush montane rainforest with waterfalls, lemurs, and tiny chameleons. Combining beach, reef, and wildlife in a compact, accessible corner, the north is where Madagascar's adventure meets its relaxation, an easy fly-in escape.
02How to experience it
Base on Nosy Be for beaches and seafood, and take boat trips to the surrounding islands for snorkelling, lemurs, and castaway beaches, with whale watching in season. Add the mainland's Amber Mountain rainforest for waterfalls and wildlife. It is the island's most relaxed, accessible region, reached by a short flight.