Isalo National Park
Madagascar
A Jurassic sandstone massif of canyons and grassland, with palm-lined pools in the gorges
Photo by Guillermo Suarez on Unsplash
Best time to visit all of Madagascar
April to November (the dry season; nights are cold in the southern winter)
Climate month by month
The next sixteen daysOpen-Meteo
Average high and low · °C
Rainfall · mm per month
Best months to visit This month · wettest 200mm in Jan
Where it is
22.55°S, 45.41°E Open in Google Maps
Things to do
A week easily- Walk to the Piscine Naturelle early and swim before the groups arrive
- Spend a full day on the canyon circuit, Canyon des Makis then Canyon des Rats, for the lemurs
- Take the longer walk to the Cascade des Nymphes and the two pools below it
- Hire the guide at the park office in Ranohira, where the circuits and the prices are posted
- Watch the sunset at La Fenêtre, and the light on the massif from the grassland at dawn
Isalo National Park travel tipsthe general rules
Currency budget Madagascar
Mid-rangePark entry and the guide are paid at the park office in Ranohira in ariary cash. The larger lodges take euros and sometimes cards; everything else in the village is cash only.
ATMs & cards
There is no machine to rely on in Ranohira. Draw in Toliara, Fianarantsoa or Antananarivo before arriving, enough for the park fees, the guide and the lodge.
Avoid these
- arriving in Ranohira without cash
Use these instead
- BNI
- BOA
- BFV-SG (in Toliara, Fianarantsoa or Antananarivo)
Park entry, the guide and most of the village are cash only. The largest note is 20,000 ariary.
Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.
Safety all of Madagascar
Reasonably safeRanohira and the park are calm, and the walking is guided. The UK advice names the commune of Ilakakabe, near the park, among the places where cattle-rustler (dahalo) attacks have killed people, and asks for vigilance on the RN7, where gangs have attacked vehicles travelling in convoy. Drive by day only, with a driver who knows the road, and do not stop in Ilakaka after dark. The midday heat in the canyons is the commoner problem: start at dawn and carry two litres each.
Where to walk, and where to pay attention (8 areas)
Comfortable, including after dark
Worth more attention
- The RN7 after dark, where the UK advice reports gangs attacking vehicles, including in convoy
- Ilakaka — the commune near the park named in the UK advice for cattle-rustler violence; drive through by day
- The heat in the canyons from late morning, and walking without enough water
- Swimming in the pools after heavy rain, when the streams rise fast
- Malaria, which is present all year
Our own assessment, not a sourced index.
Entry & visa Madagascar visa rules
Visa on arrivalup to 30 daysEUR 35, cash, at the airport
Issued on arrival at Ivato and Nosy Be for stays up to 30 days, and there is a separate 10 euro entry fee on top. Bring euros in cash — the card machine at the counter is regularly out of order.
Other passports
e-Visa requiredup to 30 daysEUR 35
How to get it: The e-visa at evisamada.gov.mg saves the queue but not the payment, which is still made at the airport. Carry the 35 euros and the 10 euro fee in cash regardless.
Entry rules change often and depend on your passport, not where you live — the official page above is the authority, and the airline checks before you board.
Health & emergencies all of Madagascar
Evacuation likelyRequired to enter
- Yellow fever certificate, but only if you are arriving from a country where yellow fever is present
Jabs worth having, and what happens if you need a doctor
Worth having
- Hepatitis A
- Typhoid
- Tetanus up to date
- Rabies — strongly advised, because post-exposure treatment is hard to find here
- Malaria prophylaxis for the whole island
Getting treated
Poor, and this is the thing to plan around. Antananarivo has two or three private clinics that can stabilise; everything else is a flight to Réunion or South Africa. Evacuation insurance is not optional here, and a policy that covers a medical flight is what you are buying.
Malaria is present across the entire island all year, including the coast and the parks. Plague occurs in seasonal outbreaks on the plateau and is treatable if caught early. Do not drink the tap water, do not swim in fresh water, and take the rabies course before you come rather than looking for it after a bite.
Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.
Food tip
DecentThe lodges cook European and Malagasy food, and the village has a few hotelys serving rice with zebu or chicken. Take a packed lunch and plenty of water into the park; there is nothing to buy in the canyons.
Travel tipsGetting around
Car needed- YangoWorks here
- UberNot here
- BoltNot here
Yango Antananarivo
- From the airport
- Ivato airport to the centre 60,000–100,000 Ar
- Against a taxi
- Cheaper than the cream-coloured taxis, which are negotiated and elderly.
Outside the capital there is no app. A driver for the day, or the taxi-brousse, is the country’s transport.
Time zone and your working day
Indian/Antananarivo — 7 hours ahead of you
1 hour of overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are — 09:00–10:00 your time, 16:00–17:00 theirs.
No overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are. Working from here means one of you keeps odd hours — their day starts at 02:00 on your clock.
office hours both at once night
Their 09:00–17:00 is 02:00–10:00 on yours.
The difference from the UK, Europe, the US and ten more
Worked out against America/New York, which is where this request looks like it came from.
eSIM
A data eSIM for Madagascar, installed before you fly and working the moment you land:
Works here
Works hereRevolut No local plan
Must-see
Travel tipsNearby day trips
Travel tipsSay a few words
Malagasy
- HelloManao ahoanama-now OWN
- PleaseAzafadya-za-FAD
- Thank youMisaotrami-SOW-tra
- Yes / NoEny / TsiaEH-nee / TSEE
5 more phrases
- Excuse meAzafadya-za-FAD
- How much is it?Ohatrinona?oh-a-TRIN
- DeliciousMatsiroma-TSEE-roo
- SlowlyMora moraMOOR-a MOOR-a
- GoodbyeVelomave-LOOM
An Austronesian language, closest relatives in Borneo rather than in Africa, which is the first clue to where the island was settled from. French is the second language and English is limited outside the tourist trade.
Travel tipsReligion
Christian, layered over ancestral belief
About half Christian and almost everybody also holds to the ancestors. Famadihana, the turning of the bones, is a family reburial ceremony and is not a spectacle for visitors. Fady — local taboos about places, days, foods and directions — vary village to village and are followed by everyone, including your guide.
Travel tipsDo's and don'ts
Do
- Ask about fady before you go anywhere with a guide — the local taboos differ village to village and are taken seriously
- Greet people before asking anything; the greeting is the transaction
- Ask before photographing anybody, and accept no for an answer
- Use both hands, or the right, when giving or receiving
Don't
- Do not point at a tomb, or at anything, with a straight finger — use a bent knuckle
- Do not discuss or photograph famadihana, the turning of the bones, uninvited
- Do not assume a fady is superstition to be argued with; it is the local law and your guide is bound by it
- Do not hand out sweets or money to children, which is a well-meant thing that has caused real damage
Where to stay in Isalo National Park
No Holistay rentals in Isalo National Park yet — the platform is just opening up. Every listing here will have a video tour and the option to negotiate the nightly price directly with the host.
In the meantime, here is Isalo National Park on the sites that do have the inventory — each search is already filled in:
- Booking.com hotels, guesthouses and apartments — the widest coverage almost everywhere
- Airbnb whole homes and apartments, and the better option for a week or more
How to get there
Fly into Toliara TLE
4hfrom the airport· 196 km as the crow flies
Four hours by road on the RN7.
Also worth pricing: Ivato, Antananarivo TNR — the international gateway; two days by road, usually with stops at Antsirabe and Ranomafana.
Google Flights · Rome2Rio for the trains, buses and ferries as well as the flights
