Clients' Reports on Madagascar 2007
We invite everyone who travels with us to tell us about their experiences while on holiday in Madagascar so that we can evaluate our services, monitor the quality of our arrangements more regularly, and inform intending travellers of the high points and pitfalls of travel in Madagascar.
‘Had a wonderful holiday. It was all I expected and wanted. [Local agents] are very good. Wonderful guide and driver. Can’t wait till our next visit.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Limited menu for 3-day stay, but could have been the time of year.
Residence Camelia: Poor menu selection and quality of food. Charged an outrageous amount for picnic.
Centrest Sejour: Not an inspiring place.
Tsara Guest House: Wonderful place to stay for one night.
Jardin du Roy: What a treat! Fabulous place to stay with friendly management, good food well cooked and presented.
Anjajavy: What can I say but wonderful. Only down side was the flight from Tana.
Palissandre: Sadly, we arrived late so could not enjoy the facilities. Wonderful setting for restaurant, although menu “strange” and expensive. But a good base for an overnight stay.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.’
Ms. C. Bretherton, December 2008
‘OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.
Very good service from [local representatives].
Andasibe: The night walk at the local villagers’ reserve [Mitsinjo] was excellent.
Anjajavy: Excellent!’
M. & C. Smith, December 2007
‘I will go again. I loved the country.’
B. Bell, November 2007
‘Personal assistance excellent. Derek, thanks for your patient response to all our questions.
DOCUMENTATION & SURFACE HANDLING: Excellent.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.
Lalaina was described as the best guide in Madagascar by the manager at Anjajavy and we have no reason to doubt the truth of this. Lalaina was extremely good. Nothing was a problem and he made all our transfers simple and stress-free. He also shared his high level of knowledge freely.
Would like to say Theo, our guide at Ranomafana, was also very good … Theo stood out for his enthusiasm, knowledge & standard of English. Jacques also worked hard for us in Mantadia.
Vakona Lodge: Room basic but clean.
Arotel: A bit shabby & dull. Looks like it needs refurbishment.
Centrest Sejour: Excllent location, good meals and service. The worst mosquito nets – didn’t reach the edge of the bed!
Lac Hotel: Lots of character. Impossible to shower upright if taller than 4’! Great gardens.
Jardin du Roy: Like an oasis. Really enjoyed this unexpected luxury.
Berenty: As we were warned. The rooms are shabby, down to the very old towels and holes in bedspreads. Not sure it is really worth the journey, though we enjoyed being able to wander the trails on our own.
Hotel de France: Restaurant was excellent. Very central.
Anjajavy: Excellent comfort, service, meals location & facilities. Fabulous!
Tsarabanjina: Excellent location; good comfort, service, meals & facilities. Not keen on buffet lunches.’
N. & B. Wilkins, November 2007
‘SERVICE FROM RAINBOW TOURS: Excellent. All contact was answered promptly.
SURFACE HANDLING: Rija was an excellent guide. He had taken great trouble to learn real English & is one of the few non-native speakers that understands idioms & English humour. He was very knowledgeable about flora, fauna & all other aspects of Malagasy life. Highly recommended.
Vehicle was always ready at the appointed time. Parany took great care to ensure it was clean inside & out & in good repair & was a careful driver. Highly recommended.
Royal Palissandre: Excellent comfort, service, meals & facilities; good location. Set meal was excellent value.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Good comfort, service, location & facilities; average meals. Room suffered from the dampness of the rainforest. Birthday cake was very good. Closer proximity to the park would have been nice.
Residence Camelia: Good comfort, service & meals; average location & facilities.
Centrest Sejour: Excellent location; good comfort, service, meals & facilities.
Tsara Guest House: Excellent. By far the best food we ate. Breakfast was very varied.
Residence Lapasoa: Breakfast was very disappointing. Reception staff did not have much English.
In our opinion, the sculptures at Chez Alain in Tulear are not worth seeing.The Arboretum d’Antsokay was fantastic.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.’
Ms. M. Smalldridge, November 2007
‘SERVICE FROM RAINBOW TOURS: Imaginative, knowledgeable and considerate planning.
DOCUMENTATION: All clear and accurate.
AIR TRAVEL: Air Madagascar fleet is a little bit creaky in terms of finish but cabin staff & pilots know their stuff.
SURFACE HANDLING: Excellent. Comprehensive and invaluable.
Nature Lodge (Montagne d’Ambre): Lovely place & people.
Chez Robert (Ankarana): Perfectly fine basic cabins. Excellent food. Great staff.
Jardin Vanille (Nosy Komba): The only place which struggled with us being vegetarian!
Relais du Masoala (Maroansetra): This was the one place where we felt a bit exploited. The hotel and its resident guide, the famous Julien, offer an Aye aye event for which they charge 81K Ariary per person plus 30K Ariary each to recharge Julien’s torch!! Anyway, he forgot to turn up!
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.’
M. & D. Lewis, November 2007
‘Tsarabanjina: The food was a bit samey.
L’Heure Bleue: The swimming pool was too chlorinated. Taxis to town took ages every night.
Anjajavy: Fabulous! Will recommend to all!
A fantastic honeymoon & brilliantly organised. Will recommend Rainbow Tours … Thank you for making our honeymoon the most amazing & unforgettable trip ever!’
Mr & Mrs Gibson, November 2007
‘[Local agents] were prompt and able to answer most questions. Vehicle clean and well driven. Guide spoke good English.
Anjajavy: We were unfortunate to be here when we and other guests were disturbed by a French family with numerous noisy children. An age limit might be appropriate for this beautiful location. The final days were delightful – they had left by then. Did the hotel pass on all the complaints?
Vakona Forest Lodge: Electric off at 10:30PM.
More like a zoo than a natural reserve. Fossas kept in very poor enclosure, in poor & distressed health. The local guide used taped distress lemur calls to attract the lemurs until we realised this was happening and stopped him.
Nothing quite prepares you for the poor living conditions of the Malagasy people or the widespread destruction of the countryside and forests. We did not really see much beauty in the east of the island.’
V. Smith & Family, October/November 2007
‘SERVICE FROM RAINBOW TOURS: Excellent. Helpful advice even after booking.
SURFACE HANDLING: Excellent. Guide at airport very welcoming. Guide and driver couldn’t have been better.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.
Anjajavy: Everything we hoped for. Lovely to have the freedom to explore.
We had a fantastic experience. Anjajavy wonderful for an escape – a quiet, subdued experience. [Local agents’] handling of trip impressive & comfortable. Enhanced by finding Derek Schuurman linked with literature & guide to lemurs with forest guide, Maurice. Not to mention reading article from Guardian referring to their guide, Maurice – he was “the icing on the cake”!’
G. Simpson, October 2007
‘Vakona Forest Lodge: Nice property – level of cuisine could be improved.
Perinet: Full of tourists. Every time we spotted Indri there were loads of people. Mantadia National Park is excellent – one of our best days. Still not a lot of tourists.
Le Neptune, Tamatave: This property has seen better days. … Attitude to service very poor. Safe and phone in room didn’t work. … no one came to take care of it.
Chez Arol: Loved this property – good food, loads to do, good interaction with other guests, friendly atmosphere. Would have stayed longer. Beach and nature walks – superb. Good snorkelling off beach and vanilla plantation & village nearby were a real plus.
Relais de Masoala: Although the property itself is nice, we found the atmosphere cold. …
La Varangue: Loved it. Wish we could have stayed longer. Décor great, reception/service lovely. Despite our 04:30 departure, they left breakfast in the room. Charming restaurant. Great rum punch selection. Food looked better than it tasted but great night.
Domaine de Fontenay: Had a superb time here. Enjoyed the owners and their family. Our bungalow was lovely – thoughtfully appointed. Good use of local products. Nice meals. Lots of interesting gardens, animals and forest right around the hotel.
Chez Robert: Basic but clean. But one night was enough. Food the level one would expect and this is the place we worried most about getting ill (We did not!).
Tsara Komba: A lovely way to end our trip. Beautiful location – enjoyed our bungalow. Great setting. But lacked a bit of warmth in the atmosphere. Excursions were very expensive.
The [local agents’] guides were all there on schedule & generally of high quality. All arrangements went to schedule. We were less pleased with the guide & service they provided … around Ankarana. … Notable guides: Solofo – Masoala Peninsula – excellent! Perinet: Rija and forest guide Remi. And our guide and driver in Tana, Manitra and Njivo. Had a wonderful day with them in Tana. Manitra was fascinating. Wish we had another day to spend with them.
Overall, this was an amazing trip. We loved the country, people, wildlife. With a few exceptions, the properties, guides and arrangements all went to plan and were of a generally high standard. Hope to return one day. Appreciate all Caroline’s support & advice, especially suggesting we spend an extra night at Chez Arol. Wish we could have had 3 nights there!!’
L. Pacun & K. Blakeslee, October 2007
‘Dear Derek,
Just to say thank you for helping to our organise our trip to Madagascar. We have had a wonderful time and could have stayed a week or so more but then would probably never have come home!!
The only thing that was disappointing was the standard at the Paille en Queue hotel but understand there is not a lot of choice in Tulear
We would also if possible like you to pass on . . . our comments on the guide we had for the main part of the trip from Tana to Tulear. … Elior … was absolutely excellent with nothing too much trouble, very informative , and his spoken English impeccable.
Thanks again.'
J. & D. Doorish, October 2007
‘Congratulations to [your local agents] – highly efficient.
Ampijoroa, Vakona Lodge, Neptune & Gite de Berenty: Good on all counts.
Le Palmarium: Excellent location; good comfort, service, meals & facilities. Efficiently and enthusiastically run.
Nosy Mangabe camping: Excellent comfort, service, meals & location.
Relais du Masoala & Hotel du Louvre: Excellent on all counts.
Chez Arol: Excellent location; good meals; average comfort, service & facilities.
Le Dauphin: Average on all counts.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.’
Mr & Mrs. P. Fachada, Portugal, October 2007
‘SURFACE HANDLING: Excellent. Clement in particular was a fantastic guide.
Anjajavy was an amazing resort.
Domaine de Fontenay: Excellent on all counts.
Chez Robert: Excellent service & location; good comfort and meals.
Palissandre Hotel & Spa: Excellent location & facilities; good service; average comfort & meals. Great spa – strange & indulgent menu!
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.’
L. Tregear, September/October 2007
‘Guides & drivers excellent.
Domaine de Fontenay: Some of the finest food we’ve tasted. Service second to none – fantastic.
Chez Robert: We feel perhaps it shouldn’t be considered in a honeymoon package.
Jardin Vanille: Honeymoon suite was out of this world – thank you! Food on first day fantastic, but not so good second night. We struggled to understand the menu as it was in French without any translation.
Princesse Bora Lodge: Everything fantastic – from our room, meals, to staff’s service and duty manager offering sea-sickness pills for the whale-watching. Minor point: whale watching video all in French so we didn’t get the best out of it.
All in all, a thoroughly fantastic trip. The guides who met us at each destination were excellent.’
A. Boultwood & D. Purser, September 2007
‘SERVICE FROM RAINBOW TOURS, DOCUMENTATION & SURFACE HANDLING: Excellent.
… -so great to be picked up at the airports! Guides were all excellent.
Colbert Carayon: Excellent comfort, service and location; good meals and facilities.
Domaine de Fontenay: Good comfort, service, meals and location; average facilities. We were really impressed with the lunch excursions. Montagne des Francais was not a good trip – hot, rather dull – only for the very committed.
Chez Robert: Good comfort, meals & location; average service & facilities. Cannot understand why they had toilets rather than long-drops for women… Quite a high level of fitness is required for Ankarana.
Constance Lodge Tsarabanjina: Excellent comfort, service, location & facilities. Had a very rough sea crossing. We were very much left alone, which we appreciated. Breakfast & lunch were fantastic, but dinner was not great. Watersports very good.’
5729 Name supplied, and withheld at writer’s request, September 2007
‘Tsarabanjina: Average comfort; good service, meals & facilities; excellent location. Daily trips e.g. snorkelling were very well organised.
Anjajavy: Excellent comfort & service; good location & facilities; average meals.
Chez Robert: Nice and clean and good basic accommodation. Everything it should have been.
Domaine de Fontenay: Excellent meal; good comfort, service & location; average facilities. Fun time with the batty owners. Le Fontenay Park a waste of time – should have had another day at Ankarana instead.’
Mr. E. Colman, September 2007
‘SERVICE FROM RAINBOW TOURS: Excellent. Arranged for us at short notice. Good advice.
SURFACE HANDLING: Excellent. Transfers very good. Would have liked more walking in Perinet.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Good lodge for setting. Basic but comfortable.
Princesse Bora Lodge: Generally a good hotel. Not very well finished and expensive for what it was. Whale watching was excellent. … Shame no room service.
Anjajavy: One of the best hotels we have ever stayed in.’
C. Humphries & L. Woodget, September 2007
‘Anjajavy: Brilliant. Difficult to imagine it could be better.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Room and bed damp.
Overall we really enjoyed it all. It more than lived up to expectations, aside from the damp bed.'
P. Neighbour & A. Bishop, September 2007
‘Berenty Lodge: Far better service than on previous visit! They have a new manager – and it shows!
Anjajavy: Bliss!! A perfect resort hotel with lots of wild life too!
Marius was his usual irrepressible self – incredibly knowledgeable about all the wildlife and Madagascar itself. He made the trip a wonderful experience. Above all, it was fun!
Toki [guide] took a huge amount of trouble to look after us all, and was a great asset to the group.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.’
Ms. S. Davies, MADAGASCAR WILDLIFE TOUR, August 2007
'Hi Derek
Just to thank you for organising such a fantastic holiday for us. We had a brilliant time - flights, hotels, transfers and guides were all excellent.
All the forests and reserves were fascinating and we saw a good number of different lemurs and chameleons and over 100 species of bird. It was well worth getting up at 4.30 in the morning to have such good views of Giant Coua and Appert’s Greenbul (which came so close to us) in Zombitse! We also saw the Madagascar Fish Eagle, most of the vangas (the Blue Vanga is amazing) and had good views of White-breasted and Subdesert Mesite which was very exciting.
We found Madagascar to be such an interesting and diverse place with very friendly people. We enjoyed walking around the market in Toliara, seeing the huge tombs, an exhumation procession and then a wedding party in Mahajanga and the firework display in Tana to celebrate the opening of the Indian Ocean Olympic Games.
[Local agents] were excellent too. Rija, our guide in the south was particularly good especially as he was a keen birdwatcher himself. He thinks very highly of you and if you were ever to meet up with him I’m sure he’d be thrilled.
Our only very slight disappointment was that we couldn’t visit the lake near Anakao because their vehicle was being used for other things but we did get across to Nosy Ve and saw the Red-tailed Tropicbirds. Whilst at Anakao, which was fabulous, very relaxing and probably the best transfer by zebu cart and boat! we walked around the back of the hotel area and saw quite a few Littoral Rock Thrushes. However, one seemed to be very strongly coloured, which I photographed, and looking at the book it was more like a Forest Rock Thrush. Could this be a possibility do you know?
Anyway, thanks again. We would most definitely like to visit again and see some different parts of the island.'
P. & G. Halpin, August 2007
SERVICE FROM RAINBOW TOURS: Excellent. Exceptionally pleased with the service. Derek was very helpful both before we went and upon our return, helping to identify a bird I had photographed!
DOCUMENTATION: Excellent. Extremely well organised, good, personalised itinerary and all presented in a very handy wallet.
SURFACE HANDLING: Excellent. [Local representatives] were excellent – never let down and all the guides were knowledgeable and courteous. The drivers were also very good and courteous. Particularly pleased that our interest in birds was passed on to the guides so they had made arragements accordingly.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Very good – restaurant well designed and fire very welcome! Excellent food. Rooms were spacious and clean.
Royal Palissandre: An extremely comfortable hotel. Evening meals were delicious.
Gite d’Ampijoroa: Comfortable accommodation in an excellent location. The raised observation point overlooking the lake was good for watching birds arrive at dusk. Coquerel’s sifaka leaping from tree to tree outside the restaurant during our evening meal was a great experience!
Sunny Hotel: Good location for the airport. Food and restaurant service was exceptionally good. The safe in the room wasn’t much use as it wasn’t attached to the wall…
Le Paradisier: Fabulous hotel – having breakfast on the restaurant verandah overlooking the sea was idyllic. At lunchtime, a flock of flamingos flew past. Very comfortable bungalow – wish we could have stayed longer.
Le Paille en Queue: Comfortable room. Service in the restaurant on the second night was slow…
Anakao Club Resort: A wonderful place to relax at the end of our holiday. Food and service excellent. A trip to Nosy Ve to see the Red-tailed Tropicbirds is a must. Walking along the beach to the village of Anakao is lovely and the village very interesting with all the fishing boats and little stalls.
A really fabulous holiday to a unique place where we met lovely people and saw a good variety of wildlife and birds. A well designed itinerary allowed us to see very different parts of the island and varied habitats and landscapes. We definitely want to visit again and would not hesitate in using Rainbow Tours again or recommending them to others.’
P. Halpin, August 2007
‘What a great itinerary! Thanks, Derek.’
Mr. J. Dinwoodie & Family, August 2007
‘Anjajavy: management and staff made our holiday a wonderful, relaxing experience. Best holiday ever. Would have liked less food – just snacks at lunchtime.
Thank you very much. We had a wonderful holiday.’
R. McGow and Family, August 2007
‘Tsarabanjina: One of the most amazing places ever stayed. Superb food & stunning location. First class service.
Anjajavy: Incredible location. Wildlife amazing. Shame let down by terrible service in bar & restaurant.
Domaine de Fontenay: Eccentric & fun.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Perinet is beautiful, but this is definitely most basic of all places we stayed. Could do with an update.
Hotel Colbert: Fantastic spa, gym & pool. Lovely patisserie.
[Buffalo Ridge, Madikwe, South Africa: This is possibly the best place we’ve ever stayed. Everything amazing.]’
Ms. E. Johnson, August 2007
‘All pick-up arrangements were very smooth, guides were very good, as were the excursions.
Domaine de Fontenay: Very friendly, caring service.
Anjajavy: Stunning location, excellent service.
Overall, a very good trip’
Mr. B. Bender, August 2007
‘Dear Derek,
Just to let you know we had the holiday of a lifetime. Thank you for everything. …
Of course Madagascar was superb....there were so many highlights and so many memories. I would highly recommend Madagascar for family travel...even though it is costly! Anakao was fab the surprise of the zebu cart ride to catch the boat, the people the lovely scenery the flora, our visit to the sapphire town, hiking and riding in Isalo, visiting the villages etc etc etc. and of course the lemurs. We are trying to start a relationship with a school for disabled children in Antsirabe....it is basically a classroom at present and the two teachers train parents how to help their kids. …
The other real high was the guide, Manitra. He became like a family member by the end of the tour. He says he of course knows you. I really appreciate his knowledge and love of his country. He will make a great politician one day! He made everything possible from visiting small villages in Ranomafana, to the specialist cactus / rare plants merchant in Tana.
Thank you again for arranging such a wonderful trip. If you would ever like me to speak to a family considering a trip I would happily do so. We are also thinking of doing a slide show for our village....a brave thing indeed in conservative Surrey!!'
Mrs. L. Rosling & Family, July/August 2007
'Service from Rainbow Tours: Excellent.
Air Travel: Air France - will avoid in future. Rude.
Domaine de Fontenay: Wouldn’t have missed it! So much character! Park and guide v. good too.
Masoala Forest Lodge: very good.
Anjajavy: Fantastic.'
C. & G. Marlow, July/August 2007
‘We had a lovely honeymoon – every day got better and better. Staff at all hotels were v. professional and v. welcoming. Thank you!’
Mr. & Mrs. R. Farmer, July/August 2007
'Thank you, we both enjoyed our holiday.
We were quite happy with Air Madagascar for their flights in terms of aircraft & service.
The hotels, both Anjajavy & Princesse Bora are first class. It was very reassuring to have the [local] reps to meet us and to help with our transfers.'
Mr. & Mrs. M. Weir, July/August 2007
'Fantastically organised - a memorable trip. Thanks.'
J. & K. Buckley, July 2007
‘Princesse Bora Lodge: Excellent service & facilities; good comfort, meals & location. Only niggle was darkness of room owing to shutters and poor lighting. Would have preferred windows (with glass).
Vakona Forest Lodge: Excellent comfort, service & location; good meals & facilities. Beautiful location and very much enjoyed authenticity of meals.
Anjajavy: Stunning resort, paradise.
Overall, a fantastic holiday. We were particularly impressed with the hospitality we were shown and must give special thanks to our guide, Elior, and driver, Parany.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.’
D. Allen, July 2007
'Service from Rainbow Tours: Excellent.
[Local agents] were excellent. All drivers and guides were great, very efficient, helpful, etc. Everything was done for us and we did not have to organise anything.
Anjajavy: The service could not have been more wonderful or more genuine. The perfect place for a honeymoon.
Palissandre Hotel & Spa: Very nice hotel & very nice staff. Lovely spa, with very helpful and accommodating staff.
Princesse Bora Lodge: Helpful staff on reception. Surprised by the poor weather.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Excellent service, meals & location. (Our local guide, Julian, was fantastic!)
Mr. M. Roberts & Ms. N. Hamour, July 2007
'Caroline Prat was an absolute treat to deal with.
Solofo, our guide, was really excellent.
Excellent holiday that ran like clockwork and totally hassle free. Huge thanks to all at Rainbow Tours - we'll be back!'
Mr. & Mrs. R. Ramagge & Family, July 2007
‘All went like clockwork. Local agents were very good. Guide met us between flights and included unscheduled trip to craft market –excellent.
La Varangue: Food good but expensive and nouveau cuisine.
Princesse Bora Lodge: Excellent.
Thank you – will be using you again and recommending you to our friends.’
L. Parlett & R. Smith, July 2007
‘Caroline was helpful, enthusiastic and knowledgeable – many thanks!
Surface handling: Everyone arrived on time and knew what they were doing & seemed well prepared.
Domaine de Fontenay: We got a very warm welcome, and the atmosphere was wonderful. Loved the forest there, too.
Anjajavy: Wonderful. It couldn’t have been better – a very, very special place.
The Shandrani (Mauritius): Decent hotel near the airport, so good for what we wanted it for.
Belle Mare Plage(Mauritius): The hotel was beautifully built and designed but it had a very crowded feel about it – maybe not so much to our taste as smaller places.’
Ms. S. Sequeira, June/July 2007
'Dear Caroline,
I have just got back from the most amazing holiday/honeymoon I could ever have and a very large part of it was down to you guys.
All of your organisation was absolutely impeccable - first class in every way.
The guides were the most friendly, knowledgeable, helpful, well presented, well briefed and unbelievably punctual I have ever known (without them we would have been in trouble for sure).
The places/lodges were fantastic, the routes excellent, the walking/hotels/sights/animals/sports/cultural elements perfect.
All in all, I cannot commend/thank you highly enough for your help in making it a wonderful honeymoon for us to remember for a long time to come - thank you and all of our guides - they are worth their weight in gold and you all have a very good thing going in Madagascar.'
Mr. E. Fanshawe, June 2007
'Service from Rainbow Tours: Excellent. Always patient and understanding.
Surface handling: Excellent. Always on time. Good command of English. Professional. New 4WD with excellent driver.
Nature Lodge: Exceeded my expectations.
Jardin Vanille: Excellent meals. Manager Delphine was very helpful. Enjoyed our boat trip to Nosy Tanikely. Very expensive wine only (no other option).
Vanila Hotel: Nice level of service, very friendly. For the meals and drinks, very good value/price ratio. Nice pools, but the sea at the beach is shallow.
Anjajavy: The villas are excellent, to be sure. All is well organised. The management team is perfect.’
Mr. K. Azhitsky (Austria), June 2007
‘Alain [guide] was absolutely great, taking care of everything … & providing us with interesting information on Madagascar and its history. A smashing guy.
Princesse Bora Lodge: Unfortunately, the weather was disappointing here, but manager & staff great.
Tsara Komba: The menu was rather limited… Both managers lacked “warmth” compared to the managers at other resorts.
Tsarabanjina: Definitely a good one for water-sports.
Anjajavy Hotel: This was “the jewel in the crown”. Wonderful management and staff and the best food. Highly recommended. Fantastic to sit on your own verandah or in the bar and watch the lemurs in the trees.’
Mrs. C. Hudson, June 2007
'We are returned from our great holiday. Your arrangements for us were excellent. We shall write you later about the places, people and messages which were sent to you through us. All very complimentary!'
'One of the best holidays we have ever had. Many thanks.'
D. & W. Thornton, June 2007
‘[Service from Rainbow Tours] always fantastic. Emails answered very quickly with good info. All staff seemed extremely helpful & v. pleasant. Efficient.
Anjajavy: The most fantastic place ever! Extremely well managed. Stunning!
La Varangue: Only stayed one night. Breakfast was nothing special considering the hotel’s food reputation. Surly staff.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Very poor vegetarian menu. Breakfast poor too – just bread & croissant. Didn’t seem well-managed… Lovely place and lovely time there though.
Princesse Bora Lodge: Again, very poor for vegetarians. Food did not nearly live up to its reputation. Place fantastic though. Really cosy & villas gorgeous. We found it very difficult there because we didn’t speak French & staff do not speak much English.’
Ms. V. Butcher, June 2007
‘[Service from Rainbow Tours] first rate again. Tour guides – particularly Bruno & Alain – superb.
Hotels/lodges all v. personal and appropriate. Always felt safe & secure. Friendly.
I will use you again.’
Ms. J. Hughes, June 2007
‘The wedding went very well, with an absolutely wonderful honeymoon to follow. All went very smoothly, all accomodation was perfect, all the guides were excellent, and there was no hiccups, all flights were on time and all food was fantastic!
Vakona Forest Lodge: Run-of-the-mill sort of place in [a ] beautiful setting.
Domaine de Fontenay: Great place with quirky charm.
Overall satisfaction: Excellent.
. . . All in all we absolutely loved Madagascar and the itinerary was perfect (You were right, Anjajavy was truly stunning) - we can't wait to plan another trip to explore more of the island.’
Mr. & Mrs. D. Patterson, May/June 2007
‘[Local agents] were first class.
Anjajavy – fantastic resort in every respect.’
Mr. & Mrs. J. Townley, May/June 2007’
‘Anjajavy: Would recommend to anyone! Staff amazing, brilliant holiday. Management team very open & friendly, lovely atmosphere...’
Mr. A. Williams, May/June 2007
‘Thank you both for your help arranging our honeymoon.
Anjajavy was everything it promised to be and more: in particular, personable staff, wonderful food, idyllic location, just enough to do.
We really enjoyed our tour around Tana.’
Mr & Mrs G. Woods, May 2007
'Now that we've had a week to recover from Madagascar, I thought it was high time to check in. ...
We had a fantastic time! It was much better than our previous trip to Madagascar, and even better than we hoped. All of the destinations were wonderful, and the drivers, general guides, and local forest guides were all really good too. Our general guide for the first part of the trip was "Jessica" ... (we learned at the very end of the trip that her name is actually "Gersica"), and she was just an absolutely delightful person as well as an excellent guide in every way.
The travel coordination went very smoothly. Everyone met us at the right times and places and knew where to take us to next. That seems like quite an accomplishment in Madagascar.
The food was much better than we were expecting, and our finicky vegetarian needs were well-met everywhere. Everyone knew in advance that we were vegetarian, and they were careful to ask what we would and wouldn't eat. Last time we were in Madagascar it seemed like we mainly ate rice and tomatoes, but this time we felt like gourmets.
The lodging was of course quite varied but overall it was much nicer than on our previous trip. We felt a little weird at Anjajavy initially since it was so much nicer than what we were used to and so much nicer than what most Malagasy every experience. But we got used to it quickly and it was definitely a good way to help make the transition from Madagascar to "civilization".
We were prepared for some amount of itinerary reshuffling, but there were only a couple of minor adjustments. The first was that Mantadia was inaccessible due to cyclone damage from a few months earlier, so we spent extra time at Analamazoatra instead. It would have been nice to see Mantadia, but in the extra time at Analamazoatra we saw lots of new great critters, so it was no problem. I was worried that we'd see very few herps in the area since you had mentioned that the reptiles were over-collected there, but we were lucky enough to see all sorts of nice chameleons, geckos, and frogs, along with a couple of snakes. And of course the Indri and several other lemurs. ...
A couple of days after returning to California I started fantasizing about when I might be able to return to Madagascar. What a place!'
John Sullivan, California, USA April 2007
You can see more of John Sullivan's extraordinary photographs from Andasibe, Anjaha and Ranomafana.
'We are back from a wonderful and productive trip to Madagascar. First, I want to thank Marie for helping us out of a very difficult situation when weather in Dallas caused us to miss the flight to Paris and the connecting Air Madagascar flight. …
Some feedback:
Our guide Rija was outstanding. … We have traveled all over the world to film wildlife and he is the most pleasant, knowledable and helpful guide we have ever come across. …
… Tarajava Guest House, high on the hills overlooking the city. It was a magnificent, converted estate and a four star rating by my standards. A bit out of the way, but worth it if there is time.
Overall, the accommodations were above our expectations, providing electricity (most of the day) and running water. Food at the Vakona Lodge was not very good, but all other locations were more than satisfactory.
…The two days at Tsarabanjina were wonderful. This is a very luxurious lodge with excellent food and great snorkeling. We did not dive, electing to relax instead. One more day here, as planned, would have been welcomed. …
Thanks again for putting together a great trip.
Regards,'
F. & P. Heiman, April/May 2007
‘Thanks Derek – for your patience helping us come up with an itinerary to suit our needs.
Vakona Forest Lodge: Lovely location, good swimming pool, and extra facilities, e.g. pool/table tennis.
Andasibe was excellent. Good local guide.
Residence Camelia: Basic, but fine for one night. Nice gardens.
Setam Lodge: Very clean and modern, lovely views, but a little soul-less – especially in the main dining room. Excellent local guide in Ranomafana.
Tsara Guest House: Lovely old colonial house, with lots of character and good restaurant.
Relais de la Reine: Rooms lovely, but very hot, even at this time of year. Only a fan available, which did little to cool the room. Excellent service, meals, location & facilities.
Isalo – Wonderful! Scenery, walking, gorges, swimming.
Toky and Popo from [local agents] were EXCELLENT. Very knowledgeable and attentive, without being at all intrusive. We very much enjoyed their company, and would highly recommend them.
OVERALL SATISFACTION: Excellent.’
A. Swinnerton & R. Webster, March/April 2007
‘Hotel Colbert Carayon: Breakfasts were very good, but the only evening meal we had was average.
Anjajavy Hotel: Another hotel we want to return to. Very personal service. We did know it would be possible to be inconvenienced by cyclones and we were not disappointed.’
Luxford-Watts Family, March 2007
MADAGASCAR FISH EAGLE AT ANJAJAVY and ALLEY OF THE BAOBABS AT ANJAJAVY by Rainbow Tours. CHEZ ROBERT and JARDIN VANILLE by CARINA HIBBITT, RAINBOW TOURS. COQUEREL'S SIFAKAS AT ANJAJAVY by courtesy of DAVID ROGERS and ANJAJAVY HOTEL.
BROOKESIA and BOOPHIS VIRIDIS by courtesy of JOHN SULLIVAN.
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