Madagascar

[Neddy69]

Great to read about everyone's different and mostly really great experiences. Here in Antsohihy I just got the full on fucked vazaha experience. Got stupid and cheap and saw a nice room for 10,000 ariary, well of course two hooded guys came knocking the door down at 1 AM, I thought I was done for. Found out the hard way that the pepper spray I bought was about as hot as medium spicy thai food, anyways, the guys were pretty well covered up so it probably wouldn't have worked even if it was the real stuff. Got hit two times on the top of the head with a baton and I consider myself very lucky. I thank my lucky blood vessels that so much blood squirted out on the 2nd hit the guy left me and went looking for more valuable things than a bloodied and pissed scared vazaha. The damage: A nice new haircut and stitches and my money and passport stolen. Lucky I cached my cards before going to sleep. Learned a very valuable lesson; don't be cheap in the land that is already cheap. And also, Antsohihy, never again! I think I'm the only vazaha here and it's a poor town so that probably explains a lot. Also I think the hotel was in on it, I was screaming MPangalatra! (Thief!) for what seemed like 3 minutes, of course no body came till after I was pouring blood everywhere. Also since my time with the police today I've learned that Ambanja isn't all roses and flowers either. More dangerous with guns according to them. Pay attention, make sure you know the security where you're staying, and keep a stash of your valuables hidden somewhere! If I could do it all over again I'd just throw my cash all over the room and hide under the bed. Sad, sad times.

Sorry man 3 posts and already robbed? The most annoying is passport for sure and creditcards. I can only say that in Tulear I felt perfectly safe. I spoke to a lot of expats, Nobody heard of having been robbed. Years ago there was a frenchman shot as he was riding a quad outside Tulear. In fact I took cyclo pousse many times at night in Tulear, but only from Tata Zsombe uphill to Hotel Central in old centre ville, which is indeed deserted at night. I heard of rumours of people having been robbed by cyclo pousse but couldn t verify. I think you have been very unfortunate, and probably the hotel or whatever room you rented somebody was involved for sure. In Mangily I stayed at a bungalow, ,the area was quite open, it was guarded at night, the only thing I ve heard was years ago some armed bandits tried to rob the compressor of a local dive shop. Other than that nothing in terms of crime. An old africa traveller told me some tricks, always hide your cash in the room at least in 3 to 4 spots also passport and cards and smartphone. Security of the room, most doorlocks and doors are really dingy, what you can try if the door opens to inside use the good old plastic doorjam for 2 euros, that shoud keep anybody from entering the room easily, one will definitely go in my travel kit. I never bother with pepper spray, better not resist, let them take some cash you have stashed away, but this sounds like an inside job for me, in Kenya its very common to be robbed by the hotel staff, that's why I never bother using a hotel safe useless. In Gambia a girl stole 300 euros from my room, but my fault I did not hide the money well enough. I also try to travel with as little cash as possible, I rather pull out cash with my visa whenever possible, even if that means bad rate of exchange, ATMs are really everywhere. To be robbed in the room is really unfortunate always take rooms inspect security, Iron bars in front of the windows or at least 1st floor. Usually all hotels lock everything up at night. In Fianarantsoa I can highly recommend the Dragon the Or. Its run by a chinese Kung Fu man. They lock everything up Iron Bars etc. In Tana I used the Relais de Normandie.

Hope you are well.

Neddy.

Who has been robbed a few times mostly by chicas. 2 Laptops 3 Smartphones and about 600 euros in cash, so don't feel bad, its part of the african travel costs to budget for hehe.
Mada I was only stolen a cheap nokia phone and Air Mada still owes me 200 euros, so my cheapest african holiday....

[Golfinho]

Right 100%. Please avoid Pouzze Pouzze in the night time. Vaery high % to get robbed and beaten. But "LE filles de Tulear". Often the best you can get in Mada.

The French woman who bought and took over LE Boeuf was robbed and beaten while closing up the bar earlier this year. Saw her with two black eyes and face a bit swollen. She said the police told this this was unusual for Tulear.

[SeeYouThen]

Great to read about everyone's different and mostly really great experiences. Here in Antsohihy I just got the full on fucked vazaha experience. Got stupid and cheap and saw a nice room for 10,000 ariary, well of course two hooded guys came knocking the door down at 1 AM, I thought I was done for. Found out the hard way that the pepper

What a story man, thanks for sharing, I hope you will recover fast because a lot of nice girls are waiting for you.

[Member #4178]

well of course two hooded guys came knocking the door down at 1 AM, .

I don't get it. Did you open the door or what? Did they break the door or you just open it for them?

[Amadeuss]

two hooded guys came knocking the door down at 1 AM, Sad, sad times.

Shit men! Lucky at the end no more serious cuts or bruises. But bad enough already.

You didn't sleep with a girl? She could have screamed louder. And try next time to shout: "Afoooo. ". means fire and gets normally more attention.

To use pepper spray can be tricky and even get the attacker more engaged.

Loosing money. Makes one angry but replaceable.

Loosing passport. A tiem consuming mess.

Loosing Tablet or phone. You feel like a blind men.

Loosing credit card. An absolute drama, even worse if together with the phone.

But most scary if you suffer serious body damage. Therefore I would try to move away in a corner and let them get the money. I also have a 2nd card stashed away with the copy of the passport and a simple 30. -$ Nokia with important numbers in it.

Hope you are safe now, mate.

[OneRose]

As I'm new on this forum, I would like to greet you all and to thank you for sharing these precious information.

I had been 3 times in Madagascar and I will be back in July and August.....

Hi!

I'll be in Mada in July as well, maybe we can do some mongering together. PM me!

[Joe Perez]

Thanks Tungsten for the update on FD. Rarely anyone travels there. Reason may be the road connection from Tulear is a challenging 2 day trip. And some street gangs were reported on that road. But put a smile on my face if you say you got your encounters in the brousse: that is the real Mada.

FD is on my list for my next trip to the south.

DO: Tulear, been there many times. Its a bit of a wild west town. Many stranded expats living there. A number of decent hotels and restaurants. The few discos are ok for hunting. But once its dark, roads getting deserted and you better watch your back. For me, 2 or 3 nights are ok. Then I move on to Ifaty / Mangily at the beach. If you like to have pied dans l'eau and relax in a beach front cottage, the filles will find you. If not, walk Friday or Saturday to the 2 discos on the main road.

Sea, sun and sex. Nothing else to do.

Right 100%. Please avoid Pouzze Pouzze in the night time. Vaery high % to get robbed and beaten. But "LE filles de Tulear". Often the best you can get in Mada.

[CoverOne]

Great to read about everyone's different and mostly really great experiences. Here in Antsohihy I just got the full on fucked vazaha experience. Got stupid and cheap and saw a nice room for 10,000 ariary, well of course two hooded guys came knocking the door down at 1 AM, I thought I was done for. Found out the hard way that the pepper spray I bought was about as hot as medium spicy thai food, anyways, the guys were pretty well covered up so it probably wouldn't have worked even if it was the real stuff. Got hit two times on the top of the head with a baton and I consider myself very lucky. I thank my lucky blood vessels that so much blood squirted out on the 2nd hit the guy left me and went looking for more valuable things than a bloodied and pissed scared vazaha. The damage: A nice new haircut and stitches and my money and passport stolen. Lucky I cached my cards before going to sleep. Learned a very valuable lesson; don't be cheap in the land that is already cheap. And also, Antsohihy, never again! I think I'm the only vazaha here and it's a poor town so that probably explains a lot. Also I think the hotel was in on it, I was screaming MPangalatra! (Thief!) for what seemed like 3 minutes, of course no body came till after I was pouring blood everywhere. Also since my time with the police today I've learned that Ambanja isn't all roses and flowers either. More dangerous with guns according to them. Pay attention, make sure you know the security where you're staying, and keep a stash of your valuables hidden somewhere! If I could do it all over again I'd just throw my cash all over the room and hide under the bed. Sad, sad times.

[Amadeuss]

Thanks Tungsten for the update on FD. Rarely anyone travels there. Reason may be the road connection from Tulear is a challenging 2 day trip. And some street gangs were reported on that road. But put a smile on my face if you say you got your encounters in the brousse: that is the real Mada.

FD is on my list for my next trip to the south.

DO: Tulear, been there many times. Its a bit of a wild west town. Many stranded expats living there. A number of decent hotels and restaurants. The few discos are ok for hunting. But once its dark, roads getting deserted and you better watch your back. For me, 2 or 3 nights are ok. Then I move on to Ifaty / Mangily at the beach. If you like to have pied dans l'eau and relax in a beach front cottage, the filles will find you. If not, walk Friday or Saturday to the 2 discos on the main road.

Sea, sun and sex. Nothing else to do.

[SeeYouThen]

As I'm new on this forum, I would like to greet you all and to thank you for sharing these precious information.

I had been 3 times in Madagascar and I will be back in July and August. I m looking for buddies interested in travelling together and have some good and naughty experiences with nice girls.

Let me share my last trip in Diego Suarez at the beginning of this year.

Diego Suarez is kind of special in Madagascar, this city has a nice atmosphere of liberty as it is supposed to have been libertalia, a city created by pirates during the 17th century. Anyway you can find khat to be sold in the street, people smoking in some places and have sex very easily.

First, I met a local male friend that helped me a lot. I could rent cars from his relatives (20 K to 30 K a day), this was very useful to move any time and to save some money. He also helped me for security, for prices, to find and to translate to the girls (even if I m French) and we had some nice experiences taking one or two girls at the same time together. I noticed that some ladies are willing to do a lot with vahaza but when there is a local guy, sometimes they are more reluctant.

City: You have a main street with fancy bars, restaurant (Rue Colbert). The center for night life is near the expensive hotel called LE grand hotel. Parallel to this street, you have a street (Boulevard Etienne) with a lot of very good local cheap food sold in the street (from 7 pm to morning). Don t be afraid to go to eat there late, I never had troubles.

From 3 pm to 11 pm: The Vahine is the place to be: Big terrasse, Live music, lots of girls, you can buy cigarettes and play their crappy pool if you like. Just reserve the girl you like, 90 % are available, lot of semi pro there. I also liked to go to a place called les arcades during the afternoon, no girls but nice atmosphere, cheap, and a courtyard to relax without noise.

From 9 or 10 pm to 1 / 2 am: The taxi be is just 3 minutes from the Vahine, you ll see everybody migrating there: Live music, nice place and on Thursdays there is a contest of local dance that will turn you on for a long time I guarantee you, pools tables also available. You ll see some very nice girls there but most of them (the more interesting ones) are waiting for you to do the first step.

From 12 pm to morning: You have clubs 10 mn walk from the taxi be, the Nouveau casino is a club and a bar linked together, in club 5 K a drink, free entrance for vahaza and girls, nice dance floor with sexy girls dancing. It would be very difficult to not find company here. Don t hesitate to dance with multiple girls, they are very open minded, it s a lot of fun. Late in the night, you can always find girls in front of the nouveau casino, not the best one. Two other clubs nearby: la boite noire and l'etincelle I think, just cross the street from the grand hotel, but I never went there.

Prices: For a night, between 20 K to 50 K, usually 30 K is nice.

[Joe Perez]

I spent a few days in FD in April. Always been curious as it never gets a mention even on a French website. The guidebooks say it's pretty and it's poor and is falling down. . . That's about it. On the slim chance it was a Shangri-La I got on a plane.

The landscape of mountains and the bay are beautiful but you get the impression it only exists because some poor bastards got shipwrecked there in 1504. If you're looking for swanky restaurants or a vazaha scene, forget it. The 'anglophone' bar on Bradt is long gone and Chez George on Libanona beach is a nice spot but was mostly deserted and closes at 8 pm. Security seems an issue; I changed hotel after being warned by staff and girls not to walk outside it after dark (although I already had done with no problem) and was told to call a taxi from Chez George.

I moved into LE Tournesol which is 100 m up the road from the only bar with customers midweek. Florida. I liked it, but saw the same faces night after night. Other places were empty or closed, and the mine outside town seems to leave a much smaller footprint than I expected. I was there Monday to Friday and things were way busier my last night..

Hi Tungsten2,

I'll give a look to Morombe and Andavadoaka next month but not info on the thread.

Please tell me something about Morombe. Every info is really welcome.

Thanks

[Member #4178]

Drove across to Tulear afterwards and paid 2 for ST in la brousse!

Also visited Diego, Majunga and Morombe which I'll update about soon.

Thanks. What is your impression for Tulear? Does it wort to spend some time.

[Tungsten2]

I spent a few days in FD in April. Always been curious as it never gets a mention even on a French website. The guidebooks say it's pretty and it's poor and is falling down. . . That's about it. On the slim chance it was a Shangri-La I got on a plane.

The landscape of mountains and the bay are beautiful but you get the impression it only exists because some poor bastards got shipwrecked there in 1504. If you're looking for swanky restaurants or a vazaha scene, forget it. The 'anglophone' bar on Bradt is long gone and Chez George on Libanona beach is a nice spot but was mostly deserted and closes at 8 pm. Security seems an issue; I changed hotel after being warned by staff and girls not to walk outside it after dark (although I already had done with no problem) and was told to call a taxi from Chez George.

I moved into LE Tournesol which is 100 m up the road from the only bar with customers midweek. Florida. I liked it, but saw the same faces night after night. Other places were empty or closed, and the mine outside town seems to leave a much smaller footprint than I expected. I was there Monday to Friday and things were way busier my last night.

If you have time to burn FD may be worth a visit but it's definitely not a stand alone destination. Glad I went, but five days was plenty.

Drove across to Tulear afterwards and paid 2 for ST in la brousse!

Also visited Diego, Majunga and Morombe which I'll update about soon.

[Neddy69]

Hey guys,

Thanks a bunch, I really would rather put most of that 5 million ariary for the visa they're asking now to other, more pleasurable uses.

Thanks for the info Neddy, do you know what currency those prices you listed are in? P.S. Found this interesting website; http://www.madagascar-embassy.ca/web...id=251&lang=us.

Sorry about the lack of pics guys, but in lieu of them I can offer some good info on Ambanja and Antsohihy.

Ambanja is the closest big city to Nosy Be. I'd estimate there are somewhere between 50 to 70 thousand people living here, many of them beautiful women. It's the capital of cacao production in Madagascar and is surrounded by beautiful organic forests of mixed big trees and cacao. There are a number of really good hotels that can be found on the main street (Route Nationale 6). A good price for an ac room (probably not necessary except during the rainy season from November to April) is 50,000 Ariary. I myself prefer to get a room with a good ceiling fan and moustiquaire and bathroom for 30.000 Ariary. I would not pay more. There are cycle poussys that can be taken anywhere in the city (500 ariary 1 person 1 trip during the day, 1000 ariary same at night, pay more if trip is longer than 10 to 15 minutes) . It's a safe city. There are lots of police and I've never been asked for a bribe or hassled. Just make sure you have your passport or a copy of it on you at all times and they have no reason to give you trouble. The city itself is rather more attractive than other cities I've been to, it seems to have been layed out on a French scheme. There's more of a grid to it, so it's easier to get your bearings. People don't hassle you in my experience. Lack of cyber and WiFi is pretty bad, just get a WiFi box from Orange or Telma and hook it up to your laptop and you'll have a good connection. I can personally recommend Hotel Meridien which is off the main street but not far, and very conveniently located just down the street a 1 minute walk from the hottest place to see and talk to and take to bed the hottest girls in Ambanja, night club Nirvana. Just tell a Poussy (hahaha!) to bring you to Hotel Meridien. Very friendly staff and secure with good amenities on hand. Friday, and especially Saturday and Sunday late nights are the time to be here, so do yourself a favor and spend the weekend in Ambanja if you're passing through. Restaurant Patricia is good clean French Malgache but expensive comparatively, 10-30 thousand ariary per person. Good brochettes and fried fish are on offer around the two different parkages, parkage Mahajanga and parkage Diego. Less of a Bush feel and more of a refined, hot clubbing feel here. People are generally richer here.

Antsohihy is a poor town in between Ambanja and Mahajanga and is a little bit smaller, and much more spread out in a confusing way. It's a different kind of Malagasy who live there and I find them to be pretty gross. There are a number of good hotels with good security (which is needed because the men there are more aggressive than Ambanja, in my experience) and the prices are generally cheaper. There are a number of good little Hotelys where you can get a fat plate of rice and crab or whatever is your local fancy for 4 - 5 thousand Ariary. The women can be prettier in Antsohihy, but really, it's not a big difference, and I wouldn't consider it a big factor, more a matter of taste. One thing to consider is that in my experience the culture of the women matches that of the men in Antsohihy, more aggressive, less refined, really gross in my experience. Sometimes you can find ridiculously hot girls though. Breasts are a big factor in upping the attractiveness of Antsohihy women in my experience. Method of transport here is by gross old Peugeot taxis and the price is 2000 ariary per trip.

OK guys that's it until I get a computer charger for my mac. Lame. Best price I've found from Tana so far is 100 euros (ouch). Might just wait till I get out of the country, but then that means lack of photos to share until then.

Prices in euro for residence permit, plus the cost for the non resident alien card.

Best bet go straight to immigration in Tana.

Neddy.

Who is torn between Kenya madagascar and Gambia.

[Member #4178]

There is now a fee for all visas to visit Madagascar. For the last few years, the visa fee for stays of up to 30 days has been waived in an effort to rekindle tourism. That waiver has now expired and there is once again a fee for all visas.

General / tourist visas are available on arrival at the airport and for stays of up to 30 days they cost 80,000 Ariary (or the equivalent in dollars or euros at the prevailing exchange rate – currently about €23 or $25). For visas for stays of 31-60 and 61-90 days, fees remain unchanged at 100,000 AR (€29/$31) and 140,000 AR (€40/$44) respectively.

There is no need to obtain a visa in advance unless you require a special visa – such as for study, work or long-stay (90+ days). If you do decide to get a general visa in advance from your local Malagasy Embassy, the price may be significantly higher. There is no embassy in the UK, so Brits needing to apply in advance for a visa must do so via Paris or Brussels. Note that the 80,000 AR visa fee also applies to cruise passengers and permits them to multiple entries during a period of up to 30 days.

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