14-Day Betsy, an Immersive Trek

An Outstanding Company

261EXP is a first-rate tour company offering customizable trips in Madagascar. After doing some reading and deciding where I wanted to go, I searched the internet for companies offering tours to those places, mostly national parks where I hoped to see lemurs and other wildlife for which Madagascar is known. I received a prompt response from 261EXP, and discovered that all their tours listed online are customizable, available as individual tours with a personal driver/guide. Over the next two weeks, I worked with Christina Thomas via email to add two days to their Vezo Experience tour, so that I could visit Andasibe, as well as national parks along the Vezo Experience route from Antananarivo to the southwest coast. Arrangements included all my airport transfers, accommodations, daily breakfast, local guides and spotters, and the domestic flight back to the capital at the end of the trip. When I arrived, I was ever so happy not to be driving myself, or packed into crowded public buses! My assigned driver, one of the company’s founders, has 17 years experience as a professional driver/guide. His driving skills were truly impressive, as he avoided potholes, straddled missing pavement, dodged errant pedestrians, animals, rickshaws, bicycles, and other hazards on the roadside, and managed to squeeze past hundreds of cargo trucks on the narrow roads. At one point I asked how he managed to memorize every pothole between Tana and Toliara. He just smiled and said it was ESP. Apparently 261EXP has very good relations with others in the travel industry of Madagascar, because they provided excellent local guides and spotters for hikes in national parks, very comfortable accommodations in hotels with scenic locations, excellent restaurants, and courteous staff. Overall, I had an exceptionally enjoyable and truly unforgettable experience in Madagascar, mostly as a result of finding 261EXP to organize the trip for me. I highly recommend this company to arrange a tour for you!

Carol from California · United States

Made traveling a beautiful but complicated country so easy!

I saw the ancient Baobab trees and got up close to tons of lemurs, chameleons and other wildlife and got to see both sides of the ocean. Overall was an amazing experience! Christina organized all my guides, resorts and hotels seamlessly from the second I stepped out of the airport to when I return to leave and customized my trip to what I wanted to see most. All of her tour guides spoke perfect English and were fun and knowledgeable about the area wildlife and culture. I'm glad I chose 261-Exp as Madagascar is an amazing country to visit but can be really difficult to navigate. I think I would have made a lot of mistakes if I tried to plan this trip myself.

David · United States

very efficient and able to organize fantastic tours across different areas of Madagascar

We had a terrific tour with 2 4WD cars and excellent drivers who took us from Tana to Antsirabe to the Tsiribihina river, where we left for three days in a boat and slept for two nights in tents on beaches along the river. The two guides from 261 Exp stayed with us on the boat. We got in touch with people from the villages and had a great time on the boat with marvellous views, lunches and dinners, as well as fire on the beach and music. Then we went to Bekopaka and stayed there for three days to visit the Tsingy of Bemaraha, with walks in the big and small tsingy, caves, pirogue on the river. After one night in Morondava where we arrived just after admiring the avenue of bobabs at sunset, we drove back to Antsirabe. We had a problem with one of the cars, but our guide made it possible to let us continue the trip. The day after we reached Ranomafana and visited the rainforest. For every visit, we had a local guide. The next day we went to Ambalavao after a quick visit to Fianarantsoa, and then we went to the Andringita national park where we had a great walk and marvellous views of the mountains as well as great time with the people from the village. The next stop was Ranohira and the Isalo National park, with beautiful walks, rocks, waterfalls and natural pools. Then we finished our tour at the seaside, in Mangily where we did snorkeling in the coral reef and a tour with quads on the beach. Then back to Tana, a brief tour of the old town, and back home. The tour was great, well organized and scheduled but at the same time flexible and matching the needs of the tourists. We enjoyed the company of our guides.

Giovanna · Italy

AMAZING EXPERIENCE

Our trip with 261 exp agency was great! We spent 20 days all around Madagascar. The guide, The driver and The home team have been always very kind, available, satisfying all our needs and solving any kind of issues we had to face during the trip. They have a lot to teach about this amazing country. Any moment was good to learn something new and also to have fun together. We felt part of a family since the first moment but at the same time we took our time to relax and enjoy the beautiful places alone. They can really meet your needs at any time. We strongly recommend. Thanks a lot to 261 exp and of course to Madagascar.

Barbara & Valerio · Italy

Are rates charged per person?

Rates are per person and exclude the international flight from/to your home country.

Which currency is this tour priced in?

This tour is offered in Euros (EUR).

Can children join this tour?

This tour accepts children who are 5 years and older.

Can this tour start on my preferred date?

If availability permits, this tour can start on any day.

Can the itinerary be customized?

You can request minor changes to the accommodations and destinations of this tour.

Where do travelers stay during this tour?

Le Combava Hotel - Mid-range hotel in Antananarivo (City) – Breakfast & Dinner Included. Meals: Breakfast & Dinner Included

Where does this tour start and end?

This tour starts and ends in Antananarivo

Are airport transfers included?

A transfer from and back to the airport is included