Ranomafana National Park

Ranomafana National Park is located close to RN7 in Fianarantsoa Province of Madagascar. It is holds 41,600 hectares (161 square miles) of rain forest that is home to several lemur species, is accessible by paved road, and contains a variety of lodging options, making it a popular destination for visitors to Madagascar. It's one of the six national parks that make up the UNESCO World Heritage Site Rainforests of the Atsinanana.

Get in
The only way to get to Ranomafana National Park is by road. The entrance is right next to the national road RN25, it is impossible to miss it. It is possible to take a taxi-brousse directly from Antananarivo (gare routière de Fasan’karana), from Fianarantsoa (2 hours) or from Manakara. From the intersection with RN7, RN25 is in a very good state as of November 2017 and a normal passenger vehicle is sufficient.

There is no transportation between the National Park entrance and the village where most accommodation is located. You have to rely on empty seats in taxi-brousse passing by; the distance between National Park and village is a bit too long to be walked comfortably (given the temperatures and the fact that you have been walking all day in the park). If you want to be flexible, consider chartering a car for your trip. Doing so for a two-day (one night) trip in Fianarantsoa will cost around €100 for car, petrol, driver and driver's expenses.

Fees and permits
As of November 2017, for each adult foreign visitor, an entrance fee of 55,000 Ar per day has to be paid, children are 25,000 Ar. On top, a "community charge" of 2,000 Ar per day per person is due in a booth near the park's checkpoint. The park offers a menu of guided walks to choose from. The fee for a guide for these walks has to be paid on top of the entrance fee and are between 80,000 Ar and 120,000 Ar, depending on the length of the walk. Payment in Ariary cash only.

It is not possible to go into the forest without a guide. Repeatedly, foreigners lost their way in the jungle and had to be searched for. Moreover, it does not make sense as you will not see any animals without a guide knowing where and how to spot them. Apart from your guide, there are animal spotters in the park who inform your guide by mobile phone about where the animals are.

Get around
Unless you have your own car, you can rely on taxi-brousse passing by. While possible, this implies that you lose time, in particular in the morning, when the national park employees use the taxi-brousse to go to work.

Do
Take a guide for guided walks in the

Buy
Souvenirs are sold in the reception booth at the national park. Apart from this, there is nothing special you might want to buy.

There is no big shop in Ranomafana, if you need anything special (food, medication, electronics), then ensure you bring it with you.

Don't expect any working ATM. Bring enough Ariary cash for all your expenses.

Drink
You can have a drink in the restaurant of your accommodation. Apart from that, you will find Ranomafana's night life disappointing.

Sleep
There seems to be no shortage of accommodation in Ranomafana village, you will find plenty of options when driving along RN25. If you have enough time, you can choose something you like after arrival.

Camping
There is a covered camping site right next to the park's office. However, as of November 2017, the facilities (toilet, shower) are in extremely bad condition. Given the number of inexpensive options for sleeping in Ranomafana village, camping should be the absolute emergency solution.

You can, however, arrange an overnight stay inside the National Park. This has the advantage that you are already in the jungle at daybreak when it's best to observe animals. Arrange with the national park's administration before your arrival; also in this case, a guide will look after you all the time.

Stay safe

 * Protect yourself against insect (especially mosquito) bites
 * Wear proper shoes
 * Watch out what you touch in the jungle, don't hold yourself on spiny branches

Go next
Most vehicles travelling along the RN25 go to either Fianarantsoa or Manakara, which makes these two cities the natural next stop of your trip if you rely on taxi-brosse.

You can also consider visiting the small town of Sahambavy with its tea plantation and botanical-garden like Lac Hotel. For this purpose, take a car heading towards Fianarantsoa, alight in Ambalakely, from where taxi-brousse go to Sahambavy on a very bad road.