Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Boat
For the ultimate freedom to explore Nosy Be's shores and the surrounding islands, you can
charter one of the speedboats doing the Hell-Ville- Ankify transfer for around Ar200,000
a day.
Car & Motorcycle
The best way to get around Nosy Be is by motorcycle (helmets are compulsory): roads are
good, traffic is light, distances are short and the weather is lovely - perfect conditions to
ditch the car, which rules on the mainland. If you'd rather have a vehicle, however, don't
worry about a 4WD: a sedan (saloon) car is perfectly adequate.
Moto Mada
( 032 02 680 25; Ambatoloaka; 7.30am-6pm) Rents Chinese motor-
bikes in very good condition (Ar20,000). They can deliver and pick up the motorbike from
your hotel for another Ar5000.
Location Jeunesse
( 032 59 055 26; Ambatoloaka;
7am-6pm) Rents out motorbikes
(Ar20,000) and mountain bikes (Ar15,000).
Nosy Easy Rent
( 0331161100;
www.nosyeasyrent.com
;
Ambonara, Hell-Ville) Rents
Dacia Logan/Mitsubishi pick-ups for €65/90 per day, with a 150km mileage. Find it as you
exit Hell-Ville in the direction of Ambatoloaka, on your left hand side, about 300m after
the
centrale électrique
(power station).
Taxi
Collective taxis (Ar2000) travel between Hell-Ville and Ambatoloaka (20 minutes) and
between Hell-Ville and Dzamandzar (25 minutes) from 6am until 7pm. Pick them up near
the market in Hell-Ville, and flag them on the main road of Ambatoloaka as they cruise
(and beep) for customers.
A chartered taxi between Hell-Ville and Ambatoloaka costs Ar10,000, between Hell-Ville
and Andilana Ar50,000. From Hell-Ville's centre to the jetty, it is Ar2000 to Ar3000.
Hell-Ville (Andoany)
POP 22,000
Despite the off-putting moniker (named for Admiral de Hell, a French governor of
Réunion), Nosy Be's main town is anything but hellish. Rather, it's an upbeat, if rather
dishevelled, place where frangipani and bougainvillea frame crumbling ruins of old colo-
nial buildings, sidewalk cafes bustle with tourists and expats sip strong espresso.
THE DONIA
Every year around Pentecost (late May or early June), Nosy Be holds a week-
long music festival known as the
Donia
(
www.festival-donia.com
)
. Groups
