Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(mains from Ar6000; breakfast, lunch & dinner) Just a tad smarter than its rivals, with
mirrored windows concealing the restaurant, pizzeria, patisserie and
salon de thé
.
INFORMATION
The
Regional Tourism Office
( 033 11 413 21) is located above the Bezanozano res-
taurant and covers Moramanga, the Andasibe Parks, and Lac Alaotra.
GETTING THERE & AWAY
Taxi-Brousse
Taxis-brousses leave regularly from Antananarivo's eastern taxi-brousse station for
Moramanga (Ar5000, 2¾ hours).
There are direct taxi-brousse connections from Moramanga to Andasibe (Ar2000, 1½
hours) every few hours. To get to Tamatave (Ar15,000, five to seven hours), you may need
to wait until a vehicle coming from Antananarivo arrives with space.
Train
A slow passenger train departs Moramanga every Monday at 7am, arriving at Tamatave
at 5pm. It returns Tuesday at 8.20am, arriving at Moramanga at 6.55pm. It also departs
Moramanga every Thursday at 3pm, but only goes as far as Ambila-Lemaitso, arriving at
10.30pm. It returns Friday at 8am, arriving in Moramanga at 4pm.
It is always wise to check the schedule with
Madarail
(
www.madarail.mg
)
ahead of time,
either through your hotel, at the station (best), or online. Oddly, either route is the same
price (Ar10,000).
LAC ALAOTRA & AROUND
The trip from Antananarivo via Mora-manga to Lac Alaotra, Madagascar's
largest body of fresh water, has historically been of interest to Malagasy and
other visitors. However, major environmental damage around the lake, difficult
access, negative feedback on the Route des Contrabandiers hiking trail from Lac
Alaotra to the East Coast, and the underdevelopment of the nearby Parc Nation-
al de Zahamena, reduce the attractiveness of this area for most visitors.
