Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The international dialling code for Madagascar is +261. When calling a
landline,
you
must also add 20. Thus to phone Air Madagascar (
22 510 00
) from abroad, you would
dial +261 20 22 510 00. To call a
mobilenumber
from abroad, simply replace the initial 0
with +261.
WhenmakinganinternationalcalloutofMadagascar,theinternationalprefix(represen-
ted by +) is 00, as in most other countries.
Mobile phones
Mobiles/cellphones are very popular in Madagascar. Nowadays network
coverage is good, reaching almost everywhere that most tourists are likely to go. You can
buy a SIM card at the airport (or in any town) for next to nothing and call rates are reas-
onable too, so if you're going to be in Madagascar for more than a week or so it would
probably be worth getting one (especially considering that making/receiving calls using a
foreign mobile in Madagascar is typically many times more expensive).
There are three operators:
Orange
(numbers starting with 032),
Zain
(formerly Mada-
com/Celtel,033)and
Telma
(034).Callstophoneswiththesameoperatoraremuchcheap-
er than to a different network, so if you envisage mainly communicating with one or two
specific people then pick the same network as them. For general use, I recommend Orange
as this is the most commonly encountered, and they also have some good deals for cheap
international calls to the USA and Canada.
Top-up cards are available in shops everywhere. Values range from 1,000Ar to
100,000Ar (but you will have to go to an Orange/Zain/Telma shop for recharge cards over
20,000Ar).
Emergency numbers
The emergency telephone number for
police
is 17 or 117. For
the
fire service,
the emergency number is 18 or 118. There is no general emergency
number for medical assistance, but you will find numbers for local hospitals and medical
services throughout this guide.
POST
Themailserviceisunpredictable:moreoftenthannotitisquiteefficient,with
letterstakingabouttwoweekstoreachEuropeandalittlelongertoNorthAmerica.Stamps
are quite expensive. There are post offices (
www.paositra.mg
)
even in small towns, with
some 220 branches around the country.
Courier services
Colis Express (
www.colis-express.net
) has some 70 branches around
Madagascar and is an efficient way of sending domestic parcels. Internationally they hook
up with DHL, which also has its own offices in major towns, and there is a FedEx office in
Tana (see
Click Here
).
