Iharana Bush Camp

a wonderful range of outdoor activities

Iharana Bush Camp is located in the Ankarana area of northern Madagascar.

Set about 8 km to the west of the RN7 highway in a rural area to the southwest of the Ankarana Massif, the camp is certainly one of the better properties in Madagascar.

It’s a real crossover between the local Malagasy style and the more familiar feel of a safari lodge, simple and outdoorsy, but also stylish, relaxed and in touch with its surroundings.

The lodge is centred on a pleasant open-sided main building with lounge and dining areas, leading out terraces above the lake, with a nice organically-shaped swimming pool.

The camp is usually closed mid-December to mid-March.

Rooms

Guest accommodation at Iharana Bush Camp is in a total of 18 bungalows, the best of which are the four that have private terraces and views over the lake. The remaining rooms do not have terraces and have views over the gardens.

All rooms all have a bathroom on the ground floor and a simple bedroom on the first floor. There are no fans or air-conditioning, but there is usually a reliable breeze Apr-Nov.

There is solar power and hot water in the rooms, but no socket outlets, so guests need to charge their camera equipment and other devices in the main building.

Please note that, due to the open nature of the buildings, small animals such as frogs do occasionally enter the buildings. Nothing to be worried about, so long as you are okay with that.

Activities

Iharana Bush Camp provides access to the following activities …

• Iharana tsingy hike
• Ankarana tsingy hike
• Amnatomiloloha hike
• Via ferrata
• Mandresy Cave
• Boating on the lake
• Mountain-biking
• Village visits
• Night walking safari

The Ankarana area is reasonably close to the popular beaches of Nosy Be, so tends to feature quite frequently in trips, especially as a stop on a private-guided overland safari to Diego Suarez.

The usual stay duration is 2-3 nights.

Seasonality

The best time of year to visit the Anakarana area is generally considered to be during the May-Oct cool dry season.

The May-Oct period represents a cool dry winter season, when daytime temperatures may reach 22C/72F, whilst nighttime temperatures manage to drop to around 14C/57F. The relatively infrequent rainfall tends to come in the form of occasional showers, with the prevailing conditions being hot and sunny.

The Nov-Apr period represents a warm wet summer season, when daytime temperatures may reach 28C/82F, whilst nighttime temperatures struggle to get below 20C/68F, which can be quite uncomfortable in the potentially very high humidities. Rainfall can be extremely heavy and persistent, possibly exceeding 300mm/12″ per month during Jan-Feb.

Getting there

The Ankarana area is usually accessed by road, usually as a stop on the overland journey from Diego Suarez to Nosy Be.

This type of trip typically starts by flying from the capital Antananarivo to Diego Suarez, where you are met by a guide for the 1-2 hour drive to Montagne d’Ambre. After staying here, the road journey continues south to the Ankarana for another 2-3 nights, then on down to the lodges of the Nosy Be area, either along the mainland coast or by motorboat out to the islands. After staying out there for maybe 4-5 nights, you can either fly back to Antananarivo or depart on international flights from Nosy Be.

Where to stay

There’s essentially two choices of accommodation in this area …
If you are on a very fast paced trip and only have one or maybe two nights in this area, then it’s probably best to stay on the eastern side of the tsingy, which provides easy access to the main park gate. Ankarana Lodge would be the obvious choice.

However if you travelling at a more relaxed pace and have three or more nights to spend here, then it is usually best to combine one night at Ankarana Lodge with two or more nights at the excellent Iharana Bush Lodge, which is more remotely located to the southwest and offers a much wider range of activities, notably including a via ferrata and caving.

accessible by road from Nosy Be