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According to Jenman Safaris, more Australians are expressing interest in and heading to Madagascar this year than ever before.

With more than double the enquiries made in January itself on all of 2019, CEO and Madagascar expert, Katja Quasdorf attributes this spike in interest to a few key factors including the country’s extraordinary wildlife and nature, the government’s eco-tourism efforts to restore the country’s deforested areas, and the increase in flight connections.

“The world’s oldest island, Madagascar may be well known as the land of the lemurs, but it’s also home to hundreds of species of other mammals, birds, reptiles and insects; and more than 15,000 species of mostly endemic plants,” says Quasdorf.

“In addition to the wildlife and spectacular landscape – made even more special by the majestic baobab trees – the Malagasy people and their culture also add to the richness,” she adds. “The 20 ethnic groups in Madagascar give rise to the unique Malagasy culture, where African, Asian, Indian and Arab roots are quite prominent.

“And with more seat capacity, we are enjoying the fact that more travellers are now choosing Madagascar as their end or main holiday destination instead of hopping over from the continent for just a brief few days,” she continues. “This is encouraging because now visitors can appreciate and understand the country better.”

Two of Jenman’s most popular Madagascar tours include the 12-day 1000 views of Madagascar small group tour starting at US$2,216 and the 10-day Beach and Lemur Explorer starting at US$3,577. For a longer and more bespoke option that includes helicopter rides and luxury catamaran cruises, the 9-day Madagascar in Style starting at US$22,416 is another popular option.

Airlink and Air Mauritius offer daily flights to Antananarivo from Johannesburg and Mauritius respectively, while Kenya Airways offers two flights daily from Nairobi. Other flight connections can be found here.

Madagascar is celebrating 60 years of independence this year; and as of January, the government has kicked off their reforesting efforts, aiming to plant 60 million trees by April.