Restricted areas
Madagascar is safe to explore independently, and doing so is a lot of fun. But if you have never been to Madagascar before, planning your route and estimating your travel time based on Google Maps only is not a wise thing to do. Remember, Madagascar is not the kind of travel destination where you can take a shortcut or follow some minor back road.
Our solution? Start planning with one of our suggested Madagascar itineraries and check out our road map below. We have marked the roads accessible by car and the off-limit areas for self-drive rentals.
Roads allowed for self-drive rentals
The black lines on the map below are allowed with all our rental vehicles and are accessible year-round.
The pink line on the map below is fine to travel with all our rental vehicles. This Northern Madagascar route is accessible from approximately June until mid-December.
The orange lines (the road to Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park and the West Coast) are only accessible with our Navara from May to mid-November.
The blue line covers the route from/to Belo sur Mer. It is accessible from May to mid-November with the Navara and only allowed when you are accompanied by a driver-guide or pisteur. You have to cross a salt plain to reach Belo sur Mer. The surface is dried out, but beneath, it's like quicksand, so you quickly get stuck if you don't know which track to follow. When travelling the West Coast without a pisteur or driver, you must skip a visit to Belo sur Mer. Our vehicles have car trackers to monitor if a hirer breaches the contract and, therefore, would be fully liable for any costs and loss of security bond.
The rest of the country is off-limits for self-drive hirers. If you want to explore other areas of Madagascar not included in our suggested itineraries, such as the Makay, the knowledge of our local drivers is necessary. Send us an email, and we'll be happy to think along.
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