Like many others dreaming about a trip to the Great Red Island, you might wonder when is the best time to visit …
Madagascar’s Climate
Madagascar’s climate is one of the best things about the island. That’s simply because there’s much more than just one. In fact, traveling to Madagascar will enable you to experience a new climate every other day, if you plan your trip well.
Overall Madagascar’s climate is warm throughout the year. In most places it’s tropical. But you have mountain ranges through the middle of Madagascar, on which you find a much cooler climate – in July and August Antananarivo can go as low as 5 degrees Celsius. That’s almost Danish conditions!
Most regions of Madagascar have a rainy season and a dry season. But with a few exceptions. On the east coast, there’s rain all year. In the southwest almost no rain anytime a year.
With Madagascar’s climate, its nature changes. Now, Madagascar is home to more than 11.000 endemic species. That’s 90% of the species found on the island. And those species thrive in a particular climate. That means you’ll experience completely unique ecosystems every time you travel from one area to another. It’s quite incredible!
And it’s actually not just limited to when you travel great distances (Madagascar is large – almost equal to the size of France!) but also occurs in specific places. Take Isalo National Park for example.
Isalo National Park is located in a dry climate. It consists of large stone formations created by erosion through thousands of years. When hiking those formations, you experience a very specific set of flora. All adapted to a gold stone environment. Funny-looking succulents and a few lonely trees. But when descending between cliff walls, you’ll stumble upon rainforest-like canyons with white sand, coconut trees, and luscious greens hanging everywhere.
Such is Madagascar’s climate a constant surprise. Enjoy!