Relais de la Reine Lodge, Madagascar

I have decided to do posts on the resorts we visited in Madagascar as part of my tour, not because I have any financial interest in the properties, but because they were uniformly some of the most beautiful places I have ever been and because each of them reflects the surrounding area with unique gardens and plants. I actually found the sumptuous lodgings for tourists somewhat incongruous with the overall poverty of rural Madagascar although this is often the case in other parts of the world. Suffice it to say that there are more than a few wonderful “destination resorts” located around Madagascar that international travelers will find safe and more than comfortable. Relais de la Reine is one of three French-owned hotels situated in private grounds close to Isalo National Park. Isalo National Park is a National Park in the Ihorombe Region of Madagascar. The park is known for its wide variety of terrain, including sandstone formations, deep canyons, a palm-lined oases, and grassland. The closest town is Ranohira, and the closest cities are Toliara and Ihosy. A total of 340 animal species are known to inhabit the area, including 82 species of birds, 33 species of reptiles, 15 species of frogs and 14 species of mammals. We were particularly interested in the Ring-Tailed Lemur (which we saw on the way at Anja Community Reserve), the Red-Fronted Brown Lemur and of course, Verreaux’s Sifaka (Propithecus verreauxi) in Zombitse-Vohibasia National Park (56 miles (90 km) to the west of Isalo National Forest).
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