Madagascar: Discover a Lost World

The order of events and sightseeing may vary according to local conditions or for operational purposes. The schedules of the domestic airlines in country are subject to frequent changes. For this reason, we have indicated approximate times only. Your local guide will inform you of any schedule changes as they are informed of them. The driving times listed are point to point and do not include the duration of excursions or stops en route. Some road construction and/or weather conditions may lengthen the driving times. Our intention is to adhere to the day-to-day itinerary as printed; however, order of events and sightseeing may vary according to local conditions.

If booking more than 12 weeks before departure a deposit of €342.20pp will need to be paid at the time of booking with the full amount payable at 12 weeks prior to departure. The deposit applies to adults and children. If you are within 12 weeks of travel then the full balance of the holiday will be payable.

A visa is required for your trip to Madagascar. You may get your visa when you arrive in the country. The cost of the visa is as follows; €10 for a stay of 15 days or less, €35 for a stay of between 15 days and 30 days. You must pay for your visa in cash at a dedicated visa counter at Antananarivo airport. You only need your passport and the validity must be more than 6 months from the end of your trip to Madagascar. Further advice should be sought from the applicable tourist authority. We strongly advise you to check your destinations' Tourist Board or Embassy for the most up-to-date guidelines regarding passport validity.

Please note that final flight details will be confirmed on your e-ticket and final documentation which will be sent to you approximately 21 days before departure. Check in baggage is included with your flight. Weight restrictions will be finalized on your final documentation. Should you wish to take additional luggage you will need to pay extra at check-in. Check-in should be at least 3 hours before departure. If you wish to arrange Airport car parking or accommodation at preferential rates, we recommend you book this in advance with Holiday Extras on 0871 360 2000, quoting HX313.

IMPORTANT: A printed E-ticket is no longer required at check-in, all you need to do is present your passport to the staff at the desk and your boarding pass will be given to you. Please note that you should carry your invoice with flight details on it as you will need to show this at the airport.

We strongly recommend that you and all members of your party are suitably insured as soon as you book your holiday. It is a condition of booking that you must have suitable travel insurance. It is important that you purchase travel insurance that suitably covers your participation in whatever activities you may undertake at the time that you make your booking. To assist you with this, we have arranged travel insurance in partnership with Holiday Extras. To arrange your travel insurance with Holiday Extras, please call 0800 781 4237 and quote 'WK830' for preferential rates. Please ensure you provide us with the name of your insurer, policy number and their 24-hour emergency contact number as soon as possible. Mercury Holidays will not be liable for any costs incurred by you due to your failure to take out suitable travel insurance from the date of booking.

It is your responsibility to check any health and vaccination requirements applicable to your booked arrangements. We can only provide general information about this. Health and hygiene facilities and disease risks vary from country to country. You should take health advice about your own needs as early as possible and in good time before your departure. Sources of information include; www.fco.gov.uk, www.travelhealthpro.org.uk, www.hpa.org.uk, your General Practitioner, or a specialist clinic.

No vaccination is required to enter Madagascar. However, it is recommended that you keep up to date with the usual vaccinations: yellow fever, DT Polio, hepatitis A (and B), and typhoid. Malaria: It is strongly recommended to take a preventive treatment. In any case, the best prevention remains protection against bites: use long and loose clothing at the end of the day, apply repellent, and sleep under a mosquito net.

IMPORTANT: Your daily medication must remain in your possession, within easy reach, especially on the plane. Do not put your daily medication in your hold luggage, have them with you in the cabin in case your luggage is lost or delayed.

Digestive disorders are the most common health problems encountered. They are most often caused by changes in diet and, in the bush, by the poor quality of running water. To avoid them, eat well-cooked food, wash and peel fruit and vegetables well, and use bottled water with a cap, possibly even for brushing your teeth. Medical facilities are of fairly good quality in the main cities. You will find well-stocked pharmacies, as well as doctors and hospitals. Outside the cities, medical facilities are basic.

We have a first-aid pharmacy in the vehicles, but it is essential that you have your own travel pharmacy with the medicines you consider useful.

This tour is accessible to most people with a good level of fitness and normal mobility. It involves climbing of steep stairs and getting on and off coaches. This tour is not suitable for anyone with walking difficulties. All our tours feature a 'Tour Pace' to help find the right holiday for you. To travel on any of our tours requires unaided mobility and the ability to stroll around the sights, climb stairs and get on and off coaches and boats. The tour pace for Madagascar: Discover a Lost World is challenging. A higher level of fitness as required as you may be on your feet for most of the day though this will be interspersed with regular breaks and vary from day to day. You will be walking around the sights, getting on and off coaches, trains and boats and climbing steps which may be irregular. There may be some time spend at high altitude. You will stay in variety of hotels, possibly including overnight trains, and accommodation standards may not match those you are used to at home. Our guides will always endeavour to provide the highest level of service and assistance; however, they cannot be expected to cater for customers who are unfit to complete the itinerary.

The currency in Madagascar is the Ariary. We recommend that you exchange your currency (Euros, Dollars) upon your arrival at the airport. Approved exchange offices are at your disposal. Cash machines will also be available in medium and large towns. Do be aware that it is illegal to exchange money at the markets. Credit Cards are not widely accepted in Madagascar.

As normal practice you may be asked for your credit card details on check-in at the hotel in order to cover any extras incurred during your stay. If you do not have a credit card, you may be asked for a cash deposit. MasterCard and Visa are widely accepted in hotels as well as American Express.

You will need to take money with you to cover any personal purchases such as souvenirs, laundry, any meals not included in the itinerary as well as drinks and any additional snacks. Approximately £300 per person will be sufficient for the duration of the tour. It is a good idea to try and maintain a supply of small notes and change in the local currency for tipping or small purchases. Tipping is approx. €40 per person and your guide will collect it at the start for your convenience to be distributed amongst restaurant staff, porters, local guides etc... as the trip progresses. Tips can be paid in Euros or the local currency.

The minimum number of travellers in your group will be 8, and the maximum will be 16. If in the unlikely event there are less than 8 people booked on your tour date, we will endeavour to reduce any disruption to your holiday and try to operate your tour with lower passenger numbers. If we are not able to operate your departure date, then you may be asked to change to a different date and a full refund will be made available to you should this alternative not be suitable.

This is a fully escorted tour meaning that you will be met and accompanied by a local guide. He will be available to the group during all scheduled sightseeing. Other native guides will also be available to facilitate the visit of national parks and reserves.

Private Tour: If you have booked a private tour then you will be accompanied by a Driver Guide or a Driver and Local Guides. These will be available to you during all scheduled sightseeing. Private Tours can depart on any day of the week depending on flight and train schedules and the opening days of the attractions. They will follow the itinerary as described in the brochure unless you have been advised otherwise and you will still have all of the same meals, sightseeing and local excursions included.

Your accommodation is selected for convenience, location, comfort or character, and can range from business hotels to leisure hotels. Hotel accommodation is generally rated as local three to four-star standard, but please note there is no international classification system for hotels, and differences in facilities and quality do exist compared to what you might expect in the UK. All group tours hotels have private bathroom facilities, where needed. Rest assured that all accommodation used by Mercury Holidays is regularly inspected by our staff and partners to ensure that standards meet your needs.

Breakfast is always western style and served in the hotel each morning. Dinner during your tour (when included) will be taken in local restaurants or at the hotel. A variety of restaurants are visited giving you the chance to experience a range of dishes and flavours.

On your arrival in Antananarivo you will be met by a representative from our local agent, Sense of Oceans, holding a sign displaying: “Mercury Holidays”. The Mercury Holidays/Sense of Oceans representative will show you to your transfer vehicle. Your national guide will be on hand 24 hours a day should you have any queries.

If you need to contact your representative during your stay the details are:

Sense of Oceans: Telephone Number 00261 38 49 356 04 E-mail danielle@senseofoceans.com

Emergency contact information: Please find below the emergency contact details for Sense of Oceans Contact in Antananarivo Telephone Number 24 hr: 00261 34 49 356 08 E-mail: madagascar@senseofoceans.com