Ile Aux Nattes, Madagascar
If you want the definition of an island Paradise then Ile Aux Nattes (also known as Nosy Nato), is it! It is the most stunning and untouched paradise you will experience and the good thing about it, is that not a lot of people know about it.
Why visit?
Good question. Other than it having the most stunning beach going, the island is pure paradise and if you are wanting to get away from every other human being then this is the place to be. There isn’t a huge amount to do on the island and you can literally walk all around it in a couple of hours but it is gorgeous and there is enough to keep you busy for a few days. I definitely wouldn’t recommend spending your whole two week holiday here but if you are already in Madagascar or are thinking of somewhere to spend a few days at the end of your trip, this little island is perfect.
How do I get there?
Well…the island is stunning but it is quite a mission to get to and unless you do your research a lot of people would have never heard of it before. The main airport to fly into to get to Madagascar is Antananarivo (TNR), however, you wouldn’t want to fly all the way to Madagascar just to visit Ile Aux Nattes. Madagascar in itself is the most wonderful country and deserves at least a good few weeks of your time. There are a few ways to reach this little island paradise and one of them would be to fly from TNR to Ile Saint Marie (SMS) which is a slightly larger island that Ile Aux Nattes is part of- there is usually one flight a day (if Air Madagascar decides to work that day). Another way to get to Ile Saint Marie is to drive up north to Foulpoint from Antananarivo and then get the ferry across which tends to run twice a day if the weather is decent. There are also three flights a week from Le Reunion Islands.
Once you reach Ile Saint Marie, you will then need to make your way right to the south of the island and you can do this by jumping in a tuk tuk (from the airport it’s not far at all, however, it’s a little further from the Ambodifototra ferry port). From the main town of Ambodifototra it is likely to cost around 15,000 Ariary.
Once you reach the bottom of the island you will then need to jump in a local canoe which will either have a very small motor on it, or there will be a guy using a pole to get you to your destination. These boats are super cheap and can range from 2,000 Ariary to 10,000 Ariary and can take you to anywhere on the island.
The water is very shallow and is protected by a reef a little further out so is very easy to make your way around it in one of these little canoes. Once in the canoe, you can literally take a short ride over to the tip of the island and then walk to your hotel depending on where you are staying, or if you are staying at a hotel right on the south coast, which we were, you can get the boat to take you all the way. This then saves you carrying all of your luggage for an hour.
What there is to do?
The main thing to do here is to appreciate the beaches and enjoy the weather! If you are not the type of person that can sit still and sunbathe then there are still activities to keep you busy. The clear blue sea is wonderful for snorkelling and there are some wonderful dive sights in the area for you to enjoy. There isn’t a dive shop on the island, only on Ile Saint Marie, however, the lodges will be able to help arrange this for you.
September is whale watching season and you can arrange whale watching tours from mainland Ile Saint Marie, or your hotel can arrange these tours for you.
The island is very small and there are few different hotels you can go to for lunch. There is the ‘White House’ which is located on the highest point of the island and has stunning 360 degree panoramic views- it is also a hotel which you can book to stay at. If you want to enjoy the panoramic views, you will need to either buy a drink or pay 3,000 Ariary- I vote drink!
There is also the old lighthouse where you can wander up to and enjoy views over the southern part of the island. Please excuse the AWFUL hairstyle….I got my hair braided and it was an instant regret…
At the tip of the island where you will cross over from Ile Saint Marie, is the Lucky Dube Pizza Bar! It is a reggae themed bar and has music blaring from it. You can enjoy pizza, sea food, soft drinks and cocktails! It is a great way to mix with the locals and other tourists in the area.
Getting around the island
As I mentioned above, if you are arriving or departing, it is definitely recommended to take one of their canoes, however, if you are just wanting to explore the island then it is best by foot. There are some little walking trails around the island that all connect together and run through some villages and this is a great way to get an insight to local culture.
There are no cars on the island, only a few beaten up motor bikes so walking is your best option. From the south to the north it will probably take you around an hour and if you walk around the whole island it will probably take you a couple of hours. The island has beautiful white beaches but the middle of the island is covered in lush green forests so there is plenty of shade to keep you protected.
Keep an eye out for the lemurs as there are some black and white ruffed ones hanging around.
Where I Stayed
I stayed at a beautiful little lodge called Les Lemuriens on the south coast of the island! There is not another lodge in sight and if you wish to go anywhere else it is around a 20 minute walk to the next lodge. There is a little village around a five minute walk away, and because of this you often see a few locals wandering around.
All of the rooms are named after different species of lemur and we were in the Sifaka Room. There are different standard of rooms from the simple, the standard, the comfort and the family room, but all are beautiful and have thatched roofs.
The main area is beautiful and has some lounge areas for you to relax in. There is also a spa treatment room where you can get a number of different treatments.
The hotel offers a few activities and these can all be booked on arrival at the lodge. You can take part in Whale watching, scuba diving and tours around the island. They also have kayaks which you can use to go and explore the island.
The food here is quite tasty but VERY expensive. Having just spent four weeks in Madagascar and paying very cheap prices for food, coming here was a shock. The food was very overpriced and we were paying around 25,000 Ariary for the main course. Now, that only works out at around £5.50, however, this usually paid for both myself and my boyfriend to have a three course meal on the mainland. Most of the time the menu was the same for lunch and dinner and there were usually only a few options to choose from! The annoying thing about this hotel is that they do not take card and there is no cash machine on Ile Aux Nattes. My boyfriend and I thought we were well prepared but we ended up having to make a couple more trips back to Ile Saint Marie to visit the cash machine.
Why not eat somewhere else I hear you ask? That would have been a great option if we were not in the middle of nowhere! It got dark pretty early and for us to try and get ourselves around the island in the dark on tiny little paths would have been impossible. We loved our little lodge but we did think that choosing a hotel nearer to the north of the island would have been more cost-effective in regards to meals. With that being said, we did wander around in the day and most of the hotels were charging the same sort of prices.
One evening my boyfriend asked the hotel if there was going to be lobster on the menu- for some reason he got a huge obsession with eating lobster. The answer to that question was no, but they said that they would go and fish for one. An hour later they came back with a huge lobster one of the fishermen found and asked us if it was ok! My boyfriend was over the moon and they said they would prepare it for the next night’s dinner. It was delicious!
The staff at the hotel were great and made sure our stay was memorable!
My thoughts
This island is an absolute paradise and is perfect for people wanting to get away from the busy world for a few days. There is very limited wifi or connections to the outside world and very few other people around. It is an ideal place for a digital detox and a way to build your connection with the earth. I would go back here in a heartbeat!
