Ampefy is a picturesque, peaceful village located at an altitude of 1200 meters in the highlands of central Madagascar. Due to its cool climate, scenic landscapes, and its vicinity to Antananarivo, it is a favorite holiday destination for locals and foreigners alike. Following a 16-day road trip in southern Madagascar, we too chose Ampefy as a calm place to settle in and rest for 11 days during the Christmas period of 2023. Here I share my experiences and a mini travel guide of the area.
How to get to Ampefy
For getting to Ampefy from Antananarivo without your own vehicle, you can catch a direct bus (taxi brousse) from Anosizato Andrefano Bus Terminal 110, situated on the southwestern outskirts of the city (coordinates: -18.9405, 47.4916). The ticket should cost 10-15,000 ariary and the trip should last 4-5 hours (significantly less if you catch one of the first buses at dawn before the traffic kicks in). For a comfortable trip, you may also arrange a private transfer here.
In our case, coming from the south in our own rented car, we took the route N43 which connects Ampefy directly to Antsirabe. A brand new road seemingly, it was virtually pothole-less and even had lane lines. It was a lovely, smooth trip in the mellow afternoon sunshine. The views of the pine-dotted, sleek green hills and the scattered clay villages hemmed in rice fields under the rainbowed post-rain sky were a sheer pleasure to behold. We would have made it in daylight, but because our car’s brake pads failed and delayed us, it was pitch dark when we arrived in Ampefy and began looking for a place to sleep.
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Where to stay in Ampefy
Owing to its popularity, Ampefy offers a great range of accommodation options for all budgets and tastes. There are many more hotels and guest houses besides the ones you can find online. Our first goal was a hotel contradictorily called Tanya Tours Ampefy; a nice quiet place overlooking the lake. But it turned out to be fully booked for Christmas.
We ended up checking into Hotel Kavitaha. That was quite cute, too. We got a spacious room with a porch right in front of the pool. At first we thought about settling there during our entire stay but soon changed our minds. The main issues were that the WiFi worked poorly and only in the (too pricey) restaurant and that there was only one socket in the room (while there were two bibles—but of course, who needs to charge their phones when they can read the gospels instead?).
So we went out first thing in the morning to look for a better place. After checking out pretty much everything, we opted for Fitahiana Lodge (not the one by the bridge, but the one east out of the village of the same owner). It was located a bit off the main road to be quiet, had some neat bungalows and a swimming pool engulfed in green, the WiFi worked decently all around the property, the food was good and reasonably priced, and the staff were very friendly and helpful. Quite an ideal stay.
You can explore more accommodation options on the map below.
Getting cash in Ampefy
Having sorted out accommodation, our next mission was to get hold of some cash. The only ATM that is located anywhere closer to Ampefy than Antananarivo is at Acces Banque in the town of Analavory 10 km north. We took advantage of the last hours of our possessing the car to drive there in about 20 minutes. Otherwise, it’d have been quite a trip by taxi brousse or tuk tuk. Waiting out a considerable queue, we managed to make a few consecutive withdrawals of 200,000 max before the ATM stopped working altogether. It’s not reliable. Better do yourself the favor and bring enough cash from the capital.
Where to eat and drink in Ampefy
There are a few nice places to have a drink along Ampefy’s main road. La Terrassse Auberge is the most modern one that attracts the most foreigners. Naturally, it’s also a bit spendier. The locals’ favorite is a place located at the junction of the main road with the road going up along the lake. That’s where the merry Malagasy tunes are pumped and the village’s drunks hang out. Our fave became the bar located at the main road’s curve beside the market. It’s cheap and strategically situated for the best people-watching.
Besides all the hotels that operate their own kitchens, there are many restaurants all along the village’s main road. Three good and cheap ones we went to more than once are the two located between the junction of the drunks’ bar and Hotel Belle Vue and the one with the green walls opposite La Terrasse Auberge. The latter doesn’t look like a restaurant from the outside, but the people inside are eager to prepare some nice meals if you walk in and ask for them. A Western-style bakery at Hotel Eucalyptus, some 3 km north out of the village, is also worth noting. Although frankly, I didn’t find the quality of the products to live up to their overblown prices. Extremely inexpensive and tasty street food to gobble down on foot is of course ubiquitous, the best is to be found around the market.
What to see and do in Ampefy
We spent our days in Ampefy leisurely; working a bit at home and chilling by the pool (that was before Christmas brought a tide of vacationing families together with their droves of rowdy children). I went for runs every dawn, exploring a new direction every time. And then we went out for strolls, drinks, and food every evening.
The village of Ampefy itself is rather tiny and doesn’t have much of interest to see, save its small market and lake views. It’s just nice to walk to the surrounding hamlets and interact with their disbelieving inhabitants and congregations of laughing children who will come running after you. But to make the most out of your sojourn you’d need a vehicle to explore the stunning surroundings. We did that on a full day out exploring on Christmas day.
Organized tours and cars for rental are available in the village. For maximal flexibility, we preferred to rent an enduro bike. Our host arranged one for us for 80,000. Of what I made out, the dude who owned it rented it on occasion, as a side hustle. I assume that practically every owner of any vehicle around would be willing to rent for the appropriate gain.
We had agreed to get the bike delivered to our place at 6 am. He showed up late, just before 8. “Good party last night?” I asked him. “No, the party is tonight,” he answered. “I was late because there was a problem with the bike and I had to repair it.” It was old and decrepit but did its job well, taking us places where a 4×4 car or a road bike wouldn’t. We pushed it a bit too hard and ended up breaking its rear suspension, paying 30 euros for it, but anyway, we had a fun excursion. Filling up the tank with two plastic bottles of gasoline sold on the roadside (the closest petrol station is in Analavory), we set off for our first destination…
Ampefy Photo Gallery
View (and if you want use) all my photographs from Ampefy.
Lily Waterfalls
The Lily Waterfalls are undoubtedly the most spectacular sight in the area of Ampefy. The normal route, that cars can tackle, runs along the northern bank of the Lily River. Since we had the means, we took the more direct, sketchier route along the south bank. Marveling at some astonishing views and greeting stunned villagers, it took us about half an hour to make it to the falls.
A dude in a tracksuit with the words guide local on it began jogging excitedly ahead of us as we entered the settlement of Antafofo before the waterfall. There was a whole brigade of them around, waiting for the excessive Christmas-day arrivals. He showed us the way to the designated parking space across a plank bridge where we left the bike. He then followed us as we walked toward the waterfall. He only gave up at about the hundredth restatement of our preference to hike alone.
Another dude with an official-looking lanyard ID stopped us on the way. He requested that we pay an entry fee of 5,000 each plus 1,000 for parking. We should have paid that at a booth along the normal approach, but we had bypassed it coming from the south. Just to make sure that we won’t be asked for it every few steps, I requested that he give us the tickets. He drove back on his bike to bring them over for us.
The first waterfall was located a mere 5-minute hike from the parking. There were some great views of it from the edge of the cliff opposite it. A group of local photographers were taking pictures of tourists upon request, printing them on the spot with a solar-powered computer and printer. We also saw a chameleon and some giant tortoises in the area.
The second waterfall is located about a km west down the river. Its coordinates are: -19.0257, 46.6766. We followed a beautiful trail for some 20 minutes to reach it. At some point en route, a local family was selling mangoes while, at the same time, collecting donations for the supposed repair of a little concrete bridge that looked in perfect order to me. This waterfall was narrower but taller and as impressive as the first one.
Back in the settlement, we had some coffee and mofo baolinas (a doughnut sort of thing) in a shack restaurant and carried on to our second destination.
Lily Waterfalls photo gallery
View (and if you want use) all my photographs from Lily Waterfalls.
Analavory (Amparaky) geysers
These sprouting springs and the bizarre, volcanic landscape that they form account for the second most notable sight in the region. They are located north of Analavory town, near the village of Amparky, a 22-km drive away from Ampefy.
Instead of following the paved road around, via Analavory, we took a more direct and interesting route straight north from the waterfalls. These trails at times were marginally wide for our bike to get through and went past some really remote settlements. At some point, we got stuck in mud and I had to step ankle-deep in it to push the bike out.
After the village of Ambatondranijay, we followed a cobbled road leading directly to the geysers. A long procession of locals were walking down toward them, often holding umbrellas to protect themselves from the harsh sun. At a checkpoint shortly before the site, we paid an entry fee of 5,000 per person and 1,000 for the bike (the same as at the waterfalls). A few guides were assembled and tried to convince us to hire them. One stated that it’s obligatory, but after I countered that in fact it’s not, he didn’t persist any further.
A short drive later, we reached the parking. We immediately got encircled by a crowd of vendors selling souvenirs, comestibles, and a kind of volcanic powder that was somehow meant to be used for massaging. From there, it took a 10-minute hike to reach the site of the geysers.
It was a narrow rocky ledge of an unnaturally red-brownish hue and glossy texture hemmed in green hills. A number of springs gushed out of it and streamed through rivulets and puddles. A couple of those springs, probably over millions of years, had formed towering formations that resembled termite nests. The water dropping from them was ideal for a shower. Its temperature was rather cool despite what I’d expected. There also were some mud pools where visitors bathed and some kiosks where they rested. Several locals hung around and offered to massage anyone who’d pay them a few pennies.
Back at the parking, we had a fruit-flavored yogurt and continued our trip.
Analavory Geysers Photo Gallery
View (and if you want use) all my photographs from Analavory Geysers.
Ilot de la Saint Vierge and La Plage d’ Ampefy
This is one of the best viewpoints of Lake Itasy where we chose to conclude our trip for sunset. It is situated 8 km of paved drive south of Ampefy. But again, we chose the off-road option. We followed the road past Hotel Kavitaha which eventually led us to the viewpoint over goat trails and through many far-off villages.
The viewpoint is situated atop the hill that forms the promontory east of the village of Ambohimitombo (coordinates: -19.0712, 46.7671). No entry fee applied to visit, save 1,000 for parking. On the hilltop, there was an elevated platform hosting a statue of Mary that must constitute the stuff of miracles for locals. Almost the entirety of the broad volcanic field that the lake fills was visible from there.
At the bay north of the promontory, there is an artificial sandy beach and a lodge/restaurant where we finished our day with a beer in the deck chairs.
Ilot de la Saint Vierge Photo Gallery
View (and if you want use) all my photographs from Ilot de la Saint Vierge.
Hiking Sommet d’ Angoavy
There are endless possibilities for nice hikes all around Ampefy. The best one we did, on the last day of our stay, was the one to Sommet d’ Angoavy. Called Angavo by the locals, this is one of the most prominent hills in the area: the one with the two big antennas that you see right north of the village. Its top can be accessed via numerous trails around its periphery. We went up the west slope and descended over the south one, through the premises of Hotel Eucalyptus that lies on the hill foot. The view from the top was outright gorgeous. The round trip from the center of Ampefy lasted about three hours.
Sommet d’ Angoavy Photo Gallery
View (and if you want use) all my photographs from Sommet d’ Angoavy.
More activities in Ampefy
Some other good options for activities that are offered in Ampefy but we didn’t end up doing were paragliding, horse-riding, and boat tours.
Accommodation and Activities in Madagascar
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