Madagaskar

The best thing about Île Sainte Marie is that it contains all the ingredients for a great holiday and great travel. This is a very long (57km), thin, lush and relatively flat tropical island surrounded by beaches and reef and spotted with thatched villages. The port of Ambodifotatra, a quarter of the way up the western coast, is the only sizeable town. South of here, the shore is lined with a great variety of hotels and resorts, which don't overpower the setting, culminating in the small island of Île aux Nattes, a postcard tropical paradise where you can easily imagine pirates coming ashore with treasure chests in tow. In contrast, the upper half of the island is quite wild, and its great length means that there is plenty of room for exploration.

Det finns gott om museer i Prag, en stad där historien känns levande. Det här är fyra favoriter.

Fort Dauphin (Taolagnaro) could be one of Madagascar's premier resort towns if it weren't so far from everywhere else. The setting is superb, like a gateway to some tropical paradise, strung out along a peninsula between sea and mountains. And, if you've driven for days through the spiny forest to get here, or even if you've flown out over the trackless highlands of Madagascar's interior, this prosperous mining centre, with its sealed roads and street lights, looks for all the world like a mirage of modernity.

En av Prags äldsta rockklubbar, Klub Batalion, har också blivit hemvist för en av de märkligaste konstnärerna i landets moderna historia.

Tana, as the capital is universally known, is all about eating, shopping, history and day trips. Bypassing the city would be a mistake: Tana has been the home of Malagasy power for three centuries and there's a huge amount of history and culture to discover, as well as some unexpected wildlife options.

Kaféet Pražírna har blivit en favorit bland unga kaffedrickare i Prag.

Madagascar’s number-one beach destination, the island of Nosy Be has all the ingredients you'd expect: soft white sand, turquoise waters and wonderful seafood. A paradise for water-based activities with its sunny climate most of the year, diving is the top draw, and there is plenty of swimming, snorkelling, sailing and fishing. Operators offer excursions to the surrounding islands with their beautiful beaches and great diving opportunities.

Att göra i Prag: besök Centraleuropas största begravningsplats Olšanský hřbitovy.

The small town of Andapa lies in a beautiful valley surrounded by lush rice paddies, fields of coffee beans and the high peaks of the Marojejy massif. It is the nearest base for exploring both the Parc National Marojejy and the Réserve Spéciale Anjanaharibe-Sud. Between these two major parks lies the smaller Réserve National d'Antanetiambo. But you don't have to be planning a serious expedition into the parks: around the town are cool, shady forest walks and there are bicycles to hire to explore the villages.

Madagascar’s western region – divided in two, with no roads linking the south and north – is filled with adventurous possibilities and it's from here that so many iconic Madagascar images originate. There are incredible highlights, from the otherworldly limestone spikes and crippled spires of the Tsingy de Bemaraha and the stomping ground of the fossa at the Réserve Forestière de Kirindy to the fabulous birdwatching of Parc National Ankarafantsika. Throw in the Allée des Baobabs, world-class resorts and so many opportunities to go out into the wilderness and you have a region that showcases all that's memorable about this remarkable country. Travel out here can be rough once you leave behind the paved national highways. Your rewards are priceless travelling epics you'll never forget.