MADAMAGAZINE Your Magazine about Madagascar
Ifaty-Mangily is a village about 30 km north of Toliara (Tuléar) in southwest Madagascar. Ifaty was originally a pure fishing village, but due to its favourable location directly in front of a coral reef and its proximity to Toliara, the first tourist infrastructure developed in the 1970s: the beginning of Mangily. Today, both terms are often used synonymously, although they are actually still two independent but very close villages.
On the sandy beaches of the bay of Ranobe (translated “big water”) on the canal of Mozambique, travellers have a good opportunity to relax and unwind. The water is warm and the sun shines here more than 300 days a year. Ifaty has a number of well-equipped hotels and lodges for excursions with the zebu carts (Charettes), crayfish dinners, pirogue excursions or visits to the nearby Reniala reserve and the turtle village. Due to the unfortunately unfavourable security situation in the south of Madagascar, the spiny forests of the surrounding area should not be explored alone, and it is also advisable to always be on the road with local guides.
Diving schools in Ifaty offer guided dives along various parts of the coral reef, equipment can be hired on site. For beginners to experienced divers there are many possibilities to explore the sea and its colourful inhabitants. In some places, travellers even have the unique opportunity to get in touch with sharks under water. If you are not quite so brave or simply not a diver, you will find just as good opportunities for snorkeling. In August, with a bit of luck, you might even see whales passing the coast. The road to Ifaty was paved in 2016, it now takes just 20 minutes via the Route Nationale (RN9) from Toliara to Ifaty-Mangily.
