Madagascar

Destinations

Visa & entry

eu passport	Visa on arrival available at international airports (Ivato/Antananarivo, Antsiranana/Diego Suarez, Toamasina, Tuléar); see contradictions for fee/duration discrepancies.
us passport	Same visa-on-arrival system as EU passports; fee/duration per contradictions below.
uk passport	Per UK FCDO (2026): visa-free entry for up to 15 days with a EUR 10 administration fee payable on arrival; extended 30- or 60-day tourist visas available at the airport, payable in USD, EUR or Ariary; total stay extendable up to 90 days while in-country.
entry or eco taxes	No separate eco-tax identified; the EUR 10 (or similar) charge on arrival functions as an administrative/visa fee, not a distinct eco-tax.
digital nomad visa	None found (UK FCDO guidance does not mention one, 2026).
notes	Passport must be valid 6+ months from arrival with at least 2 blank pages. Yellow fever certificate required only if arriving from a country with transmission risk. Currency declaration required for foreign cash/travellers cheques worth EUR 7,500 or more.

Money

currency	Malagasy Ariary (MGA / Ar)
card acceptance	Limited outside Antananarivo and major hotels/resorts; cash (Ariary, plus USD/EUR for the visa fee) is the practical default -- not independently re-verified this session beyond visa-fee cash requirement.
atm networks fees limits	ATMs available in larger cities but frequently out of service ('en panne') due to connectivity problems; typical withdrawal limit around 400,000 Ar per transaction; some networks charge roughly 8,000-10,200 Ar per withdrawal (Wikivoyage, 2026 update).
local instant payment	Mobile money services (Mvola/Telma, Orange Money, Airtel Money) are widely used domestically; foreign-tourist usability not independently confirmed this session -- open question.
scams	Pickpocketing in markets and on public transport (taxi-be) Displaying cameras/jewellery/wealth attracts opportunistic theft, especially in Antananarivo after dark
tipping	Not covered by sources checked this session -- open question.

SIM & internet

operators ranked for coast coverage	Telma Orange Airtel
notes	SIM cards sold at the airport and throughout the country. A 12GB/30-day data plan was priced around 75,000 Ar, but that figure is dated to 2018 in the source and should be treated as stale/indicative only, not a current 2026 price. 4G described as 'fairly impressive' with free VoIP calls (Wikivoyage).

Insurance

recommended	Comprehensive travel insurance covering medical evacuation strongly recommended -- complex medical care is not available in-country.
evacuation note	Public/private hospitals in Antananarivo handle only routine operations; complex surgery requires medical evacuation to Mauritius, South Africa or Réunion (UK FCDO, 2026).

Health

vaccines	Routine vaccinations (polio, hepatitis A/B, MMR, typhoid) commonly advised; yellow fever certificate required only if arriving from an endemic/transmission-risk country; check TravelHealthPro/NHS 8+ weeks before travel.
mosquito disease seasons	Malaria and dengue fever both present; specific seasonal windows not confirmed this session. Plague and cholera also flagged as risks by UK FCDO (2026); mpox also mentioned.
tap water	Not safe for foreigners; drink only boiled or bottled water (Wikivoyage / FCDO, 2026).
emergency numbers	117 from a mobile phone (request an ambulance); 17 from a landline (UK FCDO, 2026).
hospital standard	Adequate only for routine care in Antananarivo; complex cases require evacuation abroad (see insurance section).

Driving

road safety	Roads described as almost all of very low grade; drive on the right.
4x4 contexts	4WD vehicle with driver commonly rented for around US$70/day given road conditions (Wikivoyage).

Regulation

other	Export limits: vanilla capped at 2 kg and spices at 1 kg per traveller, with purchase receipts required (UK FCDO, 2026).

Calendar & costs

Visa-on-arrival fee/duration for Madagascar is reported inconsistently across sources checked this session: (1) UK FCDO (gov.uk, 2026): visa-free up to 15 days with a EUR 10 admin fee, extendable to 30/60 days at the airport, max 90 days total. (2) Wikivoyage (2026 page): 14 nights = EUR 10; 30 days = US$37 or EUR 35; 60 days = US$45 or EUR 40; extensions cost 80,000 Ar. (3) Wikipedia (Visa policy of Madagascar, 2026 note): visa on arrival up to 90 days, with the price recently raised from EUR/USD 10 (previously, for 15 days) to EUR 30. These three do not agree on either the fee amounts or whether the 90-day visa is a single on-arrival product or built from stacked 15/30/60-day extensions -- verify directly with an airline or the Malagasy consulate before travel.

Open questions

Exact 2026 visa-on-arrival fee schedule needs confirmation directly from Malagasy immigration or a consulate given the three-way contradiction above.
Tipping norms not sourced this session.
Whether tourists can practically use Mvola/Orange Money/Airtel Money without a local ID/SIM registration not confirmed.
No kite-specific national regulation, drone rule, or protected-area rule found for the Diego Suarez / Emerald Sea / Sakalava Bay kite areas -- open.
Airline kite-bag policies for carriers serving Madagascar (Air France, Ethiopian, Kenya Airways, Madagascar Airlines) not sourced this session -- attempted fetches failed (DNS/timeout errors).