Thermal Hotel
Located within lush verdant green gardens on the edge of the Ranomafana National Park, the Thermal Hotel is a recently restored colonial building that offers all of the amenities of a modern hotel, including a restaurant serving delicious local dishes. The hotel engages heavily with its local environment and encourages their community to protect the region, in turn providing stunning scenic views of the numerous natural thermal springs that flow in the area.
Hotel Thermal Ranomafana, Ranomafana, Madagascar
The Thermal Hotel is located in Ranomafana village within walking distance of the famous public thermal swimming pool, a popular recreation and picnic venue for locals and visitors. The hotel is also about a 15-20-minute drive from the entrance to the Ranomafana National Park where guests can explore the breath-taking destination with a driver and local guide both during the day and at night, with a variety of different trails around the park. There is a hugely varied amount of wildlife at the National Park, including 12 species of lemur, over 100 species of bird and over 60 reptiles, which makes for an interesting excursion.
Ranomafana is an exceptionally rich high-altitude rainforest reserve where the rare golden bamboo lemur and eleven other lemur species exist, as well as over 100 bird species having been recorded in and throughout Ranomafana. The nearest airport to the Thermal Hotel is Fianarantsoa Airport which is only an hour and twenty minute drive away. Another option for travel is to fly to Ivato International Airport which is 9 and a half hours away by car from the hotel, but the views along the way make for a beautiful trip on your way to your retreat.
- Free wifi at reception
- Bar/Restaurant
- Gym
- Spa facilities and treatments
- En-suites
- Laundry services
Set on the edge of Ranomafana National Park, situated on the famous site of Ranomafana’s healing thermal springs, the Thermal hotel was originally built as a health spa retreat and operated successfully for many years but after a full remodel with extensive renovations it re-opened as a hotel, restoring the colonial architecture with pine panels lending the place a decidedly wood-cabin feel while still maintaining modern minimalist decor that reflects the stunning scenery of Ranomafana.
The hotel features large windows throughout the building for constant views of the boastful flower gardens, with an eclectic, relaxing atmosphere while still being very close to the centre of town for those who want to explore. The 22 bedrooms are found in three blocks behind the main communal area of the hotel and all have a very modern feel to them with tiled floors, sliding glass doors that lead out onto a terrace or balcony and all rooms are air-conditioned and feature amenities including a TV, safe, and mini-bar.
Within the Thermal Hotel, each of the 21 rooms come equipped with an en-suite in their cabin-style rooms with wood-panelling and wooden furniture from locally sourced materials which keeps guests grounded in nature. The rooms are spacious and bright, with natural light filling the room through wide windows as well as featuring comforting decor to reflect the architecture of the wellness hotel.
The single rooms and twin rooms sleep up to two people with a spacious en-suite with locally sourced toiletries. The double room sleeps two, featuring a large double bed, also featuring a spacious en-suite.
The hotel has free wifi at reception and is planning to be implemented in all rooms. There is also a gym within the hotel if you want to stay active or unwind in the hotel’s spa with massage packages available.
The Thermal Hotel’s own restaurant can seat up to 60 guests inside with extra seating available on the large outdoor terrace for delicious al fresco meals, with all food being cooked with fresh, seasonal produce from local vendors. The hotel also features a bar on the upper floor, which serves as an ideal place to unwind and enjoy conversations with other guests at the hotel as well as locals that frequent the establishments for its vibrant atmosphere, friendly service and efficiency.
The main attraction to Ranomafana is the Ranomafana National Park which is part of the World Heritage Site Rainforests of the Atsinanana. The national park boasts breathtaking views of nature with rampant wildlife. The park provides a protected environment for many endangered animals and is one of the island’s most accessible and appealing stops on any itinerary where you can take part in guided walks through the forest, and also visit after dark to search for nocturnal creatures.
Much of Madagascar’s exotic flora and fauna is completely unique to the area so this tour offers an opportunity to discover the island’s extraordinary wildlife, natural history, stunning scenery and idyllic beaches.
The Kianjavato Forest Reserve is situated about an hour and a half from Ranomafana, here you can see the forest fragments surrounding Kianjavato, which are home to nine lemur species including the aye-aye, black and white ruffed lemur, and the greater bamboo lemur. The area is currently undergoing a grand scale reforestation project which involves planting over 8,000 seedlings a week.
In the Ranomafana village, about a 15 minute walk from the hotel, there is a large public thermal swimming pool, a popular recreation and picnic venue for locals and visitors. Various spa and massage treatments help sooth away the aches and scrapes of a forest walk.
The Hotel Thermal is focused on sustainable community tourism development, with an emphasis on buying ethically sourced local organic seasonal products in order to support the surrounding local community through a variety of different projects and schemes.
They grow a variety of fruits and vegetables in their own garden so that the menu at the hotel restaurant features regional and seasonal products only. They also use only organic toiletries as well as environment-friendly or natural cleaning products and all laundry is hand-washed to minimise water waste as well as sorting and recycle their own waste. In the hotel, they also use low-consumption appliances, light the building with LEDs and leave the laundry out to dry in the back garden instead of using heated dryers.
Children of all ages are welcome at the Thermal Hotel.