Calm, carefree and breezy Antsiranana sits perched out on the northern tip of Madagascar, between the pretty beaches of bustling Nosy Be Island and the wild reaches of reserves like the lemur-peppered Lokobe, and the rugged Amber Mountain National Park.

Still relatively untouched by the onslaught of mass tourism, the town’s post-colonial streets and pretty French mansions play host to a collection of earthy Malagasy restaurants and local shops which tick over to the slap of dominos and the aromas of freshly baked baguettes, before shutting for that dutiful siesta halfway through the day.

However, with a steadily increasing flow of cruise ship traffic, Antsiranana tour guides are becoming much more active in promoting their town and the greater Diana Region. These include amongst others, the historical battlefields where the allies warred with Vichy France and Japan in 1942, the rugged coastal stretches of Cape Ambre, the turquoise waters of the Emerald Bay, or the curious hoodoos and geological formations of the dusty Tsingy Rouge Park nearby.