Ile aux Nattes

Nosy Nato, usually called Ile aux Nattes, lies a few hundred metres off the southern end of Ile Sainte-Marie and is reached by paddled pirogue from the airstrip end of the bigger island. It is small enough to walk around in an hour or two, covered in coconut palms, with sand paths instead of roads, a handful of villages and a scatter of small bungalow hotels on the beaches. There are no cars and no real shops. A small lake sits in the middle, and the reef offshore gives snorkelling. From July to September humpback whales pass through the channel between the islands and can sometimes be seen from the shore. The appeal is that there is nothing to do beyond walking, swimming and eating fish.

What you actually see

• Sand paths under palms - no roads anywhere on the island.
• Bungalow beaches - small hotels spread along the shore.
• The inland lake - a small freshwater pond in the interior.
• Whales in season - humpbacks in the channel from July to September.

When to go

April to December, avoiding the cyclone months. Whale season runs July to September and is the busiest time. Rain falls on this coast in any month, though the dry season is noticeably lighter.

Honest expectations

Facilities are minimal: limited electricity, no ATM, few shops, and food is whatever your hotel cooks. The crossing is by open pirogue and depends on weather. Sandflies are a real nuisance on some beaches. There is genuinely nothing to do, which suits some visitors and not others.

Nearby

Ile Sainte-Marie is across the channel; the mainland is west.