Whether it is a stroll down the famed Avenue de Baobabs just outside Morondava, staring up at a line of giant trees more than a thousand years old, or watching lemurs hop from tree to tree while floating down the Tsiribihina River in a dug-out, Madagascar’s hard-to-reach western region offers plenty of reasons to visit.

But it is well worth the effort, as you’ll likely have this sci-fi landscape of spiked and spired karst forests and miles of white sand beaches bumping up against a tomato bisque-hued sea mostly to yourself.

Click here to find out the top three reasons to visit Madagascar’s “wild west.”