The provincial capital of the province Toamasina is also called Toamasina but it is better known as Tamatave. It is Madagascar’s main seaport. Its wide avenues lined with beautiful old Flamboyant and Palm trees, its boulevard along the white sandy beach makes Tamatave a nice place to stroll, enjoy the colonial and Creole buildings, be caught by surprise when attaining the Place Bien-Aimée with its magnificent trees, buy vanilla or cinnamon at the local market (bazar be), sniff the scent of drying cloves and other spices.
There are two museums to be visited, the museum at the harbour and the university museum. Or you can make a day-trip to Ivoloina Park north of the city to walk among the lemurs, hike along one of the trails to discover various plants and to take a swim near the waterfall. A visit to the palmerie south of the city is another possibility. Here you can witness soap being produced from palm oil.
