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Relais de la Reine is a family-owned property bordering the Isalo National Park. Using natural materials the lodge has been built to blend in with the dramatic landscape in which it sits.

The main lodge and the hotel's 30 rooms have been built from granite, so when dusk falls they are hard to distinguish from the cliffs that rise up behind them. The building housing the sitting room, restaurant and bar faces out toward these rocks, and there is a small terrace outside, where guests can take lunch on a sunny day. Inside, fireplaces keep the lodge feeling cozy on the coolest of winter nights, while the thick stone walls protect against the burning heat of the hot summer days.

From the lodge building, limestone pathways lead to five annex buildings that house the rooms. Each building makes up three sides of a courtyard, and there is a small garden in the middle with bougainvillea and jasmine that scents the evening air.

There are 28 standard rooms, with thick stone walls, polished palissandre wood floors and black-and-white photographs decorating the walls. Each room has a small terrace outside, as well as an en suite bathroom. In addition to the standard rooms there are also two luxury rooms, which have a sitting area with a fireplace and bathtubs for a long soak after a day in the park.

Within the grounds of the hotel there is a swimming pool, a massage room and a stable for horse riding (although please note that this should not be undertaken by absolute beginners).

OUR RATING: Medium