This is a pre-passage source and decision desk, not a current forecast or clearance to depart. The map is centred approximately on the area, not on your route or a forecast-zone boundary.
Distinguish an island or coastal bulletin from the wider METAREA text and its validity window. Long passages need a reliable method to obtain refreshed warnings offshore; a saved app screen is not one.
1. Primary sources
Open current bulletins and warnings for every sea area on the route. These links are starting points, not a promise that each covers the whole location; if unsure, identify the issuer through WMO–IMO.
2. Route and local effects
A long coastline and different sea areas preclude a single island-wide marine forecast.
Madagascar offers very different east- and west-coast exposure; an island-wide icon hides the passage problem.
Check Météo Madagascar for the relevant coast and the responsible METAREA for offshore legs; inspect swell and any tropical-system warning. Confirm source coverage before relying on it.
How to use this source set
Start with the warning, then the marine text for the exact named area. If the route crosses a zone boundary, obtain both bulletins. Note issue and valid times, wind units and the meaning of wave height. Where a link opens an agency portal, navigate to its current marine product; a homepage is not itself a forecast.
Compare with an exposed station or buoy if available. Check its position and observation time: a sheltered station does not overturn a warning for an open channel. If a bulletin is missing or stale, identify the issuing service via WMO–IMO and defer the decision until current information is available.
Before-passage check
- Mark departure, exposed legs, arrival and feasible diversions; find the responsible named marine areas for each.
- Check warnings, issue and valid times; assess conditions when you expect to reach each leg, not only at departure.
- Compare wind and gusts, waves and swell, visibility, thunderstorms and local effects; do not infer a strait from a sheltered harbour.
- Compare recent observations where available, noting their time and exposure; a mismatch calls for another check.
- Set the next bulletin check, a reassessment trigger, an alternative and a backup communication channel.
Model map — optional
Windy is a third-party model display, not the issuer of official warnings. Choose a layer and check its valid hour and model run. Nothing loads until you click.
Without JavaScript, open the map separately.
If connectivity fails
Before departure, save the current official text bulletin and warning with issue time. Arrange another way to receive updates, such as an appropriate coastal broadcast, NAVTEX or satellite channel. A saved map cannot replace new warnings.
How to choose weather tools · All sailing areas
Scope: Source list assembled 25 September 2026; check its freshness and coverage before use. This public area guide is not a current personalised forecast, navigational notice service or safety verdict. Personalised forecasts with AI and experts are in closed testing; public booking is not open. The skipper makes the decision.
Use the current product, not a discontinued tab
Météo Madagascar's marine page contains coastal, high-seas and special-product sections, but also an explicit referral to Mauritius or South African METAREA services for a discontinued bulletin type. Read the selected product's issuer, date, validity and coverage before relying on it. Do not interpret an old tab, an archive or an unavailable item as a complete current offshore forecast for the whole island.
- Météo Madagascar marine products — Coastal/high-seas/special tabs; page includes referral to MMS/SAWS for discontinued product Direct product verification is limited; obtain the current issue from the issuer.
- WMO–IMO marine warnings and issuer directory — METAREA service selection; website can have delayed or interrupted products
North, east and west are different route problems
For a Nosy Be cruise or a continuation around the northern end, separate sheltered island passages, the exposed rounding and the destination coast. A favourable west-coast point forecast should not be extended to an eastern ocean-facing approach. Compare swell direction and duration of exposure at each ETA, and distinguish modelled current from any measured record. Do not derive a precise coastal-current speed from the island's seasonal reputation.
Carry source uncertainty into the decision
Where the exact fresh bulletin or harbour information cannot be obtained, name the affected leg and seek confirmation from the responsible service before treating the brief as complete. Plan the next offshore update and a checked stop before the exposed commitment. A longer itinerary needs successive valid issues, not one downloaded map for the entire coastline. This guide supplies neither a coastal pilot nor permission to enter remote anchorages.
Editorial review of this material: 27 September 2026. This date concerns the page content; check current forecast issue times and validity at the original sources.