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The town was founded by Randriambololona and her three children: Raseheno, Ramiangaly and Razak who settled here in the late eighteenth century. From a historical and linguistic point of view, Ambatondrazaka originates from two words: ''Vato'', which means "stone" in Malagasy, and ''Razak''. After Razak won the war against the [[Vazimba]] he celebrated the victory and held a stone in the air. This stone was the origin of the town's name: "under Razak's stone".
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Ambatondrazaka is the capital of the Alaotra Mangoro region and the Ambatondrazaka district. In 2004 the town's population was estimated at 75,675.
By car Ambatondrazaka can be reached from [[Antananarivo]] via the RN2 direction [[Moramanga]] and from there via RN44 directly to Ambatondrazaka. To Ambatondrazaka it takes about 6 hours by [[taxi-brousse]] from Antananarivo and about 4 hours from Moramanga. A railroad once connected the city with the capital but is no longer in use. <!-- airport code WAM -->
* Hotel Nabotel
* Hotel Max et Irène
* Hotel Voahirana (has an excellent restaurant)
* Trip around the lake passing small villages and rice fields (approximately 1 day by car).
* Visit to [[Bandro Park]] near [[Andreba]] (about 45 minutes by taxi-brousse) and pirogue ride on the lake.
* [[Zahamena National Park]], north-east of the town of Ambatondrazaka (half day by car).
* Starting point for the Smuggler's Path from Lake Alaotra to the east coast.
== Additional information ==
View all [[Ambatondrazaka photos]]
