The Seychelles are known for its endless sandy white beaches, the tremendous turquoise water and sunny weather. Long story short: a tropical paradise! Second thought you may have when it comes to the Seychelles: the honeymooners. But why are these islands that popular? Because you can do more than just lying on the beach. What exactly, you will read shortly.
Republic of Seychelles
The Seychelles, officially the Republic of Seychelles, is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, consisting of 115 islands. 42 of them are classified as the inner granitic islands and 73 are the outer coralline islands. It has a total area of 455 square kilometers. The Seychelles belong to the African continent. Population is around 95’000 people. Currency is the Seychellois Rupee, but US Dollar, British Pound, Euro or Credit Cards are widely accepted. Official Languages are English, French and Seychellois Creole.
Now I tell you my highlights from our recent holidays. We were on La Digue, Praslin, Curieuse and Mahé. Longer posts with details to each of these islands will follow soon.
Highlights
- City sightseeing in the capital Victoria on Mahé
See Little Ben, the little brother of London’s Big Ben. Visit museums. Go to the market.
- Explore the Sir Selwyn Selwyn Clarke Market in Victoria
Buy food & souvenirs or just enjoy the beautiful colors. Soak up the atmosphere.
- Enjoy the endless sandy white beaches with the tremendous turquoise water and go swimming, snorkeling or diving to see the marine life up-close.
- Rent a bicycle and explore La Digue
- Make a roadtrip on Praslin and Mahé with a rental car
Rental car cost around 45 euro per day (50 euro for automatic gear). For information about driving see end of this post.
- Explore Curieuse Island and see the giant tortoises
- Enjoy a sundowner (e.g. sangria), some drinks and a delicious dinner at Café des Arts (not that cheap! 🙂 )
- Visit the Takamaka Rum Distillery on Mahé and learn about how they make rum. In the end you can enjoy various rums at a tasting.
- Fond Ferdinand Nature Reserve – see the Coco-de-mer (and more)
Fond Ferdinand is an insider tip. Admission is much cheaper than in the Vallée de Mai and a personal guide is always included. In the Fond Ferdinand, visitors pay only 125 SCR, in the Vallée de Mai 350 SCR. Be aware: The whole adventure is a physical challenge. Up to the very top there more than 600 steps to master. It is therefore advisable to take the first guided tour at 09:30. From the viewpoint at the top there is a fabulous view over Praslin itself and the other inner islands. On the way up with the guide you will stop every now and then to admire the nature. Clifford knows interesting things to tell and is also very entertaining. A must!
- Eat creole food at a local takeaway
It’s cheap and usually really delicious.
- Enjoy ice cream and food at Restaurant & Gelateria de Luca on Praslin
- Taste the very popular breadfruit.
Legend has it that anyone who eats it while on the islands will return someday.
A note on driving / rental cars:
First things first: You have to drive on the left side.
The roads on Mahé are generally in good condition, but often winding, narrow and unpaved at the edges. On Praslin it gets sometimes really narrow and the road is steep. It goes up and down and up and down. Driving in the Seychelles is sometimes a challenge. This is of course my subjective perception. The bus drivers sometimes drive like crazy. It’s almost ironic that behind every bus there is a number where you can call and rate how the bus driver is driving (“How am I driving?”). I would like to mention that it is not wrong how the locals drive. It’s just different from what we’re used to here in Switzerland. We could observe that sometimes several cars in the same convoy were overtaken before a turn where you couldn’t see anything. That’s really reckless. Of course, you don’t want to spoil your holidays with an accident. So be careful in traffic.
Postcard
A Postcard from the SEYCHELLES (La Digue) (1.1 MiB, 4,452 hits)
My personally created Postcard from the Seychelles (La Digue) that contains popular places like Anse Source d’Argent, bicycle, Grand Anse and of course a sunset. This postcard is for personal use only, e.g. as a desktop wallpaper. For commercial use (also higher quality possible) check first: Image Licensing
How do you like this post? Do you have other recommendations for the Seychelles?
1 Comment
Holidays in the Seychelles Paradise – Flashback – Flavio De Roni · June 1, 2019 at 13:06
[…] Highlights of the Seychelles that you should not miss […]