Composed of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, The Seychelles is home to stunning beaches, unique coconut trees, giant tortoises and an unforgettable exotic experiences.
In theory, Seychelles is an all year round destination, although it has the famous dry and rainy seasons. The dry season runs from May to October making it the ideal time to visit as there is the least chance of rain, however the winds are stronger from June to September, making the seas a bit rougher.
Regardless of the season, it's still a tropical climate so nothing is certain, although as locals told us it is pretty uncommon to encounter too many rainy days on your trip.
HOW TO GET THERE
There are several airlines flying to Seychelles and you can find direct flight from Dubai or Doha with Emirates or Qatar.
Because of Covid19 we were required to take a PCR test 72 hours prior to departure, so make sure to check the rules and regulations before going.
WHERE TO GO
Many people compare Seychelles with the Maldives, but unlike the Maldives it has a more diverse landscape and offers a variety of activities.
Even though Seychelles has 115 islands, 3 of them are the most popular: Mahe, Praslin and La Digue and for good reason. I would say that in order to truly experience what the country has to offer you must visit all 3 of these islands. There are several people who only go to one island and at most take a day trip to the famous Anse Source D'Argent in La Digue, but I feel you would be missing out on a lot.
Another thing to take into consideration is the order in which you visit these islands. In order to fully appreciate them, I would save the best for last (at least that is what we did). Mahe has it's own charm, but if you go on La Digue first, for example, and then Mahe, you are most likely going to be disappointed by the latter. I will get into more detail below on what to do on each island.
There is a 4th island that is pretty popular also, which is Silhoutte. There is only one resort on this island, Hilton Seychelles Labriz Resort and Spa, so if you want to visit this one it is required that you stay at the resort.
Our itinerary looked like this:
Mahe - 2 nights -> Praslin - 4 nights -> La Digue - 4 nights -> Silhouette - 2 nights
Time wise this itinerary allowed us enough time to fully enjoy each island, but if I were to change anything I would probably add at least 2 more nights in La Digue, only because we enjoyed the island and the life there way too much.
Also, I noticed that this was a very common feeling, every tourist we talked to was the most excited about La Digue.
HOW TO GET AROUND
Praslin and Mahe are quite big, especially the latter one, so a car is definitely needed to visit the main attractions/beaches. Not to mention that taxis are very expensive so it is cheaper to rent a car, plus it offers a lot more flexibility. To prove my point, we preferred to rent a car for a day instead of taking two taxi rides to and from the airport.
We rented a car on each of these 2 islands from Kreol Cars at aprox. 50 euros/day with full insurance.
La Digue, however, is a small and picturesque island, where almost no cars are allowed. Bicycles are the main form of transportation and most of the hotels/self catering apartments offer bike rentals.
Getting around between the islands is done with the local ferry, Cat Cocos . Before Covid there were several ferries/day going to each island, when we visited there was only one/day, therefore it requires a little bit of extra planning as you also need to take into account that sometimes they change the ferry schedule a day before.
The ferry ride is quite an experience itself, not necessarily the good kind. If you know to be sea sick make sure you take some adequate pills before hand as the ride can get quite rough.
If you are not on a budget, there are also flights available between Mahe and Praslin with AirSeychelles.
WHERE TO STAY
The main types of accommodation on each island are the self catering hotels/guesthouses. If you are on a budget, they are the best option. Of course you can also find some high end hotels as well, but keep in mind that a great thing about the Seychelles is that you can visit all the beaches from the fancy resorts without having to actually stay there.
MAHE
Mahe is the biggest island in the country, home to the capital city Victoria. Most of the flights land here so it's a good starting point for the trip.
The islands are all about beaches, so below are our top picks. Important remark: when there are high winds, some beaches are not suitable for swimming.
ANSE INTENDANCE
PETITE ANSE
The great part about Seychelles is that there are no private beaches. For example Petite Anse is the beach at Four Seasons Resort, yet it is accessible to the public. You just leave your car at the top and walk your way down to the beach. The way back is a bit of a hike but the hotel staff are very nice and they always offer to give you a ride back to the hotel entrance.
ANSE SOLEIL
Anse Soleil is "close" to Petite Anse. You have to leave your car in almost the same spot yet you go in a different direction to reach it.
BEAU VALLON
This one is pretty famous, although it would not be our top pick. It's a huge beach perfect for long strolls and a nice spot to watch the sunset.
PRASLIN
When you get to Praslin that is when you start feeling more of the remote island vibes. It's not as developed as Mahe and the scenery is much more exotic. I would again emphasise on the need of a car as the main beaches (and the best) are quite far apart from each other.
ANSE GEORGETTE
This is the beach at Constance Lemuria Resort, but as I already mentioned there are no private beaches in Seychelles. However, they only allow a limited number of tourists per day, so it is best to call and reserve your spot a day in advance, especially during the high season. Just use the phone number on their website or you can ask your hotel to do that for you.
The walk towards the beach will make up for your morning exercise, but it takes you through the lush and green golf course in the resort.
ANSE LAZIO
Definitely the most famous beach in Praslin. This beach tends to get crowded, but as it's quite long you can always find a spot just for yourself. Sunsets here also tend to be stunning!
COTE D'OR
A very long and pristine beach, however we did not really like it as the water was too shallow and swimming was not an option there.
VALLE DE MAI
Valle de Mai is a nature park and a UNESCO world heritage site in the Seychelles. It's a great place to loose a couple of hours and explore the diverse ecosystem there. This place is home to the famous Coco de Mer, the biggest nut in the world, but also to a lot of endemic palm trees.
We usually like to explore this kind of places at our own pace, but for this particular one we opted for a guided tour, which we highly recommend. Visiting without a guide you miss out on 90% of all the information and secrets and it would be just like taking a stroll through a rain forest (which you will get to do nevertheless at the end of the tour).
We had an excellent guide, Joseph, that made the experience fun and knowledgeable.
LA DIGUE
Not sure exactly how to put in words how this island made us feel, but we would like to grow old there! The island has a very relaxed vibe and we met some of the nicest and warm people here.
It's a great place to relax and unwind, ride your bike through the jungle, explore wild beaches, play with giant turtles and just be worry free.
The island is quite small and it takes around 40 minutes to go from one side to the other. In some areas you really wish you did not laugh at the guy telling you to get an electric bike :D, but 90% of the way a regular bike is perfect.
We spent only 4 nights here, but we could have easily spent months.
Food wise there are not a lot of restaurants on the island, but you can find some great take away places. The one place I must recommend is the Rey and Josh Cafe, they serve local food that was fresh, at a cheap price and absolutely delicious!
Le Repaire is another good choice if you want continental food, but a little bit higher on the budget. They have two menus, the take away one being a lot cheaper.
This is one of the most iconic beaches in the world and for good reason. The towering granite rocks that shoot out of the perfect blue water leave you speechless.
The scenery changes quite abruptly depending on the tide, so we were lucky enough to get a mix of both.
The beach is located in a national park and you need to pay a small entrance fee, that also give you access to a vanilla plantation, a giant tortoises enclosure and some other activities..
ANSE COCOS
This is a beautiful unspoiled beach with an awesome local "beach bar" that rewards you after the jungle hike. The hike itself is also great, very relaxing, meandering you through different beaches and coves.
SILHOUETTE
The Silhouette island was the perfect place to end our Seychelles adventure with a relaxing stay at Hilton Seychelles.
COSTS
The below are approximate costs so that you can get an idea of how to budget for the trip. These were some of the prices we payed when we visited Seychelles in 2021 and they are prone to change in the near future.
Car rental 50 euros/day - fully insured
Bike rental 100 SCR/day/person
Ferry - Mahe to Praslin 1900 SCR/2 people; Praslin to La Digue 380 SCR/2 people
Takeaway lunch aprox. 200 SCR/2 people
Entry Source D'Argent 115 SCR/day/person
Valle de Mai tickets 700 SCR / 2 people + extra 500 SCR for the guide
We really loved our trip to the Seychelles! A lot of people asked us to compare it with the Maldives, yet although they may seem the same they offer quite different experiences, each of them being amazing in their own way!
We plan on returning one day to the Seychelles to ride our bikes through La Digue's jungle.
xoxo,
O
