La Digue & Mahé: A Riot of Colour

After an overnight flight from Frankfurt, we arrived on Mahé in the morning, where we received a warm welcome from Creole Travel and were taken straight to the ferry, as we would be spending the first 4 days of our trip on La Digue.

We travelled via Praslin and arrived on La Digue around midday, where we were initially lost for words. The word ‘paradise’ takes on a whole new meaning here. We stayed at the La Digue Island Lodge, where we had booked a Beach Chalet. This was our own little cottage with direct access to the beach. The property is located on Anse Reunion, just a few minutes from the harbour.

Anse Reunion The entire property was absolutely beautiful, well maintained and simply idyllic. Great care was taken of the guests, and the hotel left nothing to be desired. In the mornings, our own personal fruit platter was served at breakfast, while dinner alternated between a buffet and à la carte dining. As the hotel has only 70 rooms, everything felt very personal, which we really appreciated. Chiara, the ‘hostess’, checked with guests in the evenings to make sure everything was all right, so we never felt like just another hotel guest.

You can easily explore the whole island independently by bicycle, which we particularly enjoyed. The little harbour village of La Passe is very relaxed, and you can buy a few postcards and stamps, withdraw money or pick up a few things from the supermarket. The beach bar by the harbour is an especially lovely place to unwind with a cocktail.

A trip through L’Union Estate Park is an absolute must. Here you can watch, feed and stroke giant tortoises, admire a vanilla and coconut plantation, and see how coconut oil is produced – provided the ox that powers the mill is not taking another break.

Tortoises at L’Union Estate At a restaurant where we ate a delicious curry on our way back, you leave your bicycles behind and continue on foot through a truly impressive landscape of palms, mangrove trees and granite rocks until you reach Anse Source D’Argent. There, you can settle into a hammock at a beach bar and enjoy freshly squeezed fruit juice. We lay beneath a palm tree and simply relaxed.

Anse Source D’Argent Anse Source d’Argent The next day, we cycled through the harbour village in the opposite direction, planning to stop at whichever beach took our fancy. It is genuinely difficult to name the most beautiful beach here, as they are all stunning. The journey itself is an experience, with the turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean on the left and lush green mangroves and rainforest on the right.

Another highlight was our trip to Grand Anse in the south-east of La Digue. This is where dreams come true: beaches that are sometimes completely deserted and water sparkling in every shade of blue.

Grand Anse, Mahé On the one hand, we were sad to be leaving La Digue after just 4 days, but we were also looking forward to another 6 days on Mahé.

We had booked the The H Beau Vallon Resort. This 5-star resort completely amazed us. Its 100 rooms are spread throughout extensive, lush grounds. We had booked a Junior Garden Suite measuring over 50 m². Everything was very elegant and tastefully designed, from the lobby and restaurant to the pool. There was also an evening turndown service, which provided complimentary water and fresh towels on request. The hotel has several restaurants, with still water and soft drinks included. Each evening had a different theme, such as Creole, Italian or surf and turf. The quality and choice of food were excellent.

The hotel is situated on Beau Vallon, which is perfect for lovely walks. We relaxed beneath shady trees and enjoyed the warm breeze, taking regular dips in the sea.

Beau Vallon Beach Although the beach is beautiful, we also wanted to experience more of Mahé. One day, we took the bus to the capital, Victoria, browsed the market, bought a few souvenirs such as soap and tea, and then enjoyed a relaxed lunch at the News Café.

The following day, we booked an excursion to Moyenne Island through Creole Travel. We were collected on time and taken to the harbour to board the catamaran. We would highly recommend this excursion to everyone. We anchored just off Moyenne and were then taken ashore by dinghy. On the island, we had a guided tour with interesting details about its history and were able to admire the wildlife and plants. Back on the boat, we still had time for a short snorkelling session. The entire crew were very attentive and friendly, and took excellent care of every guest. At lunchtime, a barbecue with drinks included was served on board. Afterwards, the crew hoisted the sails and we sailed around the island once more before being brought back ashore in the afternoon. This excursion was another unforgettable experience for us.

We would particularly like to mention Creole Travel, the local agency that works with SeyVillas. Everything ran perfectly and was extremely well organised. Every transfer was punctual, and the staff were always approachable and friendly. Although January and February are officially the rainy season, we were lucky. We experienced a 10-minute shower on the day we arrived and another brief shower after dinner one evening. So we did not need the umbrella we had packed as a precaution.

On 4 February, we flew overnight back to Frankfurt, taking a few rays of sunshine home with us for the rest of the German winter.