Dream Holiday on La Digue

1. Accommodation
The two of us stayed at the first-class hotel Le Domaine de L'Orangeraie for eight days. We booked the ‘Villa de Charme (Elegance)’ with half board. As we had booked an upgraded villa category, several extras were included, such as bicycle hire and a 0.375-litre bottle of champagne on arrival. We also each received 2 × 0.5-litre bottles of water every day, which was more than enough and meant we did not need to buy any more. In the evening, there was also a little bedtime treat of four delicious chocolate truffles. More about the other additional benefits later.

The hotel really is superb. The individual accommodation buildings nestle into the hillside. It feels as though you are staying right in the middle of the jungle. The grounds are very clean, well maintained and beautifully laid out. As the route up to some of the villas is quite steep, with gradients of up to 27%, guests are conveniently driven there in electric buggies.

Hotel grounds viewed from the sea There are two restaurants. Part of the buffet restaurant is right beside the sea. Breakfast and dinner are served here. The à la carte restaurant, which carries an additional charge, is beside the pool and overlooks the sea. At lunchtime, there is an extensive choice of burgers, pizzas, salads, steaks and more. Set menus are available in the evening, with a choice of two starters, main courses and desserts. There are also other main courses to choose from, including steaks, fish platters with lobster and more. The food is generally very good, and at the à la carte restaurant it is superb. The service there is excellent too.

2. Arrival
We received a friendly welcome on Mahé. Instead of continuing by ferry, we flew to Praslin in a small propeller plane. Immediately after arriving at the small airport there, we were taken to the harbour on Praslin. The journey took around 20 minutes. Unfortunately, we then had to wait two hours, having already waited an hour at the airport before departure, before taking the ferry to La Digue. In the meantime, the ferry from Mahé also arrived. The 15-minute flight from Mahé to Praslin therefore did not save us any time. On the return journey, we also had long waits of up to three hours at the airport on Mahé. We arrived on Friday evening after travelling for around 20 hours in total from Frankfurt am Main. At every ‘stop’ along the way, we were warmly welcomed by Creole Travel Service and directed to the next stage of our journey.

Once there, we discovered that it is also possible to fly by helicopter from Mahé to La Digue. This would certainly save a considerable amount of time. Taking both the outward and return journeys into account, it would probably give you an estimated extra full day on La Digue.

3. Our stay

3.1 Saturday
On our first day, we naturally cycled to Anse Source d'Argent. Admission costs 100 rupees per person, around €7.00. In return, you cycle through a beautiful coconut and vanilla plantation. You also pass an enclosure with giant tortoises, which you can feed. The cycle route ends at a restaurant where you can enjoy a typical Creole lunch. The remaining distance to the beach is an easy walk. With its granite rocks and pale blue water, the beach is breathtaking. As the water is shallow, the beach is ideal for families with children. There is no need to worry about the water temperature, which we estimated to be 33°C. The vegetation provides plenty of shade on the beach. Fish swim right past your legs. You do have to get used to the seaweed washed up on the beach, although it is neither particularly unpleasant nor much of a nuisance. Because there were some pieces of dead coral on the beach and in the sea, we wore swimming shoes.

Giant tortoise 3.2 Sunday
On Sunday, we cycled north from the hotel and then continued south along the coast until the path ended abruptly at Anse Fourmis. The water here is also clear and warm. However, you have to walk over rocks to reach the shallow water, so swimming shoes are strongly recommended. The water only becomes deeper beyond the reef. When snorkelling there, however, you can see a great variety of fish. Sea urchins with spines around 10 cm long cling to the rocks in the water. Unfortunately, the difficult access to the water makes the beach less suitable for young children. Nevertheless, the journey there is definitely worthwhile. Along the way, we encountered giant tortoises roaming freely.

3.3 Monday
On Monday, we planned to cycle inland towards ‘Belle Vue’ in the centre of the island. However, we had to turn back because the road was so steep. Even pushing the bicycles was too strenuous, as parts of the route were steeper than the path to our villa at the hotel, which had a gradient of around 27%. We therefore turned around and cycled back to ‘Anse Source d’Argent’.

3.4 Tuesday
On Tuesday, we cycled through the jungle in the island’s interior to Grand Anse. Along the way, we saw millipedes measuring around 20 cm long and 1 cm thick. The final section descends quite steeply, so the bicycles should have good brakes. As a general rule, it is advisable to test them before setting off. Centipede When we arrived at the beach, we were overwhelmed. Before us was a long, clean beach of pure white sand. The water was pale blue and completely free of vegetation. You do not need swimming shoes here. However, the beach slopes quite steeply into the sea, creating waves 1–2 m high. We and the other visitors had enormous fun in the waves, even though a sign warns against swimming precisely because of them. The beach is therefore less suitable for young children. Even so, the journey alone is worthwhile, as the route leads through the jungle, as mentioned above. There is also a small restaurant on the beach offering a lunchtime buffet for 300 rupees, around €21.00, per person, including freshly grilled fish. We thought this was the most beautiful beach, but unfortunately even beautiful places have their drawbacks. There is only ONE coniferous tree offering a little partial shade. Everywhere else, you are exposed to the blazing sun. The waves wash off sun cream, even if it is water-resistant and has SPF 50. Reapplying it is strongly recommended! My son, who was 20, did not reapply his and had blisters from sunburn on his shoulders that evening, which were very painful for several days.

Grilled fish at Grand Anse As we had now reached the halfway point of our stay, we celebrated by dining at the à la carte restaurant that evening. To our great surprise, we were told that, because we had booked an upgraded villa category, the superb set menu was included in the price of our holiday. This had not been explained to us during the welcome and tour of the hotel. We had understood that the menu would cost us an additional €14.00 per person. This was quite frustrating, particularly as the à la carte restaurant is closed on Wednesdays, meaning we were only able to enjoy the excellent food and first-class service three times.

3.5 Wednesday
Because of the sunburn blisters on my son’s shoulders, we stayed in our villa on Wednesday. This also helped the mild sunburn on my back.

3.6 Thursday
For Thursday, we had booked a snorkelling excursion through Creole Travel Service to the three neighbouring islands of ‘Big Sister’, ‘Coco’ and ‘Felicité’. The excursion aboard a large catamaran lasts all day and cost €95.00 per adult. In the village, the same trip was offered in a small motorboat for €100.00 per adult, so booking through Creole Travel Service is recommended. The boat departs as early as 08:00. There are coral reefs around all three islands, with large and varied fish populations. Unfortunately, all the coral has died, so only the fish are still colourful. A barbecue lunch is served on board, with one soft drink and two 0.5-litre bottles of water per person included in the price. The excursion is worthwhile, if only because it offers something different from spending time on the beach.

3.7 Friday
On Friday, on our way to ‘Anse Source d’Argent’, we visited the ‘Veuve Reserve’. It is a small reserve where you can explore the island’s original jungle and see the native palm spider free of charge.

3.8 Saturday
As this was our departure day, with our transfer leaving at 15:00, we stayed by the pool and enjoyed an excellent lunch at the à la carte restaurant. We had to vacate the villa by 10:00, as new guests were arriving. However, a room with a shower was available, so we could freshen up before departure. The highlight of the crossing to Praslin was spotting dolphins in the sea.

3.9 Sunday
At 07:05, 19 hours after leaving La Digue, we landed back in Frankfurt am Main. The outward and return journeys are rather tiring, but a visit to the Seychelles is certainly worth the effort. We would be delighted to return.