Glorious Days in Paradise

To properly unwind, we spent the first few days of our trip on the small island of Cerf Island. Cerf Island is easy to reach from Mahé via the free little ferry, which runs several times a day. The ferry departs from Eden Island and takes around 10 minutes. There are no cars or proper roads on the island, so it is wonderfully peaceful and ideal for anyone seeking complete peace and relaxation.

From the private beach at Takamaka Beach Villas, we had a fantastic view of Mahé, perfect for watching the sunset every evening. It was truly idyllic.

Sunset on Cerf Island The accommodation was also excellent. If you do not feel like cooking, you can always have dinner at one of the small restaurants. Cerf Island is a wonderful place for snorkelling and kayaking, and you can even do a little hiking. Every visitor to the island should take the hike to the other side of the island, in St. Anne Marine National Park.

View of the far side of Cerf Island Cerf Island is also a great base from which to explore the main island of Mahé. We did this on a privately guided tour booked through the neighbouring hotel, L'Habitation.

Victoria Market

43|Anse Soleil on Mahé

After six nights on Cerf Island, we flew on to Praslin. Here, we stayed for a week at Sea View Lodge on Anse Possession. We were able to hire a car easily through the hotel. Although a hire car is not essential on Praslin, it is highly recommended and offers many advantages over the public bus.

Praslin is truly breathtaking. It has outstanding beaches, including, of course, the wonderful Anse Lazio and Anse Volbert (Cote d'Or), as well as beautiful, peaceful beaches such as Anse la Farine and Anse la Blague.

Anse La Blague on Praslin A hire car makes it easy to explore the island and all it has to offer. We decided to visit Fond Ferdinand rather than Vallée de Mai. At Fond Ferdinand, alongside five endemic palm species, you will of course also encounter the Coco de Mer palm, with its large seeds, or nuts. Best of all, they grow larger and more abundantly here than anywhere else. Fond Ferdinand Nature Reserve is still something of an insider tip and remains almost unknown, so you will encounter hardly any other visitors in the park. A guided tour through the park takes around 2–3 hours. It is a highly recommended place to visit.

Coco de Mer There are many beautiful small islands around Praslin, including Cousin and Cousine, Félicité, Grand Soeur, Petite Soeur, St. Pierre and the tortoise island of Curieuse. We decided to book a boat trip to St. Pierre for snorkelling, followed by a barbecue on Curieuse. Feeding and stroking the giant tortoises was a truly wonderful experience.

Tortoise As we had not booked an overnight stay on La Digue, we at least took a day trip there. Travelling by ferry from Praslin is very easy and straightforward. You only need to buy your tickets at the counter 15 minutes before departure.

A must-see on La Digue is, of course, the world-famous Anse Source d'Argent, with its magnificent granite boulders. However, Grand Anse and the neighbouring Petite Anse are no less worth visiting – Petite Anse is absolutely beautiful. The best thing is that you can have this wonderful beach all to yourself.

Anse Source d’Argent We wholeheartedly recommend a holiday in the Seychelles. Booking through SeyVillas also went wonderfully smoothly. We will certainly return one day.