Celebrating 50 Years!

We are a couple, both separated, and have been together for around 4 years. We each have children: one of us has a son, while the other has two. We decided to celebrate Roberto’s 50th birthday in this earthly paradise, and around two months ago we booked this trip, with no idea just how wonderful it would be!!!
We flew from Bologna with Emirates, as recommended by Seyvillas. It was our first time travelling with this airline, and the flight experience was exceptional: punctual and efficient, with excellent staff and impeccable service. We arrived in Dubai and, after three hours, boarded our flight to Mahé. We finally reached our destination at 7.05 the following morning, a little tired and worn out after so many hours in the air. A Creole representative immediately welcomed us and accompanied us to the domestic terminal to catch our flight to Praslin. Afterwards, still under the attentive care of the Creole representatives, we finally reached our hotel by taxi, Castello Beach Hotel, in the Anse Kerlan area. For our stay in late February and March, Seyvillas had recommended this side of the island rather than Anse Volbert (Cote d'Or). We can confirm that this advice was absolutely spot-on: it really was the best area!!!
After being welcomed at the hotel, we immediately met our Italian-speaking representative, Julius, who was extremely friendly and answered all our questions. We also hired a car for 2 days through him.

STAY ON PRASLIN

That afternoon, we relaxed for a few hours on the hotel’s beachfront, enjoying the warm, crystal-clear water. The following day, our car was delivered directly to the hotel, right on time. It was an automatic Kia Picanto, and we set off to explore the island, heading towards Cote D’Or and then on to Anse Lazio. As already mentioned, at that time of year there is seaweed and the currents are unfavourable along the east coast, so it was not particularly suitable for swimming. We therefore decided to drive as far as the road would take us, to Anse Lazio: absolutely stunning, a true paradise!!!!
Anse Lazio, Praslin We spent our first day there. On the second day, we drove to Vallée de Mai, a nature reserve where you can see the famous Coco De Mer, which is native and unique to the island of Praslin. We walked through the jungle for around three hours, surrounded by vegetation, flora and fauna unlike anything found anywhere else!!!
Vallée de Mai, Praslin In the afternoon, we decided to visit Anse Georgette, an exclusive but public beach. To reach it, you have to cross a privately owned golf course belonging to the prestigious and extremely luxurious Constance Lémuria Resort. As soon as we reached the beach, we jumped straight into the water and went snorkelling. It was a fantastic place, with brightly coloured fish, and at last we even saw two sea turtles chasing one another!!
Anse Georgette, Praslin Our favourite place on Praslin was Anse Georgette, both for its beach and breathtaking scenery, as well as the snorkelling.
On the third day, we went on a Creole excursion to Curieuse Marine National Park. It was a magical day! When we arrived at the harbour, we were immediately welcomed aboard a brand-new, incredibly spacious catamaran, with a fantastic and exceptionally friendly crew!!! We set off for the small island of St. Pierre, where we spent about an hour snorkelling, before sailing on to Curieuse Island. As soon as we landed, we were greeted by countless giant tortoises. We had never seen anything like it: they wandered freely, completely unbothered by the tourists stroking and fussing over them!!! Our guide explained that Esmeralda, the oldest tortoise in the world, was among them!!! After taking the customary 3,000 photos, we set off along a trail leading to the other side of the island. Our guide explained the flora and fauna, biodiversity and history of the islands. In particular, we saw the palm spider, an animal that is half amphibian and half fish, as well as mangroves and a vanilla plant. When we reached the beach, our catamaran was waiting for us so that we could have lunch on board. There was a generous and delicious buffet, with everything cooked on the barbecue: meat, grilled fish skewers, and so on.
We then set off again and sailed all the way around Praslin before returning to the harbour. Sadly, the day was over!!!
St. Pierre Island The following day, we packed our bags, and at 9 in the morning the taxi was already waiting to take us to the harbour for our transfer to La Digue.
We boarded the ferry and, after around 20 minutes at sea, disembarked on the famous and much smaller island of La Digue.
We immediately noticed the peaceful, quiet and relaxed atmosphere of this wonderful corner of paradise. We arrived at our guest house, Villa Veuve, located within the Veuve Reserve. Our little villa was surrounded by lush vegetation, with flowers of every kind, palm trees, chickens and giant tortoises in an enclosure!! The guest house was run by an extremely kind lady, as were all her staff, and she also spoke a little Italian. The villas were charming, spacious and clean, with every comfort, as well as a patio that radiated peace and tranquillity just by looking at it.

STAY ON LA DIGUE

At reception, we immediately hired bicycles and set off along the island’s only road, exploring here and there until we reached the end of the road at Anse Banane. There, we found a delightful restaurant and juice bar overlooking the sea, where we enjoyed some incredible drinks and a sandwich, promising ourselves we would return because we had really liked both the staff and the setting.
The following day, we headed to the extremely famous and renowned Anse Source d'Argent, passing through L'Union Estate . This is the only beach with an admission charge (115 rupees), and you reach it by crossing a sort of farm, complete with a cow! Although it is considered one of the most beautiful beaches, it actually impressed us less than any of the others. Unfortunately, we visited at low tide, so the water was not its usual brilliant turquoise colour but rather stagnant, and there were not as many fish either. Nevertheless, the scenery was breathtaking: enormous granite rocks and boulders alternating with giant palm trees. As the conditions were not suitable for snorkelling, we opted for a walk and took photographs along the magnificent coral beach!
The next day, again by bicycle, we made our way to the harbour, where our Italian contact on the island had booked us a half-day excursion to Big Sister Island, Félicité and Anse Coco. Unfortunately, we could not go with Creole as they were unavailable on those dates, so we went with a local young man instead. It was a completely different experience from our excursion on Praslin, but still a thoroughly enjoyable one. We spent half a day snorkelling and riding the waves in the middle of the ocean, together with a young Swedish couple and an older Spanish couple.
Once back at the harbour, we stopped to pick up lunch from a takeaway and ate it in the shade of the patio at our little villa. At the end of our meal, something rather curious, unexpected and very welcome happened. The owner’s husband came over to our villa, climbed a tree and, much to our amazement, picked two coconuts. He opened them with a machete and offered them to us so we could enjoy the wonderfully fresh coconut water – priceless! Sadly, another day had flown by, and we were already sorry that our wonderful trip was drawing to an end. But the day was not over yet, as there was a big surprise to come! Through reception, we booked a table at a traditional Creole restaurant (Snack Bellevue) at the top of one of the island’s viewpoints, Bellevue, to celebrate Roby’s birthday.
Tropical birthday At 17:30, a taxi from the restaurant collected us directly from reception. After travelling up a steep and rather challenging little road, we arrived at this bar and restaurant, which seated no more than 30 guests. An elevated view across the entire island awaited us, with the sea in the distance, baobab trees and giant flying foxes all around. As we sipped local cocktails, we enjoyed a breathtaking sunset! The dinner was exquisite, to say the least – fully living up to the reviews we had read and deserving top marks. There was a set menu featuring traditional Creole cuisine, followed by dessert complete with a candle and a rendition of Happy Birthday sung by all the other guests and the entire staff. Roby was rather embarrassed, as he had not expected it at all! After dinner, the taxi took us back to our guest house.
The following day, our penultimate day of the holiday, we travelled to the other side of the island, reaching Grand Anse and then, after walking for about 20 minutes through tropical vegetation and tackling plenty of ups and downs, Petite Anse.
Petite Anse, La Digue Unlike the other beaches, where we could lie in the shade of lush, dense vegetation, this beach did not have a single patch of shade. But there was no need to worry: a local young man built us a shelter from palm leaves and offered us coconut water, all for 100 rupees.
We had been advised not to go snorkelling in this area because the currents were very strong. However, the deep-blue sea and enormous waves made all the effort of getting there worthwhile!
On our final day, our ferry was due to depart at 15:30. We checked out of our room by 10:00, but they made another room available so that we could shower and organise our luggage before leaving. It was an invaluable kindness, as it meant we could enjoy every last moment of our holiday!
As soon as we had left our luggage, we headed to Anse Severe, which in our opinion was the best beach for snorkelling and the one we liked most, although choosing was extremely difficult because they were all spectacular! Each beach had its own special features: the best one for snorkelling, the most beautiful scenery, or the one with the most vivid turquoise and blue waters.
Anse Severe, La Digue We spent the entire morning snorkelling there, surrounded by countless colourful fish, some of them very large, and resting on the beach in the shade of a palm tree alongside a giant tortoise. We did not even realise that it was already past midday.
Anse Severe, La Digue We could not break the promise we had made, so after a 15-minute bicycle ride we reached the restaurant and bar from our first day, Chez Jules, where we enjoyed our final meal on this wonderful island. Unfortunately, we were running extremely late, so the bicycle ride back to the guest house left us breathless and exhausted. We quickly prepared for the return journey and waited for the taxi to the harbour, having reluctantly said goodbye to all the staff, who had welcomed us with such hospitality and courtesy throughout our stay, just like all the local people.
With great sadness, we began our journey home, first taking the ferry from La Digue to Praslin, then flying from Praslin airport to Mahé in just 20 minutes. From there, an Emirates Boeing 777 took us first to Dubai and then to Bologna. As I mentioned earlier, choosing the most beautiful beaches is extremely difficult, because in a paradise like this, every beach is beautiful for its own particular qualities.
On Praslin, Anse Georgette was our winner, while on La Digue it was Anse Severe.
Of the two islands, La Digue was the one we liked most because it was more informal, we could travel around by bicycle, and the atmosphere was one of almost surreal tranquillity.

We would like to share a few thoughts:
We had the opportunity to spend time with the local people (one evening, we even stopped to watch them playing dominoes in the street), and every one of them showed such kindness, hospitality, courtesy and cheerfulness. Their smiles will remain in our hearts forever. Punctuality, attention to detail, professionalism and excellent support from both SeyVillas – everything went exactly as we had been advised and told – and the local agency, Creole, which works with SeyVillas in the Seychelles; we could not have received a warmer welcome or better assistance throughout our holiday!
The two properties that SeyVillas had booked for us were perfect. They fully met our needs and requirements, and Villa Veuve on La Digue even exceeded our expectations!!!!
We stayed on a bed-and-breakfast basis at both properties, so every evening we dined at a different restaurant, either following recommendations from local people or searching on Tripadvisor. Naturally, this cost more than half-board accommodation, but it was absolutely worth it because we experienced the ‘Creole spirit’ to the full in every possible way!!!!

CONCLUSIONS

A dream holiday, truly once in a lifetime. Everything went perfectly; there are simply not enough words to describe it, and it will remain in our hearts forever!!!!!
Our heartfelt thanks to SeyVillas for organising everything so perfectly and in the best possible way!!!!
Simona and Roberto