Island hopping on Cerf, La Digue, Praslin and Mahé!

We spent our first 5 nights on Cerf, a fairly small island off Mahé, close to the airport and the capital, Victoria. Getting there was no problem at all: after a taxi journey of around 10 minutes, we arrived on Eden Island, where the hotel collected us free of charge in its shuttle boat.

Although Cerf has virtually no infrastructure (just 2–3 hotels), the hotel’s shuttle boat runs to Mahé (Eden Island) several times a day, with the journey taking 10 minutes. There, you can go shopping, buy groceries, eat out or travel to the nearby capital, Victoria. We took the bus to Victoria for the equivalent of just €0.50 per person each way. Although this lively little city is small by European standards and does not have any spectacular attractions, the market, for example, offers a fascinating glimpse into Seychellois life and culture.

On Cerf, we stayed at L'Habitation. Although there are undoubtedly hotels with more ambitious staff, we did not find another that offered more free opportunities to spend your time being active and enjoying memorable experiences.

Cerf Beach Among other things, the hotel provides canoes. The island is small enough to paddle around in approximately 1 hour. However, there are plenty of sandbanks, so if you do not want to keep getting out and pulling the canoe, it is best not to set off at full low tide, as we did. Our recommendation: if you have a little stamina left, you can certainly make it out to the small offshore islands in the Marine Park.

Marine Park, Cerf The free guided snorkelling tours are also highly recommended. Just off Cerf, a team of conservationists is working to ‘restore’ the reef. If you register at reception the day before, the team will show you some excellent snorkelling spots, and snorkelling equipment is also provided free of charge. Unfortunately, the currents often make the water somewhat murky here, reducing visibility. Nevertheless, we saw plenty of fish, lobsters, seahorses and a moray eel. From the pier, we also spotted numerous rays and a lemon shark.

Stingray On another day, we followed the hiking trail leading to the other side of the island. This beautiful trail is not particularly easy, but it ends at a very peaceful beach overlooking the Marine Park.

Cerf Trail hiking path

We took the ferry we had booked from home to our second stop, La Digue Island Lodge. The hotel’s shuttle collected us from the boat free of charge. The best thing about this hotel was the food. Dinner was always plentiful, with even sushi and suckling pig on offer. The outrageous beer price of €8.50 for 0.5 litres prompted us to switch to 0.75 litres of water for just under €3. At the supermarket outside the hotel entrance, you can at least buy a Seybrew for €1.50. Worth noting: signs everywhere state that the minibar will be locked if the housekeeper finds drinks in it that were not purchased from the hotel. The hotel beach is lovely, although the limited number of shaded spots meant plenty of ‘sun-lounger shifting’ throughout the day. Unfortunately, the least expensive room category is rather dated and no longer particularly attractive, although cleanliness was not an issue.

Beach by the hotel, La Digue One experience we would particularly recommend on La Digue is, of course, taking one or two bicycle tours. We did not find bicycles for less than €6.25 (SCR 100) per person per day, which was the price at the hire service right by the hotel. Many places charge €9.35 (SCR 150), but there is no need to pay that much. Without any great sporting ambitions, we managed to see virtually the entire island in one day. The beautiful Anse Source d'Argent is an absolute must, as is Grand Anse. Unfortunately, the former is located within L'Union Estate , a nature park that charges a further €7.15 (SCR 115) admission fee. Still, it is money well spent, as the price also includes an open-air museum with old Creole houses, an enclosure with giant tortoises and a vanilla plantation.

Cycling on La Digue

We spent our third stay at Castello Beach Hotel on Praslin. The pre-booked crossing from La Digue to Praslin was straightforward. The clean hotel grounds and consistently friendly staff were impressive, although there is relatively little sandy beach. The coral-free sea, with its fairly high waves, is reached via steps and, unlike at most other beaches, becomes deep very quickly. For us, however, this made a welcome change: we could finally get into the water without worrying about stepping on coral after just a few metres, and the sand was genuinely the softest of all our hotel beaches. The downside of the hotel is probably its location immediately beyond the airport runway. Although the small propeller aircraft do not fly at night, they pass fairly frequently, around 8 times a day between 07:30 and 21:00, and they are certainly not quiet. By the pool, you have to pause your conversation, and parts of the room sometimes vibrate.

Beach in front of the hotel, Praslin On Praslin, we hiked from our hotel to Anse Lazio. In hindsight, I would recommend staying on the bus for another 2 or 3 stops. This is not necessarily because of the distance, but because the first part of the route follows a road with no pavement. The footpath from Castello Beach Hotel is relatively well maintained compared with the Cerf hiking trail, leading through Praslin’s beautiful jungle and offering a magnificent view of Anse Lazio from above. Although Anse Lazio cannot quite compete with the spectacular rocks of Anse Source d’Argent, it is more enjoyable for playing in the waves. From Anse Lazio, we continued on foot to Anse Boudin. This beach seems to have once been more popular with tourists and is lined with abandoned buildings and shelters. There are certainly prettier beaches in the Seychelles.

Anse Lazio, Praslin There are a few supermarkets near the hotel where you can shop at reasonable prices. The takeaway on the corner serves enormous portions for the equivalent of less than €3.

Our final stay was on Mahé at AVANI Seychelles Barbarons Resort & Spa. It is a stylish, modern hotel with a fantastic beach and was the only one with a gym. The gym was very modern and clean. Unfortunately, the rooms had very poor soundproofing, and cigarette smoke from our neighbours drifted into our room despite the windows and doors being closed. Another disadvantage of this otherwise genuinely beautiful beach was the sandflies, which unfortunately left us covered in bites.

By the time of our final stay, we unfortunately lacked both the energy and the need for any longer hikes or excursions. The hotel’s stretch of beach is wonderful for snorkelling. In the area closer to shore, even complete beginners can see colourful fish without having to swim far. The water is so shallow that you do not really even need to be able to swim. The reef drop-off a few metres farther out was the most beautiful we saw during our Seychelles holiday, with spectacular coral and rock formations. The turquoise water here is crystal clear, providing excellent visibility over a considerable distance. Alongside a small number of tourists, local spearfishers were also out hunting octopuses.

There was another small supermarket and a takeaway very close to the hotel, providing all the essentials.

Beach in front of the hotel, Mahé Snorkelling off Mahé Conclusion
All in all, it was a wonderful holiday that fully lived up to our expectations of the Seychelles!

A cold beer on the beach in Mahé