The Trip of Our Lifetime

After a rather exhausting journey (from home by train to Frankfurt, then to Doha, Mahé, Praslin and finally La Digue – more than 30 hours in total), we were welcomed with the words ‘Welcome to paradise’ – and that was no exaggeration! From the very first moment, we felt as though we were dreaming – the Seychelles were almost unbelievably beautiful. We spent the first few days on La Digue and were captivated by the colours of the sunset on our very first evening.

Sunset on La Digue And we agreed: you only find this here! La Digue truly is a little gem, and we were overjoyed to have chosen this small island for our wedding. The organisation was fantastic – we did not have to worry about a single thing. There was even someone to help with tying the groom’s tie (the nerves got the better of us after all). Our wedding itself was beyond perfect, with lovely people everywhere. And although several weddings are usually held there each week, it felt as though we were among friends. The hotel as a whole was very, very good. Nothing was too much trouble, and the staff were always exceptionally friendly. Breakfast was magnificent – everything a European heart could desire, accompanied by a priceless view!

View at breakfast A must-see on La Digue is L'Union Estate . We took a taxi there for a fixed fare, received lots of additional information along the way and were collected again at the agreed time. But even short walks from the hotel in any direction were simply magical: sipping from a coconut beside free-roaming tortoises as the sun set – indescribable! After 4 nights, we boarded the ferry again and returned to Praslin. There, we received the warmest of welcomes at Ocean Villa / Villa Eve. Sakib, the heart and soul of the property, was always there for us, took wonderful care of every guest and every request, and also happened to be an outstanding cook. We had our own 2-storey holiday home with a huge balcony and a large terrace. Just a few metres through the garden brought us directly to Grand Anse beach. There was some seagrass, but it did not bother us – the beach was still gorgeous, and our stay in paradise continued.

Stingray There were stingrays along the beach. You should avoid stepping on them, as that can be painful, but as is so often the case in the animal kingdom, they were far more afraid of us than we were of them. If you stayed calm, however, you could observe these wonderful creatures very well – which we did every day. On one day, we visited Vallée de Mai – an absolute must on Praslin – an incredibly beautiful primeval forest where the endemic coco de mer grows. On another day, we booked an excursion to Curieuse and St Pierre. Both were breathtakingly beautiful! As a lifelong tortoise fan, I simply had to visit Curieuse – around 300 giant tortoises roam freely across the island. Add a delicious barbecue, and the day was perfect.

Giant tortoise on Curieuse Afterwards, we travelled by boat to St Pierre, where the snorkelling is excellent. It was my first time snorkelling, and I was absolutely thrilled – it felt like being on another planet, with such a wonderful underwater world. Even days after the excursion, I could talk about nothing else, so on our final day we took the bus to Anse Boudin to go snorkelling once more. It was not really possible at the beach by our accommodation, as there simply were not any rocks, which are where the fish particularly like to gather. But the public bus takes you anywhere on the island for the equivalent of €0.50, so it was no problem at all. All in all, it was the trip of our lives. Even now, I sometimes wonder whether it might all have been a dream – it was so unreal and so beautiful...