Wonderful Seychelles
Praslin
A long-awaited dream that we were both finally able to fulfil. When we arrived at Frankfurt Airport, we realised how excited we were. In twelve hours we would land on our dream island, we thought. After a flight of just under ten hours, we finally reached our destination. The Seychelles! The granite rocks that you can marvel at on arrival at Mahé's airport glowed a beautiful yellow colour thanks to the sunrise, which was a wonderful sight. Once we had our luggage, we were warmly welcomed by Creole Travel Services and travelled to the harbour on Mahé in a shared van, from where we were taken to our first accommodation on Praslin. As we had booked Upper Deck Class, we also enjoyed a fantastic view of the sea during the journey. When we arrived on Praslin, I was overwhelmed by how beautiful the harbour and the surrounding water was. After a short journey, we arrived at the beautiful 3-star hotel Sea View Lodge with pool, where we were warmly welcomed by Ajay. Ajay takes great care of his guests. The beautiful beach Anse Possession is just a hundred metres from our accommodation. There was also a family of turtles living in our garden, which we were always allowed to visit and feed in a species-appropriate manner.
The first day ended with a delicious sunset dinner on the hotel's own terrace. We were served a typical Creole dish with fish and curry. It is highly recommended
As we had rented a car, we drove to a beautiful spot on Praslin the next morning, namely the beach Anse Georgette. I had already made a reservation for the famous beach in Germany. You can only access the beach via a footpath or by making a reservation at Anse Georgette. After a half-hour walk through the hotel's golf course, we finally reached the beach, which I would describe as one of the most beautiful on our holiday. White sand, a great bay, crystal-clear water and beautiful rock formations. There was even a small bar there. They sold local fruit and, of course, fresh coconuts. It was incredible to finally be there. You normally only see scenery like this in postcards.
After a long stay on the beach and an extensive photo session, we naturally got hungry. So we headed back through the golf course to a restaurant at the resort that we had previously booked in Germany. We booked the restaurant "The Nest" with a first-class view of the bay of Anse Kerlan. The turquoise water was gorgeous and the sea was also very calm. The food in the restaurant was good. We ordered typical Creole food, of course.
The next day, we travelled to the turtle island of Curieuse, to the Curieuse Marine National Park. We booked a glass-bottom tour via Seyvillas. This is only available once on Praslin. The first thing we did was go snorkelling to discover the beautiful underwater world of the Seychelles. After an extensive snorkelling tour, we continued towards Curieuse Island. There is a mangrove forest here which you have to walk through to get to the turtle centre and the beach. The way there is simply unique. We encountered free-roaming turtles and crabs everywhere, which like to hide in the thousands of shells lying around. So don't take any shells with you, because there could be life there. When I finally arrived at the centre, I went straight to the turtles.
It is simply fascinating how long an Aldabra turtle can live. Finally, a Creole buffet was served by the organisers. After a delicious Takamaka rum in the evening, the day came to an end.
La Digue
Small, but OHO. That would describe La Digue well. After a short journey from Praslin, we finally arrived on La Digue. I already had a feeling that this would be my favourite island, simply because I like it small and compact. Once we arrived at the harbour, we went straight to our accommodation. We spent a total of four nights at Villa Charette run by Arthur. Arthur is a warm host. He greeted us with a welcome drink and explained everything we needed to know about the accommodation. He also gave us lots of advice. Arthur always has a tip for you. You can hire bikes on La Digue directly from Baba. Baba's bike hire shop is located right next to the hotel Le Domaine de L'Orangeraie. We hired two bikes for four full days. We spent our first day exploring the town of "La Passe". There are numerous barbeque bars, souvenir shops, restaurants, supermarkets and much more.
Our first stop was the Bikini Bottom Beach Bar on the beach Anse Severe. Here we savoured delicious smoothies made from local fruit. The bar is colourfully painted and decorated with lots of love. To get to the Bikini Bottom Bar, you simply have to drive up the hill by the cemetery and then you can relax and let yourself be whisked away to the bar and the beach. The Bikini Bottom Bar is also home to free-roaming turtles.
On the second day, we set off for what is probably the most famous beach in the Seychelles, Anse Source d'Argent. We cycled along the main road from La Passe towards La Réunion. There are numerous restaurants and bars along the way. Once we arrived at our destination, we first went through the L'Union Estate. There is a small entrance fee of €10.00 per person. The park impresses with its numerous palm trees and is also a perfect photo motif for you. If you make your way through the park to the world-famous beach of Anse Source d'Argent, you will also discover the vanilla plantation. The park is also home to what is probably the largest and highest granite rock on the island of La Digue. When you arrive at the rock, you will also see the enclosure of the Aldabra turtles that live here. After a two-hour tour of the park by bike, we finally arrived at the beautiful beach. After seeing it, I understand why it is the most photographed beach. Once on the beach, we didn't want to lie around lazily, we wanted to explore everything.
So the first thing we did was go to the Crystal Kayak Stand. Here at Anse Source d'Argent, it is possible to hire a crystal-clear kayak and row through the Indian Ocean at low tide.
The kayaks on the water are a wonderful photo backdrop. I highly recommend it as it was one of my highlights of the whole holiday. Yves who works there will take photos of you and also give you some tips for great photos! We stayed on the beach until sunset. No kidding, but from 16:00 most of the daytime tourists disappear and you have the beach pretty much to yourselves.
After a day at the beach, we went to the Reagge Bar in the evening. Here you can play billiards and darts in the evening. There is also a large TV in the bar for football fans. This is where the people of La Digue meet to spend a nice, cool evening with delicious cocktails. I love this bar. It has a Jamaican touch and is decorated with a lot of love. There is a large picture of Bob Marley hanging in the Reagge Bar.
We used the third day to go on a tour of the island. Our first stop this time was the Sunset Bar. After fortifying ourselves with a cocktail made from local fruit, we headed to a beautiful beach. The Anse Patates. It is a small beach in the north of the island. The beach impresses with its few visitors. Unfortunately, there is a lot of coral in the sea, which is why I strongly recommend wearing water shoes. But you should be careful everywhere in the sea. But this beach is a must-see. Just get off your bike, go for a swim, sunbathe and continue your journey. After making ourselves comfortable there, we continued northwards. Here you will find a great art gallery by George Camille, who impresses with his unusual Creole drawings. His paintings and works are simply beautiful.
You should definitely stop by. In the evening, we went to the Italian restaurant Le Repaire (Le Repaire Boutique Hotel). One of the best Italian restaurants on the island. After dinner, we went over to the hotel Le Domaine de L'Orangeraie. Here we were invited to a beach party. Entry to the party was free of charge. There were two DJs playing music and you could dance in the sand and forget your worries. That was my idea of island life. The cocktails were especially well mixed.
The fourth and final day was quite relaxed. We went back to the beach Anse Source d'Argent and also visited the beach Grand Anse on La Digue, which is unfortunately not suitable for swimming. It's quite wild, but very beautiful. Four days on La Digue were definitely too short for us. There is still so much to discover here. I really liked La Digue. I love the fact that there is no hustle and bustle. There are very few to hardly any cars. The roads are well built and so cycling was great fun. As for the weather, again I can only say it was great. We had light rain on one day on La Digue. But even that couldn't stop us from exploring the island. See you soon La Digue and: Hello Mahé.
Mahé
Last stop Mahé. We were looking forward to the last island. At the same time, we were also sad to have to leave La Digue after just four days. The best thing was that I had saved the best accommodation for the end of the trip. When we arrived in Mahé, we got into our car and drove straight to our accommodation SeyView Apartments run by Angie & Francoir. On the way there, we drove right past Mahé's cute Clocktower and already got a glimpse of the island. When we arrived at our accommodation, Angie greeted us with a welcome drink and showed us around. Our accommodation was on a hill in Glacis. We enjoyed the best view of the sea. Our bed looked directly onto the Indian Ocean. This accommodation was deliberately the nicest of the whole trip. Very modern, very well maintained and simply a dream location.
We were only a five-minute drive from the famous and lively Beau Vallon. There was even a really good breakfast place nearby. As we didn't want to cook on holiday, we didn't take the opportunity to have breakfast there more often. On the first day, of course, we went straight to Baobab Pizzeria at Beau Vallon. I love this restaurant. The food here is really good. You should try the bolognese in particular. Mahé really has a lot to offer at Beau Vallon. Be it souvenirs, very cheap food stalls and also medium-priced food stalls. The beach is very diverse. We definitely noticed the flair of the main island. On the second day, we went to the communal pool overlooking the sea. After relaxing in the pool, we went shopping. We stocked up on the essentials and then went for a bite to eat next door. The restaurant and supermarket were located in the Bel Ombré neighbourhood. About five minutes' drive from Beau Vallon. We ate in a bar & grill restaurant which also had a casino and a big screen for watching sport. I can only recommend it to you. The place is open until 03:00 in the morning and you can enjoy super tasty American-style food there. We ended the day sunbathing on Beau Vallon beach. We had a great time snorkelling and swimming, as the sea was always very calm and pleasant.
The next day, however, we finally wanted to explore the island by car. So off we went to the first spot. The capital Victoria. Our destination was the Sir Selwyn Selwyn Clarke Market. A must-go when you're on Mahé. Here you can find everything your heart desires. Be it fruit, fish, spices or vegetables, really anything. The market even has a whole floor where you can shop for souvenirs. We were overwhelmed by the range on offer. Of course, we also bought one or two souvenirs here. After visiting the market, we went to the Hindu Temple - Arul Mihu Navasakthi Vinayagar, the only one in the Seychelles. It looks beautiful and is definitely worth a visit. Next, we decided to head to the viewpoint. From here you have a great view of many of the Seychelles' islands. We particularly liked the view of Eden Island. Mahe has a lot to offer and is simply too big to be explored in five days.
The next day we went on a beach tour and the first spot was Sunset Beach, which is located in Glacis at the already closed Sunset Hotel. The beach impresses with its breathtaking sunsets and diverse underwater world. Since the neighbouring hotel has closed, it is the locals who like to visit this beach. Here you can simply relax and unwind. After a good two hours, we headed to Anse Soleil. We travelled along the coast of Mahé and through the island. It was a wonderful experience. The island is beautiful. The beach is next to the Four Season Resort on Mahé. You can admire lots of fish here. The beach is nice for swimming and a nice photo spot.
After more than two weeks, our dream holiday came to an end. With one laughing and one crying eye, we made our way to Beau Vallon Beach and enjoyed the last few hours in the Seychelles before heading off to the airport. Our conclusion of this trip is that we have travelled to the most beautiful place in the world. The Seychelles are unique and beautiful. The people are so warm and hospitable that it feels like being at home. We personally liked Praslin & La Digue the best. We just like it quieter and smaller. But that's just our opinion. Mahé has a lot to offer and is just as beautiful as the other islands m. However, because it is the main island, it is also more crowded. We will definitely visit the Seychelles again. Thanks to Seyvillas for this great experience and unique service. Everything went smoothly and quickly!