Welcome to Paradise
At last, the time had come for us to escape everyday life for 11 days. On 8 October 2023, my partner and I set off for the airport in Schwechat, Austria. After flying via Dubai and spending several hours in the air, we landed at Mahé Airport at 6.30 am on 9 October. Our transfer was already waiting for us and took us to the harbour. After almost 2 hours and 30 minutes, we boarded the ferry. Unfortunately, this was one slight downside to the journey. The sea was very rough, and several passengers, including both of us, were sick, which unfortunately put a dampener on our first day.
Once we arrived at the apartment, we had a shower and went straight to sleep. Travelling for 25 hours is definitely exhausting. So, our adventure did not really begin until Tuesday. We hired bicycles and, after quickly buying a few groceries and posting a postcard, set off to explore. Our first stop was the ‘Bikini Bottom’ beach bar, where two giant tortoises were resting, so of course we had to take some photographs.
We then cycled to the end of the road, where we could not go any further by bicycle. Unfortunately, continuing on foot was not an option either, as we were wearing the wrong footwear. A little spoiler: it would not be the last time.
On Wednesday, we cycled to the national park to spend a few hours on the wonderful Anse Source d'Argent. It was beautiful. However, I would recommend visiting in the afternoon, as the water level is considerably higher then and it may be better for swimming.
At around 2 pm, we set off for Grand Anse (a little too late, as we later realised). The waves were relatively high, so we decided not to go into the water and stopped for a snack instead. Once we had finished eating, we put on our water shoes and walked to Petite Anse Beach, followed by Anse Cocos – or rather, hurried there.
The route was rather more strenuous and longer than we had expected, so unfortunately we did not reach Anse Cocos until the tide was already very high. We could no longer use the natural pool, as we did not want to spend the entire walk back wading through the water. Unfortunately, the shoes had rubbed a little, so my partner had to patch me up. As we had not brought any torches, we had to hurry on the cycle back – and all this in pouring rain. The beaches, however, were absolutely beautiful, and it was well worth it!
We then took it easy on Thursday and Friday. We visited Anse Severe, which is also better for swimming at high tide, and a small section of beach opposite Patatran Village. This beach was really beautiful.
The adventure continued on Saturday. We had booked the southern route to Anse Marron with Sunny Trail. We set off with our guide from the helipad at 8.30 am. First, the group of travellers – 10 people plus our guide, Ted – was driven to Grand Anse Beach. From there, we continued over rocks and through the rainforest to Anse Marron. The weather made things rather difficult for us that day, however. Several times, the rain came down in torrents.
This trail really is only suitable for people with a reasonable level of fitness and a good sense of balance. The route crosses large granite rocks, sometimes one person at a time because assistance from the guide is needed, before reaching Anse Marron. After hiking for 2 hours, however, you are rewarded with a wonderful natural pool. After 1 hour and 30 minutes of swimming and enjoying a fruit platter, we continued on our way.
Just over 1 hour later, we reached Anse Pierrot, where we were told that inflatable boats would take us to the end of the tour, as the tide meant it was no longer possible to continue on foot. For me, as someone who hates boats, this was the icing on the cake of the adventure. In a slightly battered inflatable boat and with rough waves, we headed to the beginning of Anse Source d'Argent, where we were shown how to open coconuts properly. After a quick snack, we took the inflatable boat back to the helipad, where our tour ended. As a group, we discovered that day that there are four ways to get wet in the Seychelles.
SWEATINGRain
Swimming
Travelling by boat
So, for anyone planning to visit the Seychelles, do make sure you bring waterproof rucksacks, as well as waterproof or water-resistant shoes if possible. After this overwhelming day, we returned to the apartment, where we dried our rucksacks and shoes with a hairdryer before falling into bed completely exhausted.
For Sunday, we had booked a snorkelling trip with Belle Petra. Yes, you read that correctly: I voluntarily went on a boat again – this time, a small speedboat. We set off at 9.30 am, first heading to Small Sister Island, then Big Sister Island and finally Félicité Island. The highlights for us were the sea turtle and the blacktip reef shark. The many fish were also wonderful, and the tour guides took excellent care of us. Tired but happy, we treated ourselves to a delicious smoothie before having to pack our suitcases.
Monday started early, as we took the ferry to Mahé at 7.30 am. When we arrived, another shuttle was waiting to take us to the Erica's Residence Self Catering Apartment. As we were quite tired, we only explored the beach directly outside and bought a few groceries. Unfortunately, we could not visit any restaurants, as we have several food intolerances to consider.
On Tuesday, we drove our hire car to the beaches of Anse Royale, Anse Intendance and Anse Takamaka Beach. Anse Royale was excellent for snorkelling, and we saw stingrays at Anse Takamaka. All three beaches are suitable for swimming, which had unfortunately hardly been possible on La Digue because of the strong waves and the many rocks in the water.
On Wednesday, we got our hiking boots out again and drove to the Copolia Lodge Trail – driving on the left along such narrow roads is certainly an adventure in itself. The 1.4 km trail, with an elevation gain of 488 metres, now lay ahead of us. We set off feeling motivated, but were soon out of breath. After 50 minutes, we reached the viewing platform, which offered us a wonderful view over Victoria and the rainforest.
Unfortunately, we could only enjoy the view briefly before it began pouring with rain yet again. After waiting beneath palm leaves for 30 minutes, we headed back to our car. The wet ground meant we could only walk very slowly, so the return journey also took 50 minutes. Afterwards, we went to Beau Vallon Beach, north of Victoria. We spent an hour there watching the waves over an iced coffee and a pizza before driving back to our accommodation – once again in pouring rain. That was another adventure, as we could barely see anything through the rain and then became caught in rush-hour traffic. So, once again, we dried our shoes and rucksacks with a hairdryer and headed to bed.
On Thursday, we set off on foot for the Takamaka Rum Distillery at 10.15 am. Walking in the Seychelles is quite an experience too, as there are no pavements. After 20 minutes, we reached our destination and could hardly believe our eyes when we happened to find some members of our southern La Digue tour group standing there. We did the short tasting session together and then treated ourselves to a cocktail.
Feeling content and happy, we returned to our apartment and prepared for our departure. At 9.15 pm, a shuttle collected us and took us to the airport. And that was how our journey ended. We flew back to Vienna with many wonderful memories.
