La Digue: a mini escape to paradise
Arrival
As we had very few days’ holiday, we decided to spend them all on the island that best matched our idea of a holiday, and La Digue fully lived up to our expectations: lush, full of places to discover, intimate and far removed from mass tourism. What is more, despite it being the rainy season, the weather remained sunny throughout our stay.
We booked the flights ourselves through Emirates and chose the guest house on the SeyVillas website, which also provided assistance locally and arranged all our transfers through a local agency.
We arrived in Victoria at 7 in the morning looking pale and exhausted, but just a few minutes after reaching the delightful Pension Michel, we walked down to the calm waters of Anse La Réunion, less than 200 m from the guest house.
On the way back, we stopped at the shop to buy a snack and some local beer to enjoy with our feet up on our room’s veranda. Then it was time for dinner: every evening, we were served a perfectly balanced, typically Creole meal including starters, rice, meat, fish, side dishes and dessert.
After dinner, we took a walk to La Passe, where we sat on the jetty, mesmerised by the fish chasing one another through the waves in the strong current, and realised just how tired we really were. Sleep welcomed us amid a riot of cushions, frangipani and hibiscus.
First day
The next morning, we hired bicycles and headed towards the famous Anse Source d'Argent, 750 m from the guest house. We paid the 100 SCR entrance fee to the park and followed the path. Before us were all the colours that would define every day of our stay: the white sand, the blue sea, the vivid green vegetation and the grey granite.
We found a secluded corner of the beach surrounded by rocks, all to ourselves, and set off to discover the wonders beneath the water. It was no Great Barrier Reef, but the fish in all sorts of colours and an unsettling ray that glided past us were more than enough to satisfy us. We skipped lunch, as the little kiosk served amazing fruit juices and rather mysterious cocktails. We ventured a little farther south, but a high cliff forced us to turn back, so we collected our bicycles and decided to tackle the climb to the Bellevue bar, around 300 m above sea level. Needless to say, we had to walk up some of the steepest stretches, but the tremendous effort was amply rewarded by the wonderful view from the top. After stopping for a drink, we hurtled back down – but not before checking the brakes – towards La Réunion and La Passe, continuing past the harbour just in time to watch the sunset over Anse Severe.
Second day
The island measures no more than 5 km long and 3 km wide, and we wanted to see as much of it as possible during our very short stay, so we headed for the other side. At the harbour, we booked an afternoon boat trip to the nearby islands of Coco and Félicité and then continued towards Anse Severe and the island’s northernmost tip, which we rounded. The paved road follows the coast, and from Anse Patates we cycled south until the road came to an end.
From there, it is possible to continue on foot, but we decided to stop at the spacious Anse Banane, beneath an enormous tree, with a kiosk and its strategically placed bar stools overlooking the sea just behind us. We arrived at the harbour early, but as we were the boat’s only passengers, we set off straight away for Coco Island:
Félicité greeted us with another hotel ‘monstrosity’ under construction. After some effort, we reached the white sand and stayed there admiring the tracks left by passing turtles. We watched the sunset from the tables set out on the sand at the Fish Trap bar, near the harbour.
Third day
The south-eastern side was still left to explore. All we had to do was cross the hill and we were at Grand Anse, an immense, dazzlingly white bay framed by lush hills. We continued on foot towards Petite Anse and then on to our destination: Anse Cocos. Enchanting, small and secluded, it was almost deserted – many people are put off by the walk of at least 30 minutes along a path clearly marked by little wooden hands.
A paradise flycatcher with a long white tail completed this wonderful scene. On the way back, we stopped among the towering ocean waves at Grand Anse, the only place on the island where we saw any surfboards.
Departure
Just as everything was beginning to feel familiar, it was time to leave. We spent the morning at Anse La Réunion, just as we had on our first afternoon. The tide was not high, but beneath the water we were treated to turtles, rays and strange fish hiding behind abandoned anchors. We arrived at the airport in Victoria well ahead of our boarding time, so we left our wheeled cases at the police station and took a taxi to Eden Island Marina, a small marina with luxurious apartments and yachts that reminded us of the Costa Smeralda. Very attractive, with good restaurants and a perfect sunset. Then we were ready to board our flight to Dubai, where we spent the night exploring the city before continuing on to Malpensa.
They were perfect days. Thank you, Seychelles, and thank you, SeyVillas!
