Seychelles: Press
Which island treasure should you choose for the ultimate in pampering, the whitest beaches or simply to get away from the crowds? The author Tim Ecott, gives us his insider’s pick of the best of the luxury resorts.
Above Mahé’s tiny capital, Victoria, there is an outcrop of dark granite rocks known as the Trois Frères. At the top of the mountain is a white cross once used as a navigational marker for ships approaching the port. From the peak you can see Ste Anne and Cerf dead ahead, Praslin and La Digue to the north west, and if it is clear to the eastern horizon, Frégate: a scattering of islands stretching away to the dark blue horizon across a glittering ocean. I can never look at the water without wanting to plunge in for a dive, imagining myself drifting with stealthy manta rays or the magnificent whale sharks which visit when the plankton blooms. In the bright air, tropic birds with elegant white tails fly in from the sea, and in the late afternoon giant fruit bats emerge from their roosts and cruise above the treetops in search of their evening meal.
After almost twenty years and more than thirty visits, my passion for Seychelles has not diminished. I wrote a book here (and started writing several more), and having explored all of the inhabited islands I am still entranced by their physical beauty. More pristine than Mauritius, and with more history and variety than the Maldives these islands are a naturalist’s paradise and have a sensuous charm that takes time to discover.
In Seychelles there are the flat coral islands of the castaway imagination, and rugged mountainous outcrops where seabirds reign supreme. But it is the pink granite that gives what they call the "inner islands" their unique beauty. Remnants of the super-continent left behind when Africa and India split apart, granitic Seychelles is far more appealing and interesting than any parvenu atoll or volcanic upstart.
Thick forests, giant tortoises (many more, incidentally, than in the Galapagos) and the finest sand beaches in the world set this place apart. They say there are 115 islands in Seychelles, though the official figures vary. Forty years ago they were firmly on the jet-set map – although the jet-set had to come by boat, or by seaplane from Kenya since the international airport only opened in 1975. Then in 1977 a Socialist revolution installed Albert René as President and the jet-set fled (including Peter Sellers and George Harrison who had their beachfront property confiscated by the new regime). The islands remained peaceful, and democracy has been firmly restored for more than a decade but the islands retain a faintly undiscovered feel. Remarkably, they have also upgraded their tourism facilities in record quick time and now boast some of the best hotels in the region. More development is inevitable, but the smaller islands generally have just one hotel – and hopefully that will never change.
The main island of Mahé is where all of the international flights arrive, and many tour operators encourage their clients to head straight to the smaller islands offshore. I think they are mistaken, Mahé is the heart of Seychelles, a beautiful island where the mountains and rainforests offer incredible walking and birdwatching, and for plant lovers a feast of exotic tropical species. Driving along the winding roads across the lush central ridge planted with tea and towering sandragon trees will give you a glimpse of the creole heart.
Victoria, the tiny capital, doesn’t exactly quiver with excitement – a small museum, a handful of shops and the market. The most significant landmark is probably still the Pirates’ Arms on Revolution Avenue: sit there long enough and sooner or later you’ll see everyone on Mahé pass by .On the north east side of the island, ten minutes drive from Victoria is the silver sweep of Beau Vallon Bay, the liveliest beach in Seychelles with very good, safe swimming and access to the best scuba diving sites on the island.
On Mahé I recommend the newly refurbished Meridien at Beau Vallon (00 248 677 000) fishcove.lemeridien.com: from €uro 525 (£375) per room per night. The hotel’s elegant thatched lobby overlooking the bay is still one of the best spots to be seen on the bay, and the new Cocoloba bar is probably the most elegant in Seychelles.
Mahé is almost twenty miles long, but the island’s best hotel is at the slightly wilder southern end: Banyan Tree (00 248 383 500) www.banyantree.com: from €uro 1,200 (£850) per couple including breakfast.) The hotel is exquisitely designed and the views over Intendance Bay are mesmerising, though the general ambience is more reminiscent of a slice of Southeast Asia than of Seychelles. Private plunge pools and outdoor jacuzzis make the hotel a favourite with honeymooners. Fans of Banyan’s spa facilities will love it, but be warned that the beach at Intendance is prone to extremely strong surf, and dangerous currents especially between May and September. Personally, I find the Intendance area too isolated (no alternatives to eating at the hotel) and the extremely winding roads make the forty minute drive to the capital feel like a long-distance rally.
Fifteen minutes by Twin Otter will take you from Mahé to Praslin, the second largest island in Seychelles. Praslin is similar in character to Mahé, long and rugged and fringed with excellent sandy beaches but with no discernible town or ‘centre’ to activities. The island is also home to a World Heritage Site, the fifty acre Vallée de Mai, famous for its unique collection of coco-de-mer palms. These ancient trees produce the world’s largest plant seed – the erotic double coconut – and the small forest is where almost all of the surviving trees rub their elegant giant leaves together. Walking in the forest is an eerie experience, a sheltered valley where the light is dim and suffused with the damp rich smell of the tropical earth.
The best genuinely luxury hotel option on Praslin is Lémuria (00 248 281 281) www.lemuriaresort.com from €uro 428 (£305) per night for a Junior Suite with breakfast. Lémuria is fine as long as you aren’t on any sort of budget (a packet of Pringles for the kids by the pool will set you back about £6). It has the only 18-hole golf course in Seychelles, a well organised kids’ club, a spa, two stunning beaches and several good restaurants all in a sort of hermetically enclosed resort which by local standards is very large. There are ninety-six suites and nine villas (including the three-bedroom Presidential option). It’s all a little too grown up for me, but I know several families who return year after year and wouldn’t think of trying anywhere else. To be fair, once most tourists have visited the Vallée de Mai and the beautiful cove at Anse Lazio (consistently voted one of the world’s best beaches) they tend not to stray outside the resort.
For a real taste of the paradise image of Seychelles you have to visit one of the smaller islands, especially those with only one hotel. Close to Mahé the best options include Denis, North Island and Frégate.
Seychelles’ most expensive property is North Island (book through Roxton Bailey Robinson 01488 689700) www.north-island.com from €uro 1,235 (£882) per person per night all inclusive (unusually including scuba diving and sailing). Twenty miles north-east of Mahé, North was uninhabited for thirty years until Wilderness Safaris (the experts in running luxurious African bush-camps) decided to create an eco-resort on the island. With just eleven villas (styled in what I call ‘Italian-designer-African-chic’), this is a resort that has quickly attracted a new type of holiday-maker to Seychelles. North Island is just two square kilometres in size but is impressively hilly and has four private beaches, but the only way for guests to reach the island is by helicopter. Scuba diving and all other watersports are included in the price.
In a similar vein, the tiny privately owned island of Cousine (00 248 321107) www.cousineisland.com from €uro 1,200 (£810) full board/per villa night: has just four luxury villas and can accommodate a maximum of ten guests per night. Just a couple of miles from Praslin, Cousine is a prime nesting site for hawksbill turtles between December and March. It also has an impressive population of indigenous birds including the rare Seychelles white-eye, (but should not be confused with its near neighbour Cousin which is a sanctuary for a quarter of a million nesting birds). Cousine itself is very pretty, and many people like to hire the whole island for a totally back to nature experience, or the ultimate intimate wedding party. The colonial style villas are extremely comfortable but not showy, and the ongoing conservation of the island is a high priority for the owners.
Denis Island, (00 248 321143) www.denisisland.com from €uro 864 (£583) full board for a deluxe bungalow - is a true coral island at the edge of the deepwater drop-off. Fifty miles from Mahé, it has long been a favourite with game fishermen. Unlike some of the newer luxury properties, Denis island retains a genuinely Seychellois feel. For years the island has been run by a local family, but there are now plans to erect a spa on the island as the management has recently been taken over by the deluxe Indian resort chain of Taj Hotels. Denis has just 25 bungalows, and some of the most beautiful sandy beaches in the whole archipelago, giving you a real sense of being at the edge of the world. Unusually, the island is as welcoming to families as to honeymooners, and there is a fundamental elegance to the hotel that particularly appeals to a large number of French visitors. Denis offers good and reliably fine food, and to my mind going anywhere else, even in Seychelles, feels like a terrible shock to the system. It continues to attract the ‘old-money’, people who have been coming to Seychelles and don’t want anything too glitzy.
Frégate Island Private (direct bookings 00 49 6102 50 13 21) www.fregate.com
€uro 1,900 (£1283) per villa fully inclusive except for alcohol.
If ever an island summed up all that is best about Seychelles, it is Frégate. Just twenty minutes by helicopter or light aircraft from Mahé, this magical granitic island is home to rare indigenous birds, a haven for nesting turtles and for a small number of human visitors it offers the ultimate in luxury and privacy. The addition of the newly opened Rock Spa has added a new level of pampering to the already superlative Frégate experience. With seven glorious beaches and just sixteen large villas (complete with outdoor jacuzzis, two bathrooms and spectacular views) it’s a favourite with honeymooners, nature lovers and the super-rich. Bill Gates and Pierce Brosnan have been here, but families love it too for the close contact with giant tortoises and the chance to explore unspoilt rainforest – home to the magpie robin, one of the world’s ten rarest species. There are two freshwater swimming pools and they grow their own exceptional vegetables and fruit. Frégate also has its own resident ecologist (Beate Sachse) who knows the island intimately, and shows guests its hidden natural secrets. At sunset you can sit on the top of Signal rock and watch the changing light as Praslin and La Digue shift into mere silhouettes against a darkening sky.
Fly south of the inner islands and away from the granite plateau for an hour to reach the totally idyllic Amirantes group, where the only island with accommodation is Desroches (00 248 229003): book through Elite Vacations (01707 371000) from €uro 450 (£320) per suite full board. This is one of my favourite islands, a narrow strip of coral boasting around eight miles of sandy beaches and cycle tracks meandering through swaying coconut palms interspersed with wispy cedar groves. Richard Branson once chose Desroches for a holiday and fell off his bicycle here. One of the things that adds to the atmosphere is the plantation workers’ village which makes it feel less like an island made simply for tourists.
Finally, the most remote hotel in all of Seychelles lies three hundred miles southwest of Mahé at Alphonse Island Resort (00 248 229030) www.alphonse-resort.com from €uro 600 (£425) for a double chalet full board. Approaching from the air gives amazing views of the perfect heart shaped lagoon and its island as well as nearby Bijoutier island and the shallows of St. Francois lagoon. Some of my most exciting diving has been done here, on excellent sites like Napoleon Point and the Abyss, though currents and waves can be strong when the south-east monsoon is blowing. Fly-fishing for bone-fish on the flats at St. Francois is rated amongst the best in the world, and the shallow lagoon on Alphonse is great for canoeing and nature walks at low tide. The rooms are miniature chalets built up on stilts with outside showers and clear views of the sea. The main hotel has a small pool, and a refined almost club-like ambience which encourages people to dress up a little in the evenings.
When to go: Seychelles is always reliably warm (and humid) with average temperatures of 74-85ºF (24-31ºC). The islands are just 4º below the equator and rain can occur any time but is most frequent during the northwest monsoon (November – April). The southeast monsoon (May-October) brings a drop in humidity but can cause rough seas especially in July & August.
Currency: The Seychelles Rupee is not easily negotiable outside the islands and tourists must pay for goods and services in hard currency, preferably US dollars, pounds or euros or with a credit/debit card.
Time difference: GMT +4
Tourist information www.aspureasitgets.com
Arranging accommodation and airfares to Seychelles is almost always more economical through tour operators who often have preferential rates to those offered by the properties direct. Elite Vacations (01707 371000) www.elite-vacations.co.uk offers package rates inclusive of airfares and transfers to all of the above properties. The Indian Ocean specialist Rainbow Tours (020 7 226 1004) www.rainbowtours.co.uk sell a wide range of Seychelles properties, and Roxton Bailey Robinson Worldwide (01488 689700) www.rbrww.com feature many of the resorts mentioned. Several of the island properties require a minimum stay of 3 nights.
Contributor: Tim Ecott’s latest book "Vanilla: Travels in Search of the Luscious Substance" is published in paperback this month (Penguin: £7.99).