A super classic trio: Praslin, La Digue, Mahé (Seychelles) (page 2 of 7)

Yes per person

I guess that’s a yes. (My 2000 is also per person)

We paid around 760 € for the flight on Iberia’s site, while the same one on Qatar’s site was 250 € more expensive (or thereabouts)... go figure!

We did the same thing. 😉

You can see how popular your journal is, Muriel! It's true that it's always the same people, but I love feeling like I'm reuniting with "the family" 😄

I just want to add that in 2022, I stayed in top places in the Seychelles for less than 100 € a night (not *right* on the beach, Kate, but just next to it 😉). I ate really good homemade food from "food trucks" for 4/5 € and was able to get tipsy every night on excellent Takamaka rum, bought from a convenience store (you're saved, Bruno 😄).

Looking forward to the rest!

If you want some addresses, I can!

Do share! But I’m afraid prices have gone up a lot since 2016…

Yep, as Christelle and Lillie mentioned, the budget-friendly alternative to restaurants is takeaway: cheap (around 6-7 €), filling, and often really good (one exception on La Digue).

Speaking of which, it’s all well and good to marvel at the blues, greens, and turquoises of the water, but maybe it’s time to think about tonight’s dinner and the breakfasts to come. No desire to get back in the car to go to Côte d'Or (THE village on the east coast), there’s a small supermarket 300m from here—we can walk. A little climb to get to the supermarket, another to return to the apartment, and here we are, dripping with sweat 🤪. Tomorrow’s gonna be fun! Given the few hours of sleep we’ve had in the last 48 hours, by 9 PM it’s lights out—the 3-hour time difference is more than absorbed 😏.

Monday 24/03 Up at dawn, I find a sunrise (over the sea) just as beautiful as a sunset 😉. Today’s the day for hiking. On Praslin and Mahé, most hikes are paid (often 100 or 150 rupees, about 6.5 € or 10 €). It always feels weird to pay to use a trail, but I guess it helps maintain the paths... We’ve got three options: the famous Vallée de Mai (but entry is 30 €, and if you want a guide, that’s extra—I think that’s a bit much), Fond Ferdinand (further south, 20 € including a guide, but 700 steps to reach the summit; given our short hiking experience yesterday, I’m skeptical 🤪). That leaves Glacis Noir, 100m from Vallée de Mai and 100 rupees—so that’s the one we’ll do... Plus, there’s (almost) no one here, while there’s a queue at the Vallée de Mai ticket office (that’s where all the tourist buses drop their passengers). It starts gently, in the middle of typical tropical vegetation:

Then it gets steeper; a few explanatory signs describe the fauna and flora you might encounter.

We end with some big stairs (or small rocks), nothing insurmountable, but between the heat and especially the humidity, at the same elevation gain, it’s way more tiring than back home—good thing we didn’t choose Fond Ferdinand’s 700 steps! All that effort is rewarded with a nice panorama once we reach the end (there’s an observation tower that was wobbly according to recent reviews I read, but it’s been repaired). Unfortunately, the clouds rolled in, and the colors aren’t as pretty... but it’s still not bad 😉.

I can’t finish this morning without mentioning the emblem of Vallée de Mai and Praslin: the coco-de-mer 😎.

We continue the journey to reach the island’s largest beach, Grand'Anse, on the west coast.

The least you can say is that it’s not crowded 😏! (Truth be told, there are a few people chilling in the shade under the trees.) Overall, very few people on Praslin’s beaches—I found it the most peaceful of the three islands.

We head back via the coastal road: a series of idyllic little coves but no place to park until we reach Anse Consolation:

A bit of snorkeling around the rocks before hitting the road again.



A quick stop (it’s starting to rain) at Sainte Anne Church.

And one last stop at Côte d’Or to grab some Creole dishes from the takeaway La Mer (plus an amazing avocado salad).

Tuesday 03/25 Today, it's a boat excursion (another classic one). I booked a few days in advance with the Les Lauriers hotel (the prices were reasonable and it's on the right side of the island for us). Off we go to Curieuse and Saint Pierre islands, with a BBQ at noon (there's a longer version that includes Cousin Island, a bird sanctuary). There were only four of us on the boat... but way more people when we arrived 😏.

Here we go!

Curieuse is a sanctuary for Aldabra tortoises, the only giant tortoise species along with those from the Galapagos. They live in the wild but mostly gather near the boat landing spot. But Curieuse is also home to lemon sharks swimming in very shallow water (a child was actually bitten there a few years ago 😮). And a very photogenic beach:



From there, a trail leads through a mangrove to another beach where we had lunch (the BBQ was really good, even if the place felt a bit like a cafeteria) before heading back to the boat for Saint Pierre.

Saint Pierre is for the snorkeling part, with lots of fish (though I can’t tell you their names ).





But it’d be a shame not to take a quick tour of the islet before leaving...



On the way back, we’re lucky enough to spot three dolphins... but too briefly for me to snap any photos 😕. Back to Côte d'Or, which is pretty quiet too.



Wednesday 26/03 Today, we’d planned a scuba diving baptism for me, then a trip to Anse Lazio and (possibly) the hike connecting Anse Lazio to Anse Georgette in the northwest of the island.

Yeah, but here’s the thing—it rained last night, and it’s still raining this morning. The sky’s gray, the sea’s gray, and on top of that, it’s really rough 🏴‍☠️... no scuba diving baptism! We can still enjoy the outdoors, though, staying nice and sheltered on the terrace since it’s still warm. The rain finally stops in the middle of the afternoon. We can’t leave without seeing "the most beautiful beach in Praslin" (or even the Seychelles), right? Especially since it’s only 2 km from our place—we can walk there. Well, okay, it’s still a workout because in the Seychelles, even if the roads don’t climb for long, they climb *hard*! So, let’s be honest—the most beautiful beach in Praslin when there’s no sun... well, it’s not great!

Maybe a little snorkeling near the rocks at the ends (some people told us they saw sea turtles there on Monday)? Nope, the sea’s too rough there too—nobody’s taking the risk. Oh well! Back to the apartment, where the sun makes a shy appearance at the very end of the day.

Tomorrow, we’re off to La Digue.

Loved the boat trip 😉. We missed that one.

"From there, a trail leads through a mangrove to another beach where we’ll have lunch (really good BBQ, even if the place feels a bit like a canteen) before taking the boat back to Saint Pierre."

Why do you say it feels a bit like a "canteen"?

I should’ve said “refectory” 😉: a big space with long tables that can fit a lot of people... we’re far from a Robinson Crusoe meal! Each cook does their own BBQ for the guests on their boat (well, roughly, since ours made food for a table of about ten Italians too).

Hi Muriel,

I’m really interested in a travel journal about the Seychelles 🙂. Well done for having the courage to start a new one 🙂 ... I’ll admit I’ve let it slide lately ...

It’s a destination I’d considered because I can go diving there without my wife getting bored ... but I was worried it might be too touristy and expensive 🤪

Hey JF

I’ll admit I’ve let things slide lately...

I had noticed 😉, great to have you back 🙂!

It’s a tourist destination, no doubt, but we never saw huge crowds (a bit more on Mahé), and expensive—well, that depends on what you’re looking for. Apart from restaurants (still, it was way less than our usual vacations) and, of course, aperitifs (right, Bruno 😏), we really didn’t feel like we were missing out.

Thursday 03/27:

Between two showers, we managed to return the car and catch the ferry to La Digue (just 15 minutes by boat) without getting too soaked. As promised, Mera (our host) was waiting for us on the dock. It had rained on La Digue too, and the main street was turned into one giant puddle. We tried to pick our way through the countless bikes zigzagging to avoid the puddles (with no luck), pedestrians trying to dodge the bikes, and the cars. Here’s a little rant: cars on La Digue??? (don’t get your hopes up, there are no more ox carts) Yep, there are, and more and more of them. Sure, you need vehicles to transport materials or people... but big air-conditioned vans for tourists when every hotel is less than 10 minutes from the port?

Anyway, once we turned onto a side street, it was much quieter. We settled into our apartment, and the bikes were waiting for us (along with the umbrellas 😉).

Given the weather, there wasn’t much else to do but explore La Passe, grab a few groceries, and buy what would turn out to be our worst (not to say inedible) takeaway Creole dish.

Friday 03/28: Off we went to explore the beaches in the south, which we reached by bike. As mentioned earlier, the climbs aren’t long, but they’re steep, and (almost) everyone gets off to push their bike up 😎. Just like Christelle told me, you just leave the bikes at the end of the road. There were only a few when we arrived—there’d be way more when we left...

We arrived right at Grande Anse:



...under a pretty unpredictable sky.

Oh! A potted tree bouquet

You have to walk along the beach’s inland side to reach Petite Anse. We passed a small, very photogenic pond:



Then we climbed (not for long) and descended. This beach has a guard!



We wandered the beach under an equally uncertain sky...





...before heading back for another climb-and-descent to Anse Coco beach.

So here we are at Anse Coco:



Oh no! I totally forgot there was a swimming spot (elsewhere it’s dangerous because of the currents) at the end of Anse Coco, and we didn’t bring our swimsuits! Ugh, never mind, we’ll just enjoy watching the multitude of crabs!

Back the same way.

After the effort, the reward! Since we’re skipping the apéro, this excellent fresh mango juice will do the trick 🙂

There are only a few left when we arrive, that won’t be the case when we leave...

The way you put it, it sounds like they were stolen! That’s not the case, right? 🏴‍☠️

That’s not the case, is it? 🏴‍☠️

No, of course not; I meant there were a lot more (and not the other way around 😏). The bikes come with a lock, but we were told it’s more to avoid mixing up bikes (I bet some people would just grab the first one they see 🤪) than to prevent theft.

Instead of an apéritif, this excellent fresh mango juice will do the trick :)

Yeah, you’ve gotta mix it up! :p