Seychelles, the smallest country in the African continent- spanning just 457 square kilometers and with a population of 100,600 in 2022. But don’t let its small size fool you. It’s strong economy with an emphasis on tourism has enabled the country to boast a GDP per capita of top 50 in the world.
Seychelles consists of 115 different islands of varying sizes. Some of them inhabited, while others not. We visited 4 of them during our time there in September 2023- Mahe, Praslin, Curieuse Island and La Digue.
Mahe
The island where the capital (Victoria) is. Its main international airport is also located here, along with a host of hotels and resorts for all budgets. We stayed at Coral Strand Smart Choice. Reasonably priced hotel with fantastic views of the beach!
As it was our honeymoon and we booked the honeymoon suite, for the first 2 breakfasts, we were taken to a “VIP” table with red tablecloth and flower centerpiece. A simple gesture, but one that I found was quite sweet.
With a number of things to see and do in Mahe, you will not get bored. The capital city of Victoria was just a few kilometers from our hotel and our rental car made short work of the distance. Oh, do yourself a favour and not bother with hailing taxis. Just rent a car. With prices ranging from 45 Euros/day, it is an absolute bargain compared with the exorbitant prices taxis charge. A 10km journey could set you back about the same price as renting a car for the whole day!
The Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke Market is a popular place for locals and tourists alike. The ground floor is a wet market which sells fresh produce such as fish, fruit and vegetables. While the second floor stocks souvenirs and clothes for the tourists.
Tea Tea Tavern
The Tea Tavern is an interesting place to visit if you have an interest in the tea production process, Unfortunately there were no tours taking place at the time we were there, so we just visited the place for the views and had some vanilla tea at their cafe thereafter.
There are a number of trails littered all around Mahe for the more adventure-minded. We took on the Tea Tavern Trail. Just half a kilometer in distance, it took us abiut 15 minutes to complete. Mind you there are some narrow, overgrown sections so wearing long trousers and covered shoes are recommended.
Takamaka Rum Distellery
The Takamaka Rum Distillery– gives you an insight as to the history of rum in Seychelles as well how it’s made. I don’t drink so I can’t give you a review as to its quality, but judging from how crowded it was, I would assume that it was pretty good!
Jardin de Rui Spice Garden
This garden is worth the long and steep drive up just for the commanding views alone, but the variety of flora and fauna are worth a look at too. The latter could do with a tad bit more curation though by way of increased signage as to the names of the different trees. Oh and they have tortoise too!
The Aldabra giant tortoise, native to the Seychelles, was hunted in large numbers by European sailors. Once known to have been extinct, they have been re-discovered and now are strictly conserved and well taken care of.
