Places | Seychelles

Seychelles

The Seychelles are about a 1000 miles from anywhere and consist of many island groups. The Mahe group of islands in the North of the Seychelles consists of granitic islands and are especially beautiful with their boulder strewn beaches. The Seychellois people are of every colour and friendly. Tourism and the tuna industry are the country's main income. With the natural environment being the main tourist attraction, conservation is high on the agenda. Many islands used to be stripped of their original vegetation and replaced by coconut plantations. Now, islands are being restored with native trees, the predators (rats and cats) are removed and native and endemic species are re-introduced. One of the big marine attractions is the Hawksbill turtle which is protected and often seen when snorkeling or diving. There is not a lot of nice coral, but the underwater rocky scenery is spectacular and fish life is prolific.
On Mahe, one morning, we released 147 Hawksbill turtle hatchlings on a southern beach. See the hatchling release and hatchling rescue pages.

Anchorages in Praslin and surrounding islands:

Cousin Island : 04°19.6'S, 55°40.1'E Cousin Island is a special nature reserve where you can see the giant tortoise. It also boasts rare endemic birds (warbler and magpie-robin) and is an important nesting ground for seabirds and sea turtles. See our Cousin, Cousin Wildlife and Cousin Warden pages for more info.
North Praslin: 04°17.5'S, 55°41.9'E
St. Pierre Islet: 04°18.1'S, 55°45.0'E Picturesque tiny rocky island. The eastern side of the island is great for snorkeling and diving. There's a ledge where 5 sharks sleep under. We also saw turtles, rays, Napoleon wrasse and big schools of fish.
Ste. Anne Bay: 04°20.6'S, 55°46.0'E
Big Sister Island: 04°17.5'S, 55°51.9'E The coral reef off the beach is all rubble, but there are plenty of fish to see and the juvenile turtles here are not afraid of people and let you approach very closely. There are also many eagle rays around.
Northwest Felicite: 04°19.1'S, 55°51.8'E
East La Digue: 04°21.6'S, 55°51.3'E Snorkeling here we saw 6 eagle rays gliding in formation. Beyond the rocky headland is a half hidden beach with the ruins of a house. Behind the house is the start of a pretty path through forest to the spectacular beach on the other side of the headland.
La Passe, La Digue: 04°20.7'S, 55°49.6'E

There are many great places to dive around the islands. The rocks provide ledges for sea life to hide under and great swim-throughs. There's an abundance of fish and many times we've seen Napoleon wrasse, bumphead parrot fish, eagle rays, sharks and turtles. Our favourite dive site was at the southern tip of Marianne island where the jumble of rocks continues in the water. Swimming between the columns of rock pillars gave the impression of being among the ruins of some great long lost cathedral.