The Seychelles is an archipelago and sovereign state in the
Indian Ocean. They are located northeast of Madagascar and a good
1,500 kilometers east of the East African mainland, just south of
the equator.
The Christian island group impresses with its
unique beauty. With white sandy beaches and crystal clear water, the
Seychelles offer the perfect ambience for relaxing days by the sea.
Holidays are rather expensive here.
On all the “inner”
Seychelles islands there are beautifully formed granite rocks that
blend wonderfully into the landscape, crystal clear water that has
almost bathtub temperatures of around 28°C. Snorkeling and diving
are definitely popular. The “outer” islands such as Aldabra,
Amiranten are coral islands (similar to the Maldives).
If you
are interested in traveling to the Seychelles, you should have a
little money ready. It's not a cheap vacation. There is no
all-inclusive here, unless you are on an island with only one hotel,
which will then cost accordingly (for example Frégate).
There are 115 islands, the “inner,” mountainous ones are also called
the “granite” ones. Most of the outlying islands are atolls that will be
largely submerged in the sea by the end of the current century. Many are
uninhabited or barely inhabited, and none have a natural freshwater
source. Unless they are national parks, they are managed by the
semi-governmental Island Conservation Society.
1 Mahe . Mahé, the
largest island in the Seychelles, is known for its beautiful beaches.
The island also offers a rich cultural diversity, which is reflected in
the capital Victoria. Here visitors can experience the colorful mix of
African, Asian and European influences in cuisine and culture. Mahé is
also an ideal starting point for trips to other islands in the region.
2 Praslin. Praslin is known for its untouched nature and breathtaking
beaches. The island is home to the Vallée de Mai, a UNESCO World
Heritage site where the unique Coco de Mer palm grows. Praslin also
offers excellent diving and snorkeling in the nearby coral reefs.
3
La Digue. La Digue is the third main island of the Seychelles and
impresses with its relaxed atmosphere. Time seems to have stood still
here as there are few cars on the island and bicycles are the preferred
method of transport. La Digue is famous for its unique granite cliffs
and beaches. The island also offers great opportunities for hiking and
exploring.
4 Frigate Island (Frégate Island) . Frégate Island is a
private island and also houses an exclusive resort. The island is known
for its untouched nature and remarkable biodiversity, including the rare
Seychelles giant tortoise.
5 Recif Island (Île aux Récifs) . It is
rather private and hardly accessible to the public.
6 Cousin Island
(Cousin Island) . The island, which has been strictly protected since
1968, also has, among other things, the highest density of lizards in
the world. It is managed by Nature Seychelles, which is the only one to
organize guided half-day tours here. A national park fee of RS500 is
included in the fare. The protected area extends 400m into the sea and
anchoring is prohibited.
7 Aldabra Atoll. one of the world's largest,
has been uninhabited for 200 years. Protected as a world natural
heritage site, a visit requires permission (i.e. you will have to use a
specialized tour operator). In 2018, this costs €200 per day;
professional photographers are asked to pay an additional €5,000. There
is no accommodation or docking yet. Food must also be arranged with the
ship charter.
8 Alphonse Islands (Alphonse Atoll) . There is a luxury
hotel that offers 5 beach villas and 22 “cabins”. Diving and fishing
tours extra, plus an “environmental contribution.” Price: Weekly prices
(with VP): Villa US$ 9425 p.p., Bungalow US$ 6525 p.p. (2018), each +
US$ 850 flight.
Amirante Islands (Amirante Islands) . 29 small atolls
and reefs with a total land area of 11½ km² make up the Amiranten
Islands, with a population formerly of 300. Most of these were on Marie
Louise Island until the end of 2017. After a tourist development failed
due to its remoteness, a prison was set up here, which has since been
closed. The most important island is the Île Desroches with 4 km². There
is an airstrip, presidential villa and the luxury accommodation
Desroches Island Lodge (August 2018: from € 1640 per person + flight €
400 return + 15% tax). Their employees make up the majority of the
population of 100.
Victoria. The country's capital and only real city is Victoria on the island of Mahé. It has a population of 25,000. Connected to Victoria is the artificial residential island Eden Island, which was built up using convict labor in 2006 and opened in 2012. This is the only place where foreigners are allowed to purchase land.
Anyone with a passport (except Kosovo) and sufficient funds can
travel to the Seychelles visa-free. As a rule, a (extendable) stay of 90
days for tourist purposes is approved if proof of hotel booking is
available.
Customs
Free quantities
2 liters of liquor and 2
liters of wine
200ml perfume
200 cigarettes (in the country in
2017 a pack costs 120-200 SR) or 250 g of tobacco
Food for personal
use up to 5000 SR
Requires approval
Plants or animals as well
as parts of them require approval. Certain species of animals, shells or
plants are not allowed to be exported, including the Seychelles palm
(syn. Coco de Mer). You can get permission from the Seychelles Island
Foundation for their coco fesse fruit for a few hundred euros.
By
plane
International airports include Mahé (IATA: SEZ) and Praslin
Island (IATA: PRI). The latter is usually reached after a stopover on
Mahé.
By boat
See the information about the capital's marina.
Smaller islands are served from Mahé, see the overview of airports.
Guests from hotel islands are usually taken to the correct machine in
Mahé by staff.
bus
You can get anywhere on Mahé by bus. You
also never have to wait long for the next bus. The hub is the bus
station in Victoria.
There are three bus routes on Praslin, two of
which run in circles (one clockwise around the island and one against
it; however there is no direct road connection to the west, so the bus
has to turn around at Mont Plaisir) - Mon-Fri. 6:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
every 30-45 minutes, much less frequently on weekends. To get to some of
the more remote beaches, you often have to walk a bit (up to ½ hour)
from the bus stop (e.g. Anse Lazio over a mountain). Routes are 61: Mont
Plaisir - Anse Boudin via Vallée de Mai; 62 Mont Plaisir - Zimbabwe via
Consolation and 63 Mont Plaisir - Anse La Blague - Côte d’Or.
There are also plenty of taxis for hire on Mahé and Praslin, and a few
on La Digue - comparable in price to those in Central Europe.
By
rental car
There is left-hand traffic and EU driving licenses are
recognized. Rental prices are around 40 euros per day for small cars.
Prices are slightly higher on Praslin.
The few roads on Mahé and
Praslin are well paved, but narrow and sometimes quite steep and often
without guardrails. You should definitely not park under coconut trees.
There are six gas stations on Mahé and two on Praslin. The liter of fuel
costs 17-20 SR in 2017.
Apparently there are no cars on La Digue
(only many hotels have shuttle buses for guests and to transport goods).
As a first choice means of transport, you can rent bicycles everywhere
(make sure the brakes work!). Otherwise, running is the order of the
day. You will be taken from the ship to the hotel either by traditional
ox cart or the aforementioned minibuses.
Yachts
There are
several sailing ship rental companies or charterers. The yacht club in
Victoria has relevant information.
The national language is Seychellois Creole, like all regional Bourbonnais Creoles, French-based with highly simplified grammar and phonetic orthography. The locals can speak both French and English.
The currency is the Seychelles rupee (“roupi”); their course was
released during the 2008 financial crisis. The exchange rate on May 31,
2023 was €1 = 14.88 SR. Compared to March 2021, the euro has fallen by
40%, making a very expensive travel destination even more expensive.
A maximum of 2000 SR may be imported or exported. Euro, US$ etc.
Currencies are exchanged in banks for rupees. A series of banknotes was
issued in 2016 to mark 40 years of independence (illustrations), but the
previous series from 2011 (with holograms for notes over 50 SR) remains
valid.
For shopping, we definitely recommend the market (Sir
Selwyn Clarke Market) on Mahé. Spices are an easy-to-carry souvenir.
Victoria, as the capital, has the largest range of goods. There are many
small shops and also larger supermarkets here.
On La Digue there
is a well-stocked supermarket in La Passe, which offers clothing and
food as well as home furnishings and electrical goods.
In all
villages there are small Indian-run corner shops where you can buy the
essentials.
Most goods have to be imported (from India,
Australia, Europe) and are therefore expensive. Basic foods such as
bread and rice are subsidized by the state and are therefore cheap.
It is of course recommended to choose tropical, freshly harvested
fruits, which are often only grown for personal consumption.
Souvenirs include wood or coconut crafts, paintings, stamps, and
hand-painted or tie-dyed clothing. Coco de mer nuts only with export
permit.
The cuisine is Creole, meaning there is a lot of fish, chutneys and
curries. There are hardly any beef farms, most imported goods are barely
available for less than SR 200/kg (2018), and chicken costs half as
much. The fish that is caught in the morning is served on the table in
the evening. People also eat flying fox goulash in the Seychelles.
Overall, Seychelles cuisine is less varied or exciting than in Mauritius
or India. Chutneys (satini) are standard as an addition. If you are
prepared for tourists, there is usually rice or French fries as a
filling side dish. Locals prefer cassava, breadfruit or sweet potatoes.
An important ingredient, also for marinating, is the lasos creole sauce,
whose characteristic note is contributed by the fruits of the cucumber
tree (Bilimbi). If you buy bananas at the market, the smaller they are,
the sweeter - this taste experience has nothing in common with the
dollar banana products available in Europe!
There are restaurants
of all price ranges near and of course in hotels (non-guests are almost
always welcome). Drink prices are welcome. Particularly when it comes to
package holidays, you often end up with a rather average buffet. On the
small (private) islands with only one hotel, there is no other option
than to eat in the hotel.
Fast food has also found its way across
the ocean. You just have to trust yourself, the food doesn't always look
like it tastes good, but it does.
Bouyon refers to any type of
soup.
Bourzwa is more of a holiday dish. For this purpose, a
whole red snapper is applied.
Kari pwason, fish curry is usually
slightly sour with tamarind. Kari zourit is octopus curry with coconut
milk and cinnamon. The local version of klippfisch, pwason sale, is
preferably served during the southeast monsoon season when fresh produce
is in short supply.
The dessert Daubes are fruits cooked in
coconut milk. The sweet jelly from the unripe Coco de Mer is expensive.
Seybrew, a pilsner, is the local beer brand. Eku, Guinness and
Smirnoff Black/Red Ice are produced under license, as are the globally
distributed lemonades of a company from Atlanta, Georgia. Other local
soft drink brands include Paradise Fun, Waterloo Factory and the waters
of Eden Springs, Sey Pearl among others. Calou is a weakly fermented
palm wine. The Trois Freres Distillery distills spirits, especially rum,
of the Takamaka brand. Spirits are heavily taxed, local brands are
available from SR 300 (2018/bottle), imported goods cost from SR 500.
Wine, which is naturally imported, should be avoided in the Seychelles
if possible, as European supermarket products are at inflated prices.
Tea is grown on the western slopes of the Morne Seychelles National
Park. Seeds and methods from Kenya were adopted in 1966, so don't expect
top quality. Seyte and Tropical Foods flavored brands are available in
local stores, as is Tropicafe's locally grown coffee.
The Seychelles does not offer a strong nightlife. There are a few
nightclubs on Mahe, Praslin and La Digue, but they are hardly visited by
tourists.
Prostitution is illegal, but exists. Mahé and Praslin
are the main centers of nightlife and prostitution in the Seychelles.
Disabled-accessible facilities should not be expected outside of
luxury hotels.
Various sailing trips are offered, usually
one-week, with accommodation in a cabin.
An accommodation search
engine is available on the official Tourism Board website in
machine-translated German.
In 2018, many accommodations only
offer WiFi for a fee.
Cheap
There are no really cheap
overnight stays because accommodation always has to meet a certain
minimum standard. Since the beginning of tourism, with the opening of
the airport in 1971, it has been government policy to only attract
wealthy visitors. Theoretically, it is mandatory to present a hotel
booking for the entire stay upon arrival. There are no campsites or
youth hostels. Wild camping near the beach is strictly prohibited.
Medium
In the Seychelles you will mainly find guesthouses run by
the locals, as well as a few smaller hotels. The cheapest way to get
away is to get one of the few self-catering apartments as a couple or
small group. Prices of €50-80 per night are the cheapest you can find in
2018. Prices of €90-165 are more realistic. The overnight prices in the
guesthouses correspond to the European average, but their quality does
not always correspond.
luxury
Some smaller islands are
exclusive hotel resorts. The large hotels, such as the Labriz Hilton,
based on Silhouette Island, are usually located on a private island.
As an originally French colony, there are the usual Catholic
holidays: 1.1. New Year's Day, March 29, 2024 Good Friday to April 1,
2024 Easter Monday, August 15th. The Assumption of Mary (compared to be
celebrated as The Fete), November 1st. All Saints Day and December 8th
Immaculate Conception and just three weeks later Christmas.
Secular holidays are celebrated on May 1st, Labor Day; June 18th,
Constitution Day, June 29th, National Day.
There is nothing to worry about when it comes to crime here in the
Seychelles. You can move completely freely. The locals are very discreet
and are not intrusive in any way. You also don't run the risk of someone
trying to sell you something on the beach. Theft does occur from time to
time, so do not leave handbags or the like unattended or leave them by
the window in the bungalow.
Despite what has been said, it must
be mentioned that at 473/100,000 the Seychelles has a very high
proportion of prisoners by international standards and this rate has
been rising continuously for ten years. This is due, among other things,
to a growing heroin problem that has emerged over the last 10 years.
Between 5,000-6,000 people out of a total population of 94,000 are
considered dependent.
Since 2019, all operators of watercraft
must present proof of competence. This also applies to small fishing
boats and riding jet skis.
Emergency call: ☎ 999
Ambulance: ☎ 151
Medical care is
adequate on Mahé, but problematic on the neighboring islands. Compulsory
vaccinations are not required for the Seychelles. The only exception
comes into force when entering from yellow fever infection areas - then
a yellow fever vaccination must be presented from the first year of
life.
The diseases malaria and yellow fever do not occur in the
Seychelles. As in almost all tropical countries, dengue fever already
exists, but it rarely occurs, especially during the rainy season. There
is no need to fear the animal world either, there are few poisonous
animals. An exception are the sea snakes, which are very rarely
encountered. Poisonous jellyfish are not common. However, if the locals
advise against swimming, you should do as much as possible, as the
injuries are extremely painful. Treating the affected skin areas with
vinegar as a first aid prevents the spread of the poison but does not
relieve the pain. After a scorpion sting, you should also see a doctor
as soon as possible to initiate treatment with anti-histamines.
Leptospirosis (Weil's disease) is particularly common during the rainy
season. Infections occur primarily in mud contaminated with rat urine
and other substances.
HIV/AIDS appears to be on the rise, but the
Seychelles still has a relatively low infection rate (around 0.95%,
2016), with a third of infections due to drug use.
Diarrhea is
probably the most common travel illness; it can largely be avoided in
the Seychelles through appropriate food and drinking water hygiene.
Water should only be drunk from safe sources (bottled water, tap water
should be handled with caution). On the smaller islands, water is
obtained through desalination.
Shark attacks are rare and
actually only occur around Praslin. Decompression chambers are available
in the Victoria Hospital and in the Resort Doc private clinic in the
Hilton Hotel (under German management) on 1 Silhouette Island.
The Seychelles are 80 percent Roman Catholic, but basically all religions are represented because the Seychelles are very diverse and open to new things. In Victoria, the muezzin traditionally makes his presence felt loudly.
It is possible to buy a prepaid card on site. Providers are Cable &
Wireless described at their headquarters in Victoria and Airtel with a
highly confusing tariff structure (around 10% more expensive than C&W).
SIM cards, like top-up vouchers, are available in almost all stores.
Credits often expire after just 15 or 30 days. When purchasing a SIM
card, you must show your passport.
Hotspots: There is a public
WLAN called iSurf from Cable & Wireless in many places. Vouchers are
available at the provider's offices and in many hotels. They are
available from 100 rupees for 1 hour (valid for 24 hours from initial
activation), other denominations are available. In 2018, access was
still via unsecured connections.
Topographically, the
Seychelles belong to Africa. They lie on the northern and western
parts of the Mascarene Ridge, an undersea sill in the western part
of the Indian Ocean. The island states of Madagascar, Mauritius and
the Comoros lie south of the Seychelles off the East African coast.
The territory of the Seychelles
belongs to the time zone UTC+4 (DTG: Delta). This means a time
difference of three hours in the winter months and a time difference
of two hours in summer compared to Central European Time.
The
Republic of Seychelles consists of about 115 islands, according to
geology there are 42 granite islands and 73 coral islands. They are
divided into two main groups, Inner Islands and Outer Islands,
depending on their location.
The Inner
Islands archipelago consists of 32 islands with a total land area of
266 km². They include:
Mahé (154 km²) (main island)
Praslin
(38 km²)
La Digue (10 km²)
Silhouette (20 km²)
Ile du Nord
(2 km²)
Fregate (2 km²)
Ile Aride (1 km²)
Bird Island (1
km²)
Ile Denis (1.4 km²).
Almost all of the islands
mentioned are made of granite rock, only the islands Bird Island and
Île Denis on the northern edge of the Seychelles Bank are coral
islands in terms of their origin.
Mahé is home to the
country's highest point, Morne Seychellois (905 m above MSL). Also
noteworthy are Mont Dauban (740 m asl) (on Silhouette) and Mont
Praslin (367 m asl) on the island of the same name.
Outside the "Seychelles Bank" the archipelago of the
Outer Islands extends over a sea area of 400,000 km², including the
island groups:
Amirantes with the main island of Desroche
Alphonse group with the atolls Alphonse and St. François
Aldabra
Cosmoledo
Farquhar group with Farquhar and Providence atolls
Platte, a singular island (about 135 km south of Mahé)
Coëtivy,
another singular island (290 km south of Mahé)
Because of the low
altitude (highest point at 9 m above MSL) and the lack of drinking
water, there are only a few small settlements on the numerous coral
islands.
There is a rich endemic flora and
fauna in the Seychelles, including three species of giant tortoises.
Especially on the Aldabra Atoll you will find the world's largest colony
of giant tortoises, with 150,000 Aldabra giant tortoises. It is also
home to the last surviving flightless bird of the Indian Ocean, the
Cuvier's Rail. The Vallée de Mai (“Maital”) on Praslin – designated a
World Heritage Site by UNESCO and managed by the Seychelles Island
Foundation (SIF), established specifically for this purpose in 1979 – is
home to the Seychelles parrot (Coracopsis barklyi) and the famous
Seychelles nut, the "Coco de Mer". The Seychelles frog family, which is
endemic there, can be found on the main island of Mahé and on
Silhouette. Rare animals and plants can also be observed on the
sheltered islands of Aride, Cousin and Curieuse. Also noteworthy are the
karst formations in the granite rocks of the islands, especially on the
coasts.
The native bird life of the Seychelles is among the most
diverse in the entire Western Indian Ocean. Due to the isolated location
of the archipelago, 15 species and 18 subspecies have developed here
that are only found in the Seychelles. Due to this peculiarity, both the
granite islands and the Aldabra Atoll are among the 218 Endemic Bird
Areas (EBA) that have been identified worldwide.
The original
vegetation was pushed back with settlement. They were replaced by crops
that were procured specifically for cultivation in the Seychelles. The
majority of tropical fruit and crops can thrive in the Seychelles and
allow for a varied diet, these include: eggplant, banana, avocado,
pineapple, papaya, mango, passion fruit, star fruit, guava, lemon,
orange, sugar cane, breadfruit, lemongrass and cinnamon as well as many
spices such as vanilla, pepper and nutmeg. Coconut palms were planted in
plantations and provide the country's main export product, copra. Banyan
trees and tropical timbers have been planted on the island, including
the Dragon's Blood and Albizia trees.
The climate of the Seychelles is determined by the monsoon: from
December to March the northwest monsoon prevails, followed by a windless
transition phase in April. From May to September follows the low-rain
but stormy time of the south-east monsoon, in October-November there is
another transitional phase without wind. Severe storms are rare. The
length of sunshine is determined by the location near the equator. 12
hours per day are astronomically possible, but due to the influence of
cloud cover, an average of 5-8 hours per day is achieved. Temperatures
fluctuate between 24 °C and 30 °C throughout the year, the sea water
temperature is 26 °C all year round.
Rainfall on Mahe varies from
2880mm in the capital Victoria to 3550mm in the mountainous regions. The
humidity is always more than 80 percent. The preferred travel time for a
visit to the Seychelles is May to October.
The population of the Seychelles - the
Seychellois - consists mainly of the descendants of settlers who
immigrated from various French colonial areas and their African
slave workers. This group still makes up more than 90 percent of
today's population. There is also a minority of purely European
descent as well as small Chinese and Indian minorities. In 2017,
13.6% of the population was foreign-born.
There are now many
unmarried parents. The children of working parents mostly grow up in
the household of their grandparents.
As a common language of this strongly mixed population, a separate variant of the creole languages developed here, which is referred to as Seychelles Creole or Seselwa and is based on French. According to Article 4 of the Constitution, the official languages are Seychellois Creole, English and French.
According to figures from 2010, the population is 76.2% Catholic (diocese of Port Victoria), around 10.5% are Protestants or Anglicans - mostly descendants of British sailors and farmers, 2.4% belong to other Christian denominations. 2.4% are Hindus, 1.6% belong to Islam, 1.1% are of other faiths.
The average school attendance of the over 25 year olds is 10 years, the expected school attendance of the next generation is 14.1 years. Accordingly, the proportion of illiterates is only 4.1%.
It is believed that the islands were discovered by Arab traders. In
1502 ships from the fleet of the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama
anchored at the Amirante Islands. Although now well known to the western
world, the Seychelles were not permanently settled by the French until
250 years after their discovery. The French captain Lazare Picault was
on his way to India in 1742 and, coming from Mauritius, accidentally
found the still "unowned" islands, which were proclaimed French
possessions in 1753 and named after Jean Moreau de Séchelles, Louis XV's
finance minister. A permanent settlement can be proven from 1768 after
the establishment of spice plantations. During the First Coalition War,
the Seychelles were occupied by the British in 1794 and ceded to Great
Britain in the Treaty of Paris in 1814. Under British rule, the
archipelago was initially part of the Mauritius colony. On August 31,
1903, the Seychelles received the status of an independent colony. In
1945, while still under British administration, women were granted the
right to vote at the local level and on August 6, 1948 women were
granted active and passive suffrage at the national level. At
independence in 1976, these rights were confirmed.
The Seychelles
gained self-government in 1970, independence followed in 1976, but the
island republic remained in the Commonwealth. The so-called First
Republic of Seychelles was established in 1976 and abolished in 1979 in
favor of a one-party regime, the Second Republic. In 1993 the current
constitution came into force as a state treaty for the Third Republic.
Now opposition parties are allowed again. The ruling party is the former
unitary Seychelles People's Progressive Front (SPPF).
The tsunami
that was triggered by a seaquake off Indonesia on December 26, 2004 also
reached the Seychelles and caused damage.