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Indian Ocean · Seychelles

Seychelles

Granite boulders the size of houses on white sand, in water that shelves from clear to deep blue. Unlike the Maldives you're not stuck on one island — three of them are linked by ferry, and the trip is far better for it.

10h direct or via DubaiNo visa for UK passportsYear-roundGuide price from £2,249pp

The short version

Do not book one island for a fortnight

The Seychelles' great advantage over the Maldives is that you can move. Mahé, Praslin and La Digue sit within an hour of each other by fast ferry, and each is genuinely different — a mountainous main island with a capital city, a quieter island with a prehistoric palm forest, and a tiny one where most people still get about by bicycle. Four nights, four nights, three nights is the shape we book most often, and it costs very little more than staying put.

Where you land

Mahé is a real island, not a resort

Ninety per cent of Seychellois live here. There's a capital with a market, a mountain range down the middle with rainforest walks, and around seventy beaches — Beau Vallon in the north for calm swimming and facilities, Anse Intendance in the south for drama and surf. It also has the widest price range on the archipelago, from guesthouses to the serious five-stars on the southern headlands.

The famous one

La Digue, and Anse Source d'Argent

Probably the most photographed beach on earth: shallow turquoise water broken by weathered granite the colour of ochre. The island is tiny, largely car-free and mostly navigated by bicycle. Two things to know — the beach sits inside the L'Union Estate and there's an entry fee, and it's at its best at low tide, when the sand flats open up. Check the tide table before you go, not after.

An aerial view of a Seychelles beach and blue water

Pick your islands

Three main islands, and the ferries between them

Ferries run Mahé–Praslin in about an hour and Praslin–La Digue in fifteen minutes. Book them in advance in high season; they do sell out.

Main island · airport

Mahé

Mountainous, populated and varied. Where you arrive, and the only island with a city, a bus network and a full range of prices.

Beau Vallon: The main beach in the north. Calm, sandy, and the one place with restaurants and watersports along it.
Anse Intendance: South coast. Wild, empty and dramatic, with surf — and a couple of very good hotels above it.
Victoria: The smallest capital in Africa. A market, a clock tower and a botanical garden. Worth a morning.
Morne Seychellois: The national park down the island's spine. Rainforest trails and the best views in the country.

1h by ferry

Praslin

Slower, flatter and greener, with the archipelago's two best-known beaches and a UNESCO palm forest in the middle.

Anse Lazio: Regularly named among the world's best beaches. Granite headlands, deep water, no development behind it.
Côte d'Or: The long beach on the north-east coast where most of the hotels are. Calm and family-friendly.
Vallée de Mai: UNESCO forest of coco de mer palms — the largest seed on earth, and the island's black parrots.
Anse Georgette: Inside the Constance Lémuria resort grounds. Public access exists, but you must book ahead.

15 min from Praslin

La Digue

Small, flat and largely car-free. Bicycles, ox carts and the beach everyone comes for. Two nights minimum, three is better.

Anse Source d'Argent: The famous one. Entry via L'Union Estate, and unmistakably better at low tide.
Grand Anse: Wilder, on the south coast, with real surf. Beautiful and often not safe to swim.
La Passe: The village and harbour. Guesthouses, a couple of small hotels, and bicycle hire everywhere.
Anse Marron: Reachable only with a guide over rocks. The reward is a natural pool and almost nobody else.

Flights from Mahé

The outer islands

Private-island territory, an hour by light aircraft. One resort per island, and prices to match.

Denis & Bird: Coral islands in the north. Fishing, birdlife and nothing else at all.
Frégate: One resort, seven beaches, and giant tortoises wandering through it.
Silhouette: Closest to Mahé and mountainous, with a single resort under the peaks.
Alphonse & Desroches: Serious fly-fishing and diving, a long way out. Book a year ahead.

Our speciality

Dubai, then three islands

Ten hours is a long way in one go, and there's no bad reason to break it. Dubai on the way out, then Mahé, Praslin and La Digue in sequence — no backtracking, and the ferries are quick.

Dubai3 nightsSkyline, souks, a desert evening.
Flight · 4h 30m
Mahé4 nightsBeau Vallon, the mountains, the market.
Ferry · 1h
Praslin & La Digue7 nightsAnse Lazio, the Vallée de Mai, and the bicycle island.

We book the inter-island ferries with the holiday. They sell out in July, August and over Christmas, and sorting them at the quay on the day is not the holiday you paid for.

When to go

Year-round, with a wind that switches

It's within four degrees of the equator, so it's 28–30°C every month of the year. What changes is the wind: the north-west monsoon runs November to March, the south-east trades April to October. April, May, October and November are the changeover months — calmest seas, clearest water, best diving.

JanWet

FebWet

MarWarm

AprIdeal

MayIdeal

JunBreezy

JulWindy

AugWindy

SepBreezy

OctIdeal

NovIdeal

DecPeak

April, May, October and November are the sweet spots. July and August bring seaweed onto some east-facing beaches — a natural, seasonal thing that surprises people who weren't told about it.

Worth leaving the resort for

What we'd actually book

Anse Source d'Argent

Low tide, early morning, and go through L'Union Estate. The single most photographed beach in the world for a reason.

Vallée de Mai

A UNESCO palm forest on Praslin, and the only place the coco de mer grows wild. An hour and a half, easy walking.

Anse Lazio

Praslin's finest — deep water, granite headlands and no buildings behind. Take a taxi; the walk in is steep.

Beau Vallon

Mahé's sociable beach. Calm swimming, sunset drinks, and the Wednesday fish market on the sand.

Anse Intendance

Southern Mahé, wild and often surfable. Beautiful, and check with the hotel before swimming.

Curieuse Island

Free-roaming giant tortoises and a mangrove boardwalk, a short boat from Praslin. Usually paired with St Pierre snorkelling.

Morne Blanc

A steep hour up through Mahé's rainforest for a view over the whole west coast. Go early, before the cloud.

Diving at Shark Bank

Granite pinnacles off Mahé with rays and reef sharks. Best April–May and October–November when the water is clearest.

The practical bits

Things that catch people out

No visaUK passports get a visitor's permit on arrival, though you'll need proof of accommodation and onward travel.

Time zoneFour hours ahead of the UK. Easy on an overnight flight.

CurrencySeychellois rupee. Hotels and restaurants take cards; small guesthouses, taxis and the market want cash.

It is expensiveAlmost everything is imported. Self-catering and guesthouse stays cut the cost far more here than in most places.

FerriesCat Cocos runs Mahé–Praslin, Cat Rose runs Praslin–La Digue. Book ahead in peak months.

Getting aroundBuses on Mahé are cheap and go everywhere. La Digue is bicycles. Praslin needs a taxi or a hire car.

SeaweedSome east-facing beaches collect sargassum in July and August. Seasonal and natural — but ask us which beaches avoid it.

No high-riseBuilding height is capped at the tree line. There is no resort strip anywhere in the Seychelles, by law.

Before you book

Five things worth knowing

Island-hop; don't sit still. Mahé, Praslin and La Digue are an hour apart and genuinely different. Splitting the trip costs little and doubles what you see.

Check the tide for Anse Source d'Argent. It's a different beach at low tide — the sand flats open up and the water goes shallow and glassy. High tide, it's half the size.

Budget properly. Everything is imported and prices reflect it. A guesthouse on La Digue and a five-star on Mahé is a good combination for cost and variety.

July and August are windy. Fine for sailing, less good for flat water and diving. April, May, October and November are the calm months.

Pair it with Dubai. Ten hours direct, or two shorter flights with a stopover. The stopover version is usually cheaper and always more comfortable.

Next step

Tell us your dates and we'll build the island route

Send your dates, party and rough budget and we'll come back with an island-hopping itinerary, the ferries booked, and the payment plan written out in full.

Your money is protected. Trip Tides is a travel agent — we book your holiday with a travel company, and that company is named on your quote and confirmation. Your contract is with them. If your holiday is a package including flights, put together by an ATOL holder, you'll get an ATOL certificate naming that company. We confirm in writing what protection applies before you pay.

Seychelles packages

Flights, accommodation and transfers as one package. Every one can be reshaped — different dates, different board, a different airport, or a stopover on the way.

7 nights in Seychelles

All inclusive · Nov–Mar

Return flights and private transfers
All inclusive throughout
Financial protection confirmed in writing before you pay

from £2,099per person

Get a quote

10 nights in Seychelles

All inclusive · Nov–Mar

Return flights and private transfers
All inclusive throughout
The extra nights cost proportionally less — fixed costs don't change

from £2,689per person

Get a quote

14 nights in Seychelles

Half board · Nov–Mar

Return flights and private transfers
Half board throughout
Best value per night, and worth it on a longer flight

from £3,189per person

Get a quote

Guide prices, per person, based on two sharing, including return flights, accommodation and transfers. They indicate what a holiday of this type has typically cost and are not an offer or a quotation. Your price depends on dates, party, board basis, departure airport and availability, and is confirmed in writing before any payment is taken.