DESTINATION SEYCHELLES
The Seychelles have some of the most beautiful islands in the Indian Ocean, which undoubtedly rate as among the finest in the world. This is the place you see in your head when you're sitting at your desk dreaming of a tropical island getaway. The only difference is that the real thing is even more stunning. But of course, paradise comes at a price - there's very little in the way of budget accommodation here, and taking a dive with the fishies will set you back a pretty penny.
Although the highlight of the islands is the beaches, snorkelling and diving, there are also plenty of great hikes, some extremely rare animal, bird and plant species and the odd top-notch rock to climb.
 Map of Seychelles (15K)
 Facts at a Glance
Full country name: Republic of Seychelles
Area: 455 sq km (177 sq mi)
Population: 73,000
Capital city: Victoria (pop 27,000)
People: Seychellois (of African, Indian and European background)
Language: English, French, French Créole
Religion: Catholic (90%), Anglican (8%)
Government: Democratic republic
President: France-Albert René
 Environment
The Seychelles is a group of about 115 islands which lie 1600km (990mi) off the coast of east Africa. The three central islands - Mahé, Praslin and La Digue - are granite, while the outlying islands are coral atolls. Unlike most similar islands, the Seychelles are not volcanic - they seem to be the peaks of a huge underwater plateau which fell off the edge of India about 65 million years ago.
The Seychelles are a haven for wildlife, particularly birds and tropical fish. The islands are rich in vegetation, but most of it is either coconut palms or casuarinas. There's virgin forest on the highlands of Malé and Silhouette, and in the Vallée de Mai on Praslin, where you'll find the extremely rare giant coco de mer palm. In these high, remote areas you might also find the insect-eating pitcher plant, as well as a veritable bouquet of orchids, bouganvilleas, hibiscuses, gardenias and frangipani.
The islands aren't exactly swarming with furry or scaly wildlife: you might spot skinks, flying foxes and geckoes. Insects are far more common, and the giant rhinoceros beetle almost qualifies for reptile status anyway. What you'll really notice is the profusion of birds. The islands are isolated and were settled late, so many species exist here that you'll find nowhere else. If you're interested in birds, pay a visit to Bird, Cousin, Aride or Frégate Islands, which are bird sanctuaries.
The Seychelles has four marine national parks, and more than 150 species of tropical reef fish have been identified. Snorkel off any reef-protected shore here and you'll get an eyeful of fish and coral. Dolphin and porpoise are common between the islands, shark and barracuda less so, although the Seychelles are renowned for their game fishing. French and English settlers did a pretty good job of slaughtering the Seychelles' endemic giant tortoises, but there is a free-roaming colony on Curieuse, and Cousin and Bird Island reserves are fighting it out for the title of 'home to the world's largest tortoise'.
The Seychelles' seasons are defined by the beginning and end of the south-east trade winds, which usually blow from May to October. For the rest of the year, the islands are swept by the monsoons, which bring the rain, especially in January. Mahé and Silhouette get the most rain. January is the wettest month, July and August the driest, while every month the temperature fluctuates between 24°C (75°F) and 31°C (88°F) and the humidity sweats at around 80%.
 History
Nobody lived on the Seychelles until the 17th century. In 1609 a British East India ship made landfall, and in the next few years shiploads of pirates moved their operations to the Indian Ocean from the Caribbean and used the islands as their base.
In 1742 the governor of Mauritius, Mahé de La Bourdonnais, sent a ship to check out the islands. Ship's captain Picault named the main island after his governor and laid the way for the French to claim the islands 12 years later. In 1770 the first load of French settlers and slaves arrived on the island and started growing spices, cassava, sugar cane, coffee, sweet potatoes and maize, as well as harvesting the giant tortoise.
By the end of the 18th century the islands were looking pretty choice and the British were taking an interest. The governor at the time, de Quinssy, lowered the French flag and gave in when attack looked imminent, but the British sailed on and de Quinssy raised the flag again. This happened 12 times until 1814, when Britain took charge of the Seychelles after the Napoleonic Wars. The main feature of British rule was an increase in the number of slaves and high-class political prisoners - French remained the main language and French culture lived on.
In 1964 the Seychelles' first political parties were formed - France Albert René formed the Seychelles People's United Party, while James Mancham led the Seychelles Democratic Party. The SDP, the party of the planters and business people, won the 1966 and 1970 elections, defeating the socialist SPUP. In 1976 the country was made independent and the two parties formed a coalition to run the place: Sir Jim became president and René prime minister. The president set out to make the Seychelles the luxury destination - Sir Jim mixed it up with the jetset at resorts around the world, and pretty soon the rich and gorgeous were pouring in to party, party, party. But the prime minister was concerned that not enough of the wealth was making it down to the country's working folk, and on 5 June 1977 René carried out an almost bloodless coup, shoring up his new-found power by shipping in Tanzanian and North Korean soldiers.
In 1981 a group of South African mercenaries tried to invade the country, but were found out at the airport, where they shot two people and hijacked a plane to get home. René outlawed the SDP and its supporters, who set up resistance movements in the UK, South Africa and Australia. The tourist trade dried up as a campaign of bombings and murders, as well as the occasional coup attempt, gathered force.
In December 1991 René surprised his opponents (and, quite probably, his supporters) by legalising opposition parties, perhaps in response to pressure from the country's main aid-donors. Elections were held in 1992, under Commonwealth observation, and René scraped in with a bare majority. Mancham, surrounded by SAS security men, got a third of the vote and claimed the elections were rigged. A new constitution was implemented to support the new multiparty system, and new elections in 1993 were won, once again, by René.
 Economic Profile
GDP: US$430 billion
GDP per head: US$6000
Annual growth: -2%
Inflation: -1%
Major industries: Tourism, coconut & vanilla processing, fishing, coir, boat building
Major trading partners: Yemen, UK, USA, South Africa
 Culture
There is no indigenous culture in the Seychelles, but aspects of African origin have survived. The government has formed the National School of Music and the National Cultural Troupe to foster a Créole cultural identity and tradition. The sombre moutia is the typical dance of the Seychelles, with strong African and Malagasy rhythms. The songs are prayers which the slaves turned into work chants, and they're accompanied by slow, repetitive dance routines. The moutia is one of those participatory affairs, where everyone has to get up and join in. Seychellois music is a blend of Indian, European, Chinese and Arabic - accordions, banjos and violins blend with the makalapo, a stringed instrument, the zez, a sitar, African skin drums and the bom, a bowed instrument.
Most Seychellois are Catholic and the majority are avid churchgoers, but there is a widespread belief in the supernatural and in the old magic of spirits known as gris. Sorcery was outlawed in 1958, but there are a number of bonhommes and bonfemmes di bois practising their cures and curses and concocting potions for love, luck and revenge.
English and French are the official languages and both are spoken by most people, although French Créole is the lingua franca. Kreol seselwa was rehabilitated and made semi-official in 1981, and is increasingly used in newspapers and literature. Seychelles Créole is similar to that of Mauritius and Martinique, but differs remarkably from that of Réunion.
The Seychelles is the best of all the Indian Ocean islands for Créole cuisine. fish and rice are the staple foods, but rice takes a back seat while more imaginative use is made of fruit, vegetables, herbs and spices. The range of fish and seafood available is huge and you'll probably be able to try shark, barracuda, kingfish, octopus, squid, jack fish, red snapper, cordonnier, parrot fish and grouper. other Créole dishes standard to the region are the daube, a sweet sauce or stew; rougaille, a tomato-based sauce used with fish, sausages or as a side dish; carii coco, a mild meat or fish curry with coconut cream; fish marinaded in lemon; and brèdes, a local variety of spinach.
 Events
With its short history, the Seychelles isn't exactly overloaded with traditional festivals. Most public holidays are Roman Catholic events, including Easter, Corpus Christi, on 10 June, the Assumption, on 15 August, and the Immaculate Conception, on 8 December. The one major non-religious festival is Festival Kreol, which was set up to preserve and promote Créole culture. Held every year around the end of October, this week-long festival is an explosion of Créole cuisine, fashion, art, music and dance. Créole artists from all over the world descend on the Seychelles for this festival of street theatre, literature, photography, puppetry and dance. It's also a great place to pick up Créole handicrafts.
 Facts for the Traveller
Visas: Visas are not required for most visitors to Seychelles, but you'll need an onward ticket, booked accommodation and 'sufficient funds'.
Health risks: None
Time: GMT/UTC plus four hours
Electricity:240V, 50 Hz
Weights & measures: Metric (see conversion
table)
 Money & Costs
Currency: Seychelles rupee
Relative costs:
- Budget meal: US$1-5
- Moderate restaurant meal: US$5-20
- Top-end restaurant meal: US$20 and upwards
- Budget room: US$35-55
- Moderate hotel: US$80-150
- Top-end hotel: US$150 and upwards
The Seychelles is not a budget destination. Accommodation is regulated by the tourist board; camping is forbidden and prices, availability and the standard of accommodation are fixed. If you keep to the less expensive guesthouses, avoid watersports and eat lean, you might be able to get by on $55 a day. If you've come all this way, though, you probably want to induldge at least a little - a budget of $100 a day is more realistic if you want to do some diving, eat the country's fabulous seafood and maybe stay in the occasional mid-range hotel. If you've got money to burn, the Seychelles is a great place to do it. If you are thinking of staying in the fancier hotels, consider a package tour, which will work out a fair bit cheaper.
You'll get a better rate for travellers cheques than for cash. No restrictions apply on taking rupees in or out of the country, but you'll get a much better rate in the Seychelles than you will anywhere else. Victoria is well endowed with banks, and in villages where they're further apart you can usually change money at the bigger hotels (though the rate probably won't be the best).
Tipping is welcomed but not obligatory. A 10% service charge is added to your bill in hotels and restaurants. In general, there's a relaxed approach to bargaining. You might be able to get a discount on your car rental, but prices in shops are seldom negotiable. Markets are more open to a bit of friendly haggling.
 When to Go
You should plan your trip to the Seychelles around what you want to do. Windsurfing and sailing are best in at the start and end of the trade winds, usually around May and October. Some beaches are better during the monosoon season, others during the trade winds. Diving is best in March, April, May, September, October and November. Room rates are highest and everything is busiest in December, January, July and August.
Victoria
Victoria, on the island of Mahé is one of the smallest capital cities in the world, and the only major port in the Seychelles. It's also the only town in the country - every other settlement is a village. The courthouse and main post office in the centre of town have been untouched since colonial times, but the streets emanating from the centre have been rebuilt over the past 20 years, giving the town a clean and modern look. There are a few old houses and shops in the city centre, but barely enough to give the town any character.
The Natural History Museum is right in the centre of town, and specialises in natural history. It's a pretty eclectic collection: there's the bones of the extinct Seychelles crocodile, giant robber crabs, dried out fish, a deformed piglet in a jar and lots of glassy-eyed stuffed animals. Other displays include the wreckage of a ship which came to grief off the Amiranteds in 1570 and a display of gris gris artefacts. If you're more interested in the history of the country's people, visit the National History Museum or the Seychelles People's United Party Museum, which celebrates the history of the party.
Victoria's Botanical Gardens are highly recommended for short and shady walks among a variety of native and introduced trees. Within the gardens is a cafeteria, a pen of giant tortoises and an orchid garden.
Victoria has plenty of guesthouses at budget prices (well, as budget as the Seychelles gets), but they're all out in the suburbs. This is also one of the best places on the island for relatively cheap eats, as well as the odd up-market, romantic restaurant.
Beau Vallon is one of the largest and certainly the most popular beach in the Seychelles. The sand is good, clean and relatively free of rocks. The waves can sometimes be large as there is a big break in the reef. There are platforms in the ocean which you can swim out to, and the local resort lets non-residents use its beach loungers and bar. Beau Vallon village has a petrol station, a bank and some souvenir shops. The beach is about 3km (nearly 2mi) west of Victoria, and you can either catch a bus or walk.
The beaches in the southern part of the island are prettier and quieter than those in the north. The nicest area for swimming and snorkelling is opposite tiny Île Souris, on the east coast. On the west coast, Anse Soleil and Anse Petite Police are extremely secluded (you really need a jeep to get to them), but worth the effort - there's a palm-fringed beach, boulders to dive or snorkel from and some wonderful marine life. If you like to watch, the surf at Anse Intendance is incredibly wild and completely unsuitable for swimming, but great for solemn gazing during pensive beach walks. Buses run from Victoria to most of the island.
There are six islands lying within the park a few km off Victoria. The snorkelling here is superb. Moyenne is probably the best island to visit, although you can only get here on a tour. The island is known for its buried treasures and ghosts, and you can have a look at the House of Dogs, built at the turn of the century by an eccentric English woman as a home for stray dogs. There's a lovely walk on a marked trail around the island, with plenty of pretty plants and animals to look at (including two giant tortoises), and there's also some excellent snorkelling sites.
Round Island was once a leper colony - the chapel of the colony is now a restaurant. If you can get over your initial squeamishness, this is one of the best places in the country for genuine Créole food. Round Island also has a plesant tree-shaded walking track and an interesting national park visitors centre.
On the island of Praslin, Vallée de Mai has the Seychelles' greatest concentration of coco de mer palms - almost 4000 of them. This valley's prehistoric forest is World Heritage listed. Palms in the valley include include the palmiste, latanier, splayed traveller's palm and Chinese fans. The sunlight filtering through their fronds and hitting the greens and oranges of the leaves will make you go all poetic. Other interesting plants in the valley are the wild pineapple, wild coffee and the allspice bush - you should also keep an eye out for the Seychelles black parrot, which is only found on Praslin. If you're going to visit Vallée, keep to the tracks, don't take anything away and don't leave anything behind - this is an incredibly fragile forest.
The best beach on Praslin - in fact, one of the best in the country - is Anse Lazio, in the far north of the island. the beach has glorious white, soft sand, a few rounded granite boulders and a lively line-up of waves. The water is a magical turquoise colour. There's also a sheltered area with great snorkelling at the end of the beach. There's even a terrific restaurant at the end of the beach road. The beaches east of Lazio are protected by a reef, which makes the water like a giant bath - it's shallow, warm and safe, and there's some nice snorkelling. Buses travel from Grand Anse around all the island's beaches.
This island, about 2km (1mi) off the south-west coast of Praslin - has been a nature reserve since 1968, and is home to several endangered species, as well as being a breeding ground for seabirds and turtles. It's an amazing experience to walk through thick forest with a bird on every branch, apparently oblivious to humans. The rarest birds are th brush warbler and magpie robin, and you might also get to see a white-tailed tropic bird, the emblem of Réunion and Mauritius. The island is also home to two very old tortoises, George and Georgina, who follow visitors around in the hope of having their necks stroked. You can only visit the island on a tour.
 Off the Beaten Track
Silhouette Island
About 20km (12mi) from Mahé, Silhouette is a large granite island which rises steeply from its beaches to three high peaks. Visitors have described this island as eerie and mystical - it looks particularly dark and mysterious at sunset. rumour has it there's pirate treasure in the hills - whether it's true or not, there are some interesting caves. The beaches on Silhouette are protected by a reef and are great for swimming, snorkelling, or lazing around developing melanomas.
If you're after something a bit more strenuous, take a walk to the top of Mont Pot à Eau to see the bizarre carnivorous pitcher plant. Along the track you'll see coco de mer palms and monstrous millipedes, slugs and snails.
You can get to Silhouette by helicopter from Mahé, or you can join a tour, arrange a package deal or charter a boat.
This island, just 1.5km (1mi) off the north coast of Praslin, was a leper colony from 1833 until 1965. The ruins of the leprosarium still stand on the south coast, like an early holiday village. You can still see the old doctor's house, a Créole home with a spacious verandah, which has been declared a national monument. The only people who live here are the island manager and several park wardens, but if you're feeling lonely have a chat to the couple of hundred giant tortoises which roam the island. The island is an official marine national park, and you'll have to take a guided tour if you want to wander around. Apart from teh tortoises, it's worth looking out for the island's stunning granite sculptures. The best way to get to the island is on an organised tour.
Aldabra is one of the world's largest coral atolls, stretching 22km (14mi) east to west and enclosing a huge tidal lagoon, which is sometimes home to tiger sharks and manta rays. Aldabra is the original habitat of the giant land tortoise, and there are about 200,000 of them on the atoll, as well as thousands of seabirds, including the white-throated rail, the sole remaining species of flightless bird in the Indian Ocean.
Assomption Island, 27km (17mi) south of Aldabra, was once a rich source of guano, but the harvesters who exploited the island also stripped it of vegetation, so that by the 1920s no plants, animals or birds lived here. Underwater, however, it's a different story: Jacques Cousteau filmed most of his documentary, The Silent World, here, and said he'd never seen any other place on earth with same clarity of water or diversity of reef life.
The only people who live on Aldabra are scientists, and they're only here three months of the year. Aldabra is more than 1000km (620mi) from Mahé, and there are no hotels here. If you want to visit Aldabra, you'll have to organise a boat with the Marine Charter Association in Victoria, or fly to Desroches and charter a boat from there.
 Activities
The Seychelles are all about water. Snorkelling is a must-do for every visitor - the best sports around Mahé are Ste anne, Anse Soleil, Petite Anse and Île Souris. Off Praslin, try around Chauve Souris Island. Diving, particularly around the outlying islands, is considered world class. There are several schools offering courses and equipment is available for hire. Windsurfing is particularly popular on Mahé and Praslin. Plenty of charter operation will take you deep-sea fishing.
For hydrophobes, the Seychelles still has plenty on offer. There are some fine challenges for rock climbers, particularly on Praslin and La Digue, where there's great block and cliff-face climbs. There are some great hikes, many of which are described in great detail in a series of brochures produced by the Tourism Division.
 Getting There & Away
More and more airlines are flying to the Seychelles, so it's worth checking with your travel agent to see if you can get a direct flight. There are flights from Australia via Singapore, from Africa and mauritius and direct from London. Travellers from Continental Europe can also fly direct - most take package holidays. Lots of cruises pass through Victoria, but there are no direct passenger services. There is a $20 departure tax.
 Getting Around
Air Seychelles runs regular flights to Praslin, Frégate, Desroches, Bird and Denis Island, and will run charters to other islands. Helicopters also fly to some of the islands. Schooner ferries run regularly betweenn Mahé, Praslin and la Digue - if you want to go to the other islands you'll have to charter a boat.
An extensive bus service operates throughout Mahé, and there's a limited service on Praslin. Mini Mokes are the hire cars in the Seychelles - they often have some sort of mechanical defect, and they're no protection from the elements, but they're pretty appropriate for conditions on the islands. Most of the roads on Mahé are sealed, but other drivers can be a bit of a danger. Taxis run on Mahé, Praslin and La Digue, and fares are set by the government.
There are plenty of bicycles for hire on Praslin and La Digue, but you'll be lucky to get hold of one on Mahé. Walking is a dandy way to get around most of the islands - the traffic is light, distances are short and the scenery is lovely.
 Recommended Reading
- Sir James Mancham may have fallen out of favour, but his mum's recipes have not: La Cuisine Seychelloise by Eveline Mancham focuses on the country's traditional cuisine.
- There are eight books in the series of Seychelles Nature Handbooks which deal with most aspects of nature on the islands.
- Aldabra Alone by Tony Beamish looks at life among the giant tortoises during an expedition to the Aldabra group.
- Political Castaways by Christopher Lee is a biased but informative look at the politics of the Seychelles; get the other side of the story in France René's Seychelles: the New Era.
- Odyssey Illustrated Guide to Seychelles by Sarah Carpin is a glossy coffee-table guide to the country, with some very nice pictures and a bit of practical info.
 Lonely Planet Guides
 On-line Info
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