Victoria
A small capital on Mahé, granite and coral islands scattered across the ocean, and a runway from which Twin Otters and helicopters fan out to all of them.
- Arrival
- Seychelles International · SEZ
- To the islands
- About 20 minutes to Praslin by air
- Private jets
- Land at Seychelles International
- Best time
- June to July
The city
Mahé first, then the islands.
Every arrival lands on Mahé, eleven kilometres from Victoria, a capital of some thirty thousand people with a clock tower modelled on London’s Little Ben and a covered market for fish and fruit. Some guests stay on Mahé, above Baie Lazare or Anse Intendance; others fly straight on.
Praslin is twenty minutes away by Twin Otter, with the palm forest of the Vallée de Mai; La Digue and its boulder beaches are a short helicopter hop, and private islands such as Félicité, Denis and Desroches lie farther out. The sea is warm all year. June and July are the driest months, and December and January the wettest.
Arriving
One runway, then every island.
Seychelles International lies at Pointe Larue, eleven kilometres south-east of Victoria. The domestic terminal stands a short distance north of the international one, with flights to Praslin as often as every ten to fifteen minutes at busy times.
- Mauritius 2 h 40
- Nairobi 3 h 05
- Johannesburg 5 h 10
- Madrid 10 h 25 long-range jet
- Seoul 11 h 30 long-range jet
When to go
June to July.
Highs stay between 27 and 30 °C all year, the sea between 26 and 30 °C, and the air is humid. June and July are the driest months, under 100 mm; rain builds from October and peaks in January at nearly 400 mm.
- 29° J 381 28°
- 29° F 279 29°
- 30° M 189 29°
- 30° A 178 30°
- 29° M 133 29°
- 28° J 66 27°
- 27° J 81 26°
- 27° A 117 26°
- 28° S 134 27°
- 29° O 206 28°
- 29° N 223 28°
- 29° D 271 28°
What to see and do
Days in and around Victoria.
-
Landmark
Vallée de Mai
A UNESCO palm forest on Praslin, home of the coco de mer, the largest seed in the plant kingdom.
-
Landmark
Anse Source d’Argent
Great boulders on the sand of La Digue, inside an old coconut and vanilla estate.
-
Landmark
Victoria
A clock tower after London’s Little Ben, two cathedrals and the market where the islands buy their fish.
-
Nature
Copolia trail
About two hours there and back through Morne Seychellois National Park, past pitcher plants, to a plateau at 497 metres above Victoria and Sainte Anne.
Official site -
Nature
Morne Blanc trail
Climbing through an old tea plantation, the path reaches a summit often in cloud with views down the west coast of Mahé.
Official site -
Nature
Seychelles National Botanical Gardens
Founded in 1901 at Mont Fleuri, six hectares holding most of the endemic flowering plants of the granitic islands.
Official site -
On the water
Sainte Anne Marine National Park
Declared in 1973 as the first marine park in the country, its reefs lie twenty minutes by boat from Victoria.
Official site -
On the water
Baie Ternay Marine National Park
With no road to the bay, boats leave from Port Launay to snorkel table corals among hawksbill turtles and blacktip reef sharks.
-
Food & wine
Takamaka Rum Distillery
Since 2002 the d'Offay brothers have made Takamaka rum on the La Plaine St André estate, where guided tours end in a tasting.
-
Culture
Domaine de Val des Prés
Built around 1870, the plantation house at Au Cap keeps its traditional kitchen and verandah beside a craft village of twelve kiosks.
Official site
Where to stay
Island by island.
Shown for information. We have no arrangement with any of these hotels.
-
Cheval Blanc Seychelles Fifty-two villas on the forested hillside or on the beach at Anse Intendance, with a Guerlain spa.
-
Constance Lemuria Two of Praslin’s finest beaches, Anse Georgette and Anse Kerlan, and the first championship golf course in the country.
-
Denis Private Island A coral islet with its own airstrip and a century-old lighthouse, and twenty-three cottages on the north shore.
-
Six Senses Zil Pasyon Thirty timber villas with plunge pools on a steep, forested private island, reached by helicopter from Mahé.
-
Four Seasons Resort Seychelles Villas set like treehouses on the hillside above Petite Anse, half an hour from the airport.
-
Anantara Maia Seychelles Villas Thirty villas on a rocky slope above Anse Louis on the west coast, each with a butler day and night.
-
Four Seasons Resort Seychelles at Desroches Island A coral isle in the Amirantes, thirty-five minutes by air, with fourteen kilometres of shore and wild tortoises.
Where to dine
The best tables on Mahé.
No MICHELIN Guide covers the Seychelles. Zez is a Fodor’s Choice restaurant, priced in Fodor’s band; Le 1947 is the French fine-dining room of Cheval Blanc Seychelles.
- Zez Fodor’s Choice International $$$$ Four Seasons, Petite Anse, south-west Mahé
- Le 1947 Fine dining, Cheval Blanc Seychelles French Cheval Blanc, Anse Intendance, south Mahé
Elsewhere in Seychelles
More reasons to come.
Flying to Victoria?
Choose how you arrive.
A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.