PART 2: Praslin and La Digue
The Seychelles are the ultimate tropical (honeymoon) beach destination. Relaxing at beautiful beaches, water sports, hiking or scuba diving, there’s a lot to do in the Seychelles. You can do as crazy as you wish with your accommodations: from exclusive hotels and private villas to a cozy homestay at a locals home. Don’t stay on only one island, but go island hopping and discover all the gorgeous islands, all with their own unique vibe.
I have split the information about the Seychelles in 2 blogs. In this second blog I’ll tell more about the islands Praslin and La Digue. Click here to go directly to the part you’re interested in:
Tip: Click the layers on and off in this map with the (square with a small arrow at the left side) button on the left in the grey beam.
2. Praslin
Transport
The fastest way to travel from Mahé to Praslin is to catch a plane or with the fast ferry Cat Cocos. It takes about one hour to drive to Praslin with the Cat Cocos. I also took a slow freight ship once. There were no other tourists on the boat, but you can ask if you can join them (very cheap); most of the time the staff is okay with that.
To do
Praslin has pearl white beaches, a turquoise sea and the huge granite rocks, making the Seychelles such a unique place. The beaches of Praslin are declared the most beautiful beaches of the world many times. you should definitely spend a day at Anse Lazio when you visit Praslin. The photos will tell you more than words in this case.
Fun fact: Praslin’s sand is so solid that you can ride your bike on the beach!
Snorkeling and scuba diving
Snorkeling here is a must. From Côte d’Or Beach there are many options to do a snorkeling tour to the small island Chauve Souris in front of the beach.
Usually there are many boys walking down the beach offering snorkeling tours. We made a fantastic trip to Île Cousin. During the trip the boat stopped a couple of times so we could go snorkeling. We also walked around the beautiful Cousin Island Special Reserve of Nature Seychelles with tropical and giant tortoises. The birds on the island feel so safe that they don’t bother to build a nest for their eggs, but just leave the eggs and baby birds on the branches. We ended our trip with a BBQ with delicious fresh fish on the beach.
Tip: Bring (water)shoes or sandals for the hike in the nature reserve, because on flip flops or barefoot it’s quite hard.
Book your diving trips with the great diving school White Tip Divers at the end of Côte d’Or beach. There are beautiful diving spots offshore and the staff of white tip divers is very skilled and do everything to make it a memorable dive.
Location:
White Tip Divers
Paradise Sun Hotel, Côte d’Or, Seychelles
Tel: +248 2 514 282
Website: www.whitetipdivers.com
Getting ready for a dive
Vallée de Mai
In the heart of Praslin you can find a natural palm forest preserved in almost its original state. Here also grows the famous endemic Coco de Mer, the largest seed in the plant kingdom. The Coco de Mer is a double coconut, which makes it look like buttocks. The palm-tree once believed to grow in the depths of the sea. This park is on the UNESCO World heritage list “Outstanding Universal Value”. A walk in the shadows of the palm trees is a very nice change from all the days at the beach.
Seychelles’ Dracula and Praslin Museum
Somewhere along the road next to Côte d’Or beach, you could visit the Praslin Museum. The museum – where the display focuses on medicinal plants and local herbs – is very small, but you can get closer to the fruit bats here and even feed them.
Fruit bats (or “flying foxes”) look like the far family of Dracula and I’m always very impressed if I see their huge wings in the sky at dawn. Their wingspan is about 1 meter. They won’t attack you though, as they are vegetarians and only eat seeds.
Fun fact: On some of the islands the fruit bats are considered a delicacy. People hunt the bats for their meat with fishing line traps in electricity poles. I didn’t try it though!
Sleeping on Praslin
Hotel Village Du Pêcheur on Praslin is a very pretty, romantic and luxe boutique hotel! There are just a couple of rooms, there’s a good kitchen and there’s a spa in the hotel to pamper yourself. The extreme white beach of Côte d’Or is just in front of the hotel. Boats will pick you up for a trip from the beach. Although the hotel looks quite chique, the vibe is very laid back. Possibly the best part for me is that you have breakfast with your feet in the sand.
I might be a little biased, because my uncle owns the hotel, but it is truly a very good and romantic hotel! My uncle is also the owner of Sunset Beach Hotel on Mahé. Both hotels won a lot of prices during the years, so I’m not the only one who likes the hotels.
Location:
Village Du Pêcheur
Côte d’Or, Praslin
Website: http://www.thesunsethotelgroup.com. You can also find Sunset Beach Hotel on Mahé on this website. I recommend both hotels for a great holiday.
3. La Digue
Transport
A fast catamaran (already an excursion for me) will take you from Praslin to La Digue in 15 minutes, or you can take the ferry Cat Cocos.
La Digue is car-free, which gives the island even more an “escape from the crowds- feeling”. The best way to get around La Digue is to rent a bicycle. La Digue is not as hilly as most of the other islands, so it’s easy to ride a bike here. Another way to get around is with a carriage, pulled by an ox.
The most beautiful beaches
La Digue is home to the most beautiful beaches on earth. Grande Anse, Petite Anse and Anse Cocos are of a distinctive natural beauty. The beaches are located next to each other and are divided by immense granite rocks. You can get to the beaches by the small paths just behind the beaches. Anse Cocos has a “natural swimming pool” to swim.
Don’t skip the super white beach and turquoise blue water of Anse Source d’Argent. At the other side of the island is the pristine Anse Severe Beach. Enjoy a delicious casual lunch at Takamaka Café.
I have never spend a night on La Digue during my trips to the Seychelles, but there are many options to choose from.
Read my tips about the island Mahé in my other blog about the Seychelles here.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please let me know in a reaction (below) or via the contact page.
Is a trip to Seychelles still a little out of reach (because of the expensive flight tickets), read more about my other experiences at tropical islands all over the world, for example the Perhentian Islands in Malaysia or Bali, Indonesia. Would you like to get more travel inspiration for a beach holiday, take a look at my photo inspiration page “Beach“. I recommend my blog “Whale sharks, manta rays and dhows in Tofo“, Mozambique, if you’re interested in scuba diving.
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