THE SEYCHELLES

The Seychelles is an archipelago which lies in the western part of the Indian Ocean, and spreads over an Exclusive Economy Zone of around 1.3 million Square kilometres.

Lying 1593 km East of Kenya, 2813 km South West of India and 925 km North East of Madagascar makes this archipelago strategically located. It consists of 115 islands, of which 76 are coralline and the remaining are granitic.

The main part of the archipelago is situated between 4 and 5 degrees South of the equator at a longitude between 55 and 56 degrees east, allowing it to enjoy a favourable climate. The Seychelles is also lucky to be situated in a zone free from cyclones.

All the main islands are granitic and Mahe is the principal island (153 sq m with 80% of the total population). The estimated population is 80,000 in 1998. The coralline islands are low averaging 1.5 meters above sea level and seldom exceed 9 to 15 meters in height Supplies of fresh water are scarce and settlements are small with rarely more than a hundred people.

Many of these islands serve as rookeries for large bird populations.

In contrast the granitic islands rise from the sea to altitudes of 600 to 1000m. The topography is rugged with outcrops of huge boulders.

Fresh water is provided by surface streams. Most islands are covered in luxuriant and verdant vegetation. White sandy beaches surrounding the islands are natural features of the Seychelles archipelago.

SOME FACTS

HISTORY: A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES 4 35 S, 55 40 E CLIMATE tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) GEOGRAPHY 40 granitic and about 50 coralline islands TERRAIN Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs HIGHEST POINT Morne Seychellois 905 m NATURAL HAZARDS lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible POPULATION 80,098 (July 2002 est.) ETHNIC GROUPS mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese, and Arab

RELIGIONS Roman Catholic 86.6%, Anglican 6.8%, other Christian 2.5%, other 4.1% LANGUAGES English (official), French (official), Creole National Holidays 1st and 2nd January (New Year), Good Friday, Easter Saturday, 1st May (Labour Day), Corpus Christi, 5th June (Liberation Day), 15th June (National Day), 29th June (Independence Day), 15th August (Assumption), 1st November (All Saints Day), 8th December (Immaculate Conception), 25th December (Christmas Day) TIME DIFFERENCE Four hours ahead of Greenwich meridian time(GMT)and three hours ahead of the time in western Europe. VISA REQUIREMENTS No visa is needed to come to the Seychelles. All you need is a valid passport, a return ticket and a hotel reservation. Upon arrival at the Seychelles airport you will need to present all three documents to the immigration officer to be issued with a visa. First issue is valid for a month but extensions can be granted for up to a year. VACCINATION There is no malaria or other tropical diseases in Seychelles therefore no vaccination is required. ELECTRICITY VOLTAGE 240 volts AC

Mahé Island

• Mahé is the largest island in the Seychelles archipelago
• 90% of the Seychelles population live on Mahé
• Mahé boasts 75 beaches
• Mahé is the economic hub of the Seychelles
• There are several well organised walks and nature trails
• Mahé has two casinos
• Mahé is often described as the most spectacular of all the islands
• Hotels on Mahé include The Plantation Club and La Residence

Area: 162.5sq.km
Population: 67338

Mahé is the largest and most important island of the Seychelles archipelago. This spectacular island is only 27 kilometres long but is dominated by a mountain range that forms the backbone of the island. The highest peak, Morne Seychellois, reaches a height of 905metres and provides a perfect backdrop to the capital city Victoria. Although Mahé is the economic and political centre of the Seychelles it has still retained its natural charm and beauty. In many ways Mahé is the most spectacular, its huge mountains and lush tropical vegetation provide an inspiring sight. There are over 75 beaches scattered around the island and often you will find that you are the only people present. The beaches are idyllic, soft beautiful sand, fringed by swaying palm trees and a warm and inviting sea to help you cool off from the tropical sun. All overseas visitors arrive on Mahé, either by the port which is next to Victoria or at the Seychelles International Airport, which can be found on the east coast of the island. Some visitors do not stop in Mahé but rather fly or sail to neighbouring islands, which is a mistake as Mahé has so much to offer.

Victoria is small enough that it does not take too long to walk around, it is the best way to see the city and to get a feel of the place and the people. The market is a hive of activity daily except Sundays. Here it is easy to see why the Seychellois are often called the friendliest people in the world. The market sells locally made crafts, fish, fresh fruits and vegetables. The Botanical Gardens offer the opportunity to see some of the Seychelles, unique and endemic plants in easy and comfortable surroundings. The gardens were established nearly 100 years ago and cover an area of 15 acres. The Clock Tower is the focal point of Victoria, it was erected in 1903 to mark Seychelles "coming of age as a separate colony".It once stood at the harbour front but with resourceful land reclamation it is now back into the heart of the town. Although 90% of the total Seychelles population lives on Mahé (72,000) it still has a quiet and informal atmosphere. Parts of the island look as they did twenty years ago and parts are modern with high tech facilities.

The nightlife is much livelier on Mahé than the neighbouring islands, there are two casinos, one in Beau Vallon Bay and one at the Plantation Club in the south of the island. The restaurants offer fantastic cuisine with a variety of international and local delicacies, each has its own identity. Most of the hotels have entertainment in the evenings by local singers and bands and there are some night clubs in and around Victoria for those who want to dance until the early hours. During the day Mahé has an unbelievable amount of activities to choose from with are several well run dive centres and watersport’s operators scattered around the island. There is also a wide range of accommodation from self catering and small guest houses to large and sophisticated hotels. Mahé has lots of nature walks and trails amongst the Morne Seychellois National Park which covers an area of 11 square miles. If it is walking around an art gallery or an artist’s studio that takes your fancy then Mahé has this too. In fact Mahé can offer you almost anything you want.

Praslin Island

Praslin is the second largest inhabited island, and is seven miles by roughly two and a half. It is located 25 miles from Mahé. It is 15 minutes away by plane from Mahé. The traditional schooner takes 3 hours to cover the distance. A fast ferry service does the trip in about an hour.

The striking coral reefs are mere striplings, perhaps six to eight thousand years old. But they are teeming with life ; a landscape painted in the myriad colours of living coral, jewel like shells, and an amazing nine hundred species of fish.

It is also home to one of Seychelles' two World Heritage Sites - the Vallee de Mai - a primeval rainforest containing the famous Coco de Mer palms, which have the largest, heaviest and most suggestively shaped nuts in the world. Vanilla orchids, a variety of lizards and some of earth's rarest birds also reside there. Praslin, though small, more than warrants exploration. Thanks to its geography, it is also the ideal place from which to visit many of the other islands.

Praslin is fast becoming a popular holiday alternative to Mahé and many visitors are spending their whole stay there. For a modest you may visit the famous Vallée de Mai reserve where the world’s strangest fruit, the coco de mer grows. Nature lovers will be delighted to learn that the Vallée de Mai is also home to a range of exotic plants and rare birds.

La Digue Island

The most photographed and beautiful island in Seychelles.

The fourth largest island.

An aura of charm and tranquillity surrounds La Digue. This island is accessible by boat and helicopter; about two and a half hours from Mahé and thirty minutes from Praslin. For years the way of life on La Digue has remained unchanged, transport is mainly by ox-cart or bicycle. On La Digue, time seems to stand still.

Although La Digue can be visited on a day excursion, the island's rare calm and friendliness of its people are too precious to be passed by in haste. The ox-cart excursions include some of the more picturesque parts of the island where some fine traditional houses are situated. Wide deserted beaches are perfect for long walks, safe swimming, snorkelling and fishing.

In the woods of La Digue can be found the rare black paradise flycatcher. Although this bird was once thought to be extinct, recent estimates suggest that there may be as many as one hundred on the island.

Cycads, one of the oldest and most primitive of plants, are to be seen growing above the quiet roads of the island.

La Digue is the fourth largest island in the Seychelles, measuring five kilometres by three, and is part of the granitic group. It lies 43 kilometres from Mahé and six and a half from Praslin.

The island has no natural harbour and is protected by the coral reefs which circle it, together with masses of pink granite rocks which seem to have exploded around the coastline.

The hotels on La Digue are mostly situated along the west coast, between La Passe, L'Union and Anse Reunion. The east coast is far wider.

Cousin/Aride Island

Cousin Island The island of Cousin, owned by Bird-Life International, a British Conservation Organisation, is a nature reserve for many rare birds among them the brush warblers which are near extinction and now found nowhere else in the world, and other animal species namely ground doves and giant millipedes. Area: 0.3sq.km Population: 20

Aride Island Aride is the most northerly of the granite islands on the Seychelles Plateau. It lies some 54km northeast of Mahe and 10km north of Praslin. It is 1.6km long and 0.6km wide. Partly encircled by a fringing coral reef Aride rises to a height of 152m above sea level. It is covered with lush, tropical vegetation the richness of which makes the island a continuous focus of botanical interest. In addition to rare plants, tropical fruits and spices also grow in profusion. Aride has been declared a nature reserve. It also has the largest colony of sea birds of all the granite islands. As on other islands, there are many tales of pirates and hidden treasure on Aride. Area: 0.68sq.km Population: 15

Desroches Island

• Desroches is the largest island in the Amirantes group.
• Desroches is 5 km long
• Desroches is 230 km south west of Mahé
• Desroches is 50 minute air flight away
• Desroches has three flights per week
• The most accessible and economically significant island of the Amirantes, Desroches is a 5 kilometre long island that
• is part of huge lagoon. Most of the rim of the lagoon is fully submerged which provides excellent diving conditions.
• The island is 230 kilometres south west of Mahé.

The island is named after an eighteenth century administrator of Mauritius who was governor from 1767 to 1772. Desroches is the only outer island with a regular air link to Mahe, the route is serviced five times a week by Air Seychelles and the flight duration is about fifty minutes.

The island has been well developed with timber and coconut plantations and it is said that Desroches provides the best copra in the Seychelles archipelago. Desroches is one of the most densely populated of the outer islands with approximately fifty inhabitants who supply copra, timber and charcoal to Mahé.

Desroches is an excellent base for exploring the Amirantes and its twenty eight islands and provides excellent bird watching , diving and fishing.

Bird Island

Anchored to the edge of the submerged plateau of the Seychelles Bank, 65 miles north-west of Mahe. The island is open all year round. There is a scheduled daily flight by Air Seychelles and the journey takes only 30 minutes. Yachts can be chartered from Mahe but the journey will take up to 8 hours.

The island boasts a feathered fantasia. From May to October it is the nesting site for up to one million sooty terns. Other species include lesser and common noddy, and crested fairy terns. You can hear the noise of the sooty terns as you approach the immense colony situated in the north-west corner of the island.

Pet tortoises amble around on most of the small islands, but the most notable specimen has made Bird Island its home. 'Esmmeralda' is the world's heaviest tortoise alive. Its favorite pastime is meandering through the breeding ground of the seabirds.

Felicite Island

• Felicite is connected via La Digue Island Lodge
• Felicite is 4km south east of La Digue

The island extends over an area of two and a half square kilometres and lies about 3 kilometres south east of La Digue. Its general formation is a steep-sided and rocky ridge, about a kilometre long, running roughly north west and south east. There is a high portion, about half a kilometre long in the centre, culminating to a peak of 213 metres above sea level.

The greater part of the island is planted with coconuts. Groups of forest trees are usually found on the steep and rocky glacis which are found scattered about the island, more especially near the summit, and the extensive Glacis Rouille on the north eastern side of the island. There are three river reserves, one at either end of Glacis Rouille and one near the south western end of the island. The principal trees are takamaka and badamier, with some cashews.

The island is now an annex to La Digue Island Lodge, and the sea which surrounds Félicité provides good snorkelling opportunities.

Denis Island

• Denis island has good fishing and diving facilities
• Denis is only thirty minutes by air from Mahé

Denis Island, a 350 acre coral cay is situated on the edge of the Seychelles Bank and lies some 80 kilometres from Mahé or 30 minutes by air. Denis Island has a strikingly rich vegetation and the fertile soil, which contains large quantities of guano, is a proof that the island was a popular nesting ground for colonies of seabirds years ago. It is still frequented by turtles which lay their eggs in the sands, and has a population of wild tortoises roaming free.

A large variety of indoor and outdoor activities are available, such as tennis, table tennis, snooker, darts as well as boating, mini sailing, snorkelling and diving on the reefs surrounding the island.

Denis Island is an ideal place for game fishermen. Fishing boats based on the island offer daily fishing excursions. The depths around Denis Island have already yielded several world records; dog tooth, bonito and tuna, plus rewarding catches of marlin, sailfish, barracuda, wahoo, dorado and job.

Parts of the island are densely wooded with palm trees. There is also a lagoon surrounded by a wealth of coral, making the island an extremely desirable place.

Denis Island boasts a tiny fishing village with about fifteen houses and approximately fifty inhabitants, an Anglo-French lighthouse built in 1910, two prisons which are no longer used, a centre for processing copra, a farm and the only ecumencial chapel on the archipelago.

It was Mr. Pierre Burkhardt, a French cellulose industrialist, who bought the island many years ago and had the small landing strip and also the hotel built.

Denis Island also offers to visitors the privacy, relaxation and peace that can be found only on a private island in the middle of the ocean.

Silhouette Island

Silhouette, the second highest island, is famous for its mist forest. It is reputed to have the least disturbed original forest. It is the third largest granite island and home to 200 people only. Silhouette, with its mountain top always shrouded in clouds, can be seen from Beau Vallon beach. There is one hotel there.

Area: 20sq.km
Population: 156