Seychelles eco lodge accommodation

Seychelles eco lodge accommodation. A 30 minute flight from Mahe by light aircraft gives the first stunning impressions of this tiny 170 acre coral cay. The east and south sides are surrounded by a protective barrier reef which is home to many varieties of colourful tropical fish and the rest is an open beach which offers superb safe swimming.

This Island & Seychelles eco lodge offer a magical holiday experience. Endless stretches of fine white coral sand beaches give a true 'castaway' feeling. The emphasis is very much on relaxation and informality, this Seychelles eco lodge is a true retreat from today's busy world. Swimming and snorkelling are superb in the warm shallow waters there is some spectacular game fishing at the edge of the Seychelles Bank, where the sea suddenly drops to over 1000 fathoms.

However, the island is best known as an ornithological paradise. Apart from a year round population of at least 20 different species, the island can boast claim many first time easterly, westerly, northern and southern records for vagrant birds. During the months May to October almost a million pairs of Sooty terns nest and raise their young. From October to March Hawksbill Turtles come ashore to lay their eggs and visitors at this time who stay at least 4 or 5 days have an excellent chance of seeing this wonderful sight and also the chance to see hatchlings emerging.

The Lodge is the only hotel on the island. Apart from the guests and staff, there are no other human inhabitants. We offer a unique blend of hospitality, relaxation and simplicity in a non-sophisticated and natural environment. The eco lodge consists of 24 simple but very comfortable individual chalets nestle amongst what remains of the island's old coconut plantation.

Each has a king-sized bed, large shower room and separate toilet, lounge corner and spacious patio overlooking the gardens to the sea beyond. Each chalet will accommodate a third adult and child or two extra children. Guests are delighted to find that at this Seychelles eco lodge there are no air conditioners (fan cooled instead), TV's or telephones in the rooms and that they are able to enjoy their natural surroundings in comfort without the trappings of modern society.

The main hotel building with the Reception, Lounge, Restaurant and Bar is situated a couple of minutes walk from the airstrip where guests arrive on the only flight each day. The buffet style restaurant serves local cuisine in an informal setting using mostly fresh produce including fresh fish and vegetables from the island. Manned entirely by friendly Seychellois staff, offering no gimmicks, the Lodge is your base to explore all aspects of this beautiful island. The Informal restaurant serves buffets which include salads and tender pork from the island farm as well as plenty of fresh fish with a Creole/Continental flavour.

Facilities include Bar, Library, Boutique, Table tennis, Billiards, Snorkelling, Game fishing and Kayaks (available at a supplement). Guests may use the office PC to send and receive emails.

Each chalet has its own electronic digital safe. All rooms have 1 King-size double bed (no twins, but we can make the room up on request to a twin)

Family friendly:Although we don’t have the usual children’s facilities – eg paddling pools and kiddies clubs, it is a wonderful place for children to come face to face with nature in a very safe environment which provides excellent educational opportunities first hand.The island the ideal place to spend quality time with your children away from the pressures of modern living. We have no television – our television is the wonders of nature that surround us. Birds nest next to and near the chalets and the giant tortoises roam freely through the gardens. Safe swimming for children and for the more adventurous kids the wonders of the marine life can be explored in safe conditions within the reef.

We do expect parents to supervise their children, but we do offer a baby sitting service in the evenings for kids who go to bed early.We offer early dinner for children and for the not so adventurous eater we don’t mind cooking something a little more to their taste such as fresh fish and chips or spaghetti – no burgers or junk food!!

Disabled access: Ramp access to all chalets and bar/restaurant for wheelchairs is available. Most island trails are suitable for wheelchairs.

---

Volunteers wanted!

Turtle Programme: The majority of turtles which lay on the island are Hawksbill Turtles and Seychelles (& a few other sites in the western Indian Ocean) is the only place in the world where they come ashore to lay during the day, which makes monitoring fairly easy. Green turtles lay at night. The island is divided into sectors with marked posts which makes it easier to record the part of the beach the turtle came up on.

If a track is discovered during a routine beach patrol and no turtle is present we still record the fact that one came up and in which sector. The track width is measured and evidence of a nest is looked for. It is important to measure the width of the track when there is no turtle present as then we can decide whether or not it was a Green or Hawksbill, Green turtle tracks are much wider than a Hawksbill’s. If a nest is found it is marked with a numbered post and the date recorded.
When a turtle is present and has begun to lay, she can then be checked for tags, and her tag numbers recorded. She normally has one tag on each front flipper. Damaged or missing tags are replaced and if she has no tags she is tagged. Her carapace is measured and her general condition is noted.

Regular beach patrols are carried out by the team. It is very important to carry out regular beach patrols to check for turtle because occasionally a turtle may become trapped in vegetation and be unable to return to the sea. If this happens in the heat of the day the turtle may die from dehydration, or even in the evening she may become stressed and die when trapped and unable to free herself.

As we also have a regular beach monitoring programme we are able to anticipate beach erosion and therefore relocate the nest (if necessary) to a safe area away from the sea. This is done on the day the eggs are laid to ensure maximum nest success.

We will require help from mid October 2006 through to February 2007. Volunteers will be required to do regular beach patrols (in conjunction with others and under the supervision of Robbie our conservation manager) and record relevant specified info. With a little training they may be able to tag a turtle as well (under supervision). Again we will offer 30% off the accommodation and 15% off the internal flights. By air: Flights from U.K: Direct (non stop) Air Seychelles departing Heathrow Friday and Sunday evening. (www.airseychelles.com) From Europe Air France/Air Seychelles (code share) Paris 5 flights a week they also connect from regional airports such as Manchester/Newcastle/Birmingham which is good for travellers from other area and avoids having to go thru H/row. Connections are usually quite good with little waiting time in Paris for the Seychelles flt. Qatar Airways offer several flights a week with a change in Doha. Emirates also several flights a week with a change in Dubai. These two also offer good connections from U.K. regional airports.

The island is an isolated, fragile and unique ecosystem. Active monitoring and awareness programmes involve researchers, staff and guests, to protect endangered species and their habitats especially seabirds and turtles.

Achievements to date

• Since 1967 management of vegetation in the Sooty Tern breeding area has increased the colony size from c.18,000 pairs in the 1960s to c.750,000 pairs today.
  
• Support for research on Sooty Tern biology in relation to egg harvest that commenced in 1972; and continued support for the extension of this work from 1993 to the present
  
  
• Cessation of turtle harvesting on the island has led to us hosting good populations of both Green and Hawksbill Turtles, and this is now backed by support for tagging of female turtles that come ashore to lay, and monitoring of the success of nests as part of a wider turtle monitoring programme in Seychelles.
  
• Eradication of rats and rabbits, both accidentally introduced, has led to an increase in the populations of Brown Noddies, which now nest on the ground, and Wedge-tailed Shearwaters and White-tailed Tropicbirds.
  
  
• Support for a PhD study of the relative success of tree and ground-nesting Common Noddies.
  
• Support to Nature Seychelles (Birdlife partner in Seychelles) to monitor all species of seabird breeding on the island.
  
  
• Support to visiting scientists investigating the island's geography, flora and marine life.
  
• Maintenance of an education programme for visitors to the island, including nature walks given by a trained member of the hotel staff and a display of posters, in the restaurant building, that explain research and monitoring programmes on the island.
  
• The setting up and maintenance of a small weather station which provides regular information for the Seychelles Meteorological Office.

We are constantly striving to improve its environmental performance; the owners recognise that their success is inextricably linked to the integrity of this unique ecosystem.