Seychelles family holiday
| country: | Seychelles |
| departures: | 2009: 3 Aug, 17 Aug |
| price: | From £1895 - £2083 (15 days) per adult and £1705 - £1833 per child including return flights from the UK, from £1375 excluding flights. Local payment €250 |
the amazing things you'll be doing
The Seychelles are rightly regarded as one of the world's premier tropical destinations - yet they offer much more than just sun, sea and coral reefs. Primeval forests and idyllic islets are widely protected as National Parks, providing a haven for tropical flora, birds, marine life and giant tortoises.
Join us on this exploration of the Inner Islands of the archipelago with a varied selection of activities as well as plenty of opportunities to be as lazy as you wish!
Mist-shrouded peaks on Mahe
Our first few days are spent on the Seychelles' largest island, Mahé. This island reaches heights approaching that of Snowdon! We begin with a tour of colonial Victoria and learn a few words of the French-Creole patois. Next we enter the Morne Seychellois National Park and follow a trail, originally used by cinnamon plantation workers, up through lush forest to Trois Frères peak for wonderful views over the island. Then we cool off with a trip by glass-bottomed boat to Baie Ternay Marine NP where we have our first glimpse of the underwater life and a spot of snorkelling.
Catamaran to Praslin
Taking the fast “CAT-Cocos” ferry, we arrive on Praslin, home of arguably the best white sand, palm-lined beaches in the archipelago. After getting our bearings by taking local buses and walking from beach to beach, including the wonderful Anse Lazio, we sample Praslin's underwater delights on a full day boat trip to Curieuse Marine NP. Also on Praslin, we'll visit the World Heritage Site of Vallée de Mai - a unique forest adorned with granite boulders with black parrots and the amazing Coco de Mer palm.
Discover La Digue
Getting even further from “civilisation”, we take a ferry across to relaxed La Digue, with its perfect beaches sheltered by sculptured boulders, where bicycles and ox-carts ply the dusty roads. We join them by hiring bikes for the day, and round off the trip with a full day boat trip to the islands of Grande Soeur, Félicité and tiny Cocos, complete with a beach BBQ for lunch. Finally, we return by ferry to Mahé.
Join us on this exploration of the Inner Islands of the archipelago with a varied selection of activities as well as plenty of opportunities to be as lazy as you wish!
Mist-shrouded peaks on Mahe
Our first few days are spent on the Seychelles' largest island, Mahé. This island reaches heights approaching that of Snowdon! We begin with a tour of colonial Victoria and learn a few words of the French-Creole patois. Next we enter the Morne Seychellois National Park and follow a trail, originally used by cinnamon plantation workers, up through lush forest to Trois Frères peak for wonderful views over the island. Then we cool off with a trip by glass-bottomed boat to Baie Ternay Marine NP where we have our first glimpse of the underwater life and a spot of snorkelling.
Catamaran to Praslin
Taking the fast “CAT-Cocos” ferry, we arrive on Praslin, home of arguably the best white sand, palm-lined beaches in the archipelago. After getting our bearings by taking local buses and walking from beach to beach, including the wonderful Anse Lazio, we sample Praslin's underwater delights on a full day boat trip to Curieuse Marine NP. Also on Praslin, we'll visit the World Heritage Site of Vallée de Mai - a unique forest adorned with granite boulders with black parrots and the amazing Coco de Mer palm.
Discover La Digue
Getting even further from “civilisation”, we take a ferry across to relaxed La Digue, with its perfect beaches sheltered by sculptured boulders, where bicycles and ox-carts ply the dusty roads. We join them by hiring bikes for the day, and round off the trip with a full day boat trip to the islands of Grande Soeur, Félicité and tiny Cocos, complete with a beach BBQ for lunch. Finally, we return by ferry to Mahé.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Fly London/Mahé Island |
| Day 2: | Arrive Mahé; walking tour of Victoria |
| Day 3: | Island tour and walk in Morne Seychellois N. Park |
| Day 4: | Included half day glass-bottomed boat trip |
| Day 5: | Free day for further island explorations |
| Day 6: | Catamaran ferry to Praslin Island; optional short walk |
| Day 7: | Optional bus and/or walk to Anse Lazio |
| Day 8: | Full day included boat trip to Curieuse Marine NP |
| Day 9: | Included half-day visit and walk in Vallée de Mai |
| Day 10: | Optional trip to Cousin Island Special Nature Reserve; ferry to La Digue Island |
| Day 11: | Walking tour of La Digue; visit plantations |
| Day 12: | On La Digue; included bike hire |
| Day 13: | Included full day swimming/snorkelling trip to Grand Soeur, including BBQ lunch |
| Day 14: | Ferry Praslin and catamaran ferry to Mahé Island |
| Day 15: | Fly London |
small group family holiday
This is a 'small group family adventure' - typically you will join several other families and travel in a group of approx. 16 people. The trips are great value and a great way for you and your children to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of time to yourselves. Most adventure kids tend to be aged between 7 and 15, but some are younger (minimum age is usually 5) and some older (perhaps travelling as part of a larger family group). Please check with the operator to confirm the minimum age for this trip how this holiday makes a difference
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The Seychelles are regarded as one of the world's premier tropical destinations, and so we do our best to ensure they remain well preserved. We stay in three locally owned and run guesthouses/hotels, which brings money into the hands of the local people.
We also have local operators who run boat trips, to help bring the money into the economy. The time spent with the crew on the boat trips on this tour are an ideal opportunity to get to know the local people and their culture and lifestyles. The entrance fees to the World Heritage parks and reserves help to ensure that the profits made go back into preserving and running the national parks. We eat delicious local food, which includes lots of seafood, caught by local fishermen. Our Tour Leaders are all trained by us in the importance of responsible tourism with guidance given on how they can make a difference. This then percolates down through those they deal with. As well as the above, we support a variety of charities and projects worldwide which support vulnerable communities and habitats including Friends of Conservation, Hope Worldwide and Send A Cow. We are also actively engaged with UK travel industry bodies which promote best practice in responsible tourism, such as Tourism Concern, The Travel Foundation and AITO. Our commitment to responsible tourism is not limited to our overseas operation and we have measures to ensure our UK office operates according to our responsible tourism policy. Carbon offsets for all flights booked with us are included in the tour cost. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |