seychelles

Mahé, the largest island in the Seychelles, feels like a dream come to life. It’s the kind of place where nature shows off at every turn.  The capital, Victoria, is charmingly small, one of the tiniest capitals in the world, but full of character. There’s a colorful local market where you can smell the spices, see fresh fish, and hear Creole being spoken—an island symphony. But it’s the beaches that really steal the show. Beau Vallon is one of the most famous, where the water is as clear as glass, and the sunsets feel like they’ve been painted just for you.

Beyond the beaches, Mahé’s interior is a different kind of beauty. Morne Seychellois National Park covers most of the island, offering trails that take you through dense forests up to viewpoints where you can see the island laid out beneath you like a map. The combination of mountains and sea makes Mahé feel almost otherworldly, as if you’re standing at the edge of the earth.

Praslin, often called the jewel of the Seychelles, feels like a hidden paradise that time forgot. It’s smaller and more laid-back than Mahé, but what it lacks in size, it more than makes up for in sheer beauty. This island is where you go when you want to feel like you’ve stepped into a tropical daydream, where the beaches look too perfect to be real, but they are—Anse Lazio and Anse Georgette are living proof.

Anse Lazio, in particular, is regularly voted one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, and it’s not hard to see why. Imagine soft, powdery white sand under your feet, crystal-clear water that shifts between shades of blue and green, and those iconic granite boulders that seem to frame every view like a masterpiece. The sunsets here feel almost scripted—too perfect to believe.

But Praslin isn’t just about beaches. Tucked within the island’s lush interior is Vallée de Mai, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a mystical palm forest that looks like something out of Jurassic Park. This is the only place in the world where the famous Coco de Mer palm grows—its giant, heart-shaped nuts are as unique as the forest that shelters them. Walking through Vallée de Mai is like wandering through a prehistoric garden, with towering trees, rare birds like the black parrot, and a silence that feels ancient.

La Digue feels like the Seychelles' best-kept secret—a small island where time seems to move at its own lazy pace, and the only traffic you’ll encounter is a bicycle or the occasional ox cart. It’s a place where life slows down, and the landscape takes center stage, offering one breathtaking view after another.

The crown jewel of La Digue is Anse Source d’Argent, arguably one of the most photographed beaches in the world, and for good reason. Picture giant granite boulders, smoothed by time, scattered across white sands so fine they feel like powdered sugar underfoot. The shallow, crystal-clear waters seem to glow in shades of turquoise, as if they’re lit from beneath. It’s not just a beach—it’s a masterpiece, a place so surreal it almost feels fictional.

For a dose of nature, head to Veuve Nature Reserve, home to the rare Seychelles paradise flycatcher, also known as the "veuve," or widow bird. The reserve feels untouched, a little pocket of wilderness where you can listen to the calls of exotic birds while wandering through dense forest.