Day 1: Mahe, Eden Island Marina
Our starting point is Eden Island Marina in the capital of Seychelles: Victoria. The largest city of the whole archipelago counts 60.000 inhabitants but feels more like a paradise village. Immediately upon arrival we feel the vibe of lives being spent under the equatorial sun. Everyone is kind and welcoming and our arrival day goes by pleasantly. We meet our fellow sailors, provision the yachts by visiting nearby supermarket and the local fruit market. In the evening we stroll around admiring local art crafts and finally dining altogether at one of the restaurants. Palms surround us, green hills comfort the eyes and a constant gentle breeze refreshes our arrival. Welcome to the sailing holidays in Seychelles. Welcome to the `Garden of Eden` route.
Arrival from Seychelles International Airport to The Marina will take you only 15 minutes (7km). It really cannot be closer.
Day 2: TERESA ISLAND
A sailing path between coral reefs takes us out of the marina. Enjoying our first day under the sails we leave the marina and sail around northern part of Mahe island. The sea breeze that we catch is of perfect strength allowing us to reach a comfortable sailing speed. The hills of Mahe, palms, white beaches, and straw thatched roofs of villas pass by and we arrive to our first lunch stop. Water is electric blue, coral reefs invite to snorkel and we happily plunge into the water. A few hours later we arrive to Theresa island and drop our anchor for the night. It is an uninhabited island! While the stars come out at night we feel that we finally arrived to the paradise we searched for. And it`s only a beginning!
Note: Remember to bring your music instruments! It`s a perfect place to make our own music and sing!
Day 3: LA DIGUE ISLAND
It`s time to sail further to the smaller islands of the Seychelles archipelago. From Mahe we sail towards La Digue, making a lot of sea miles that day. Constant winds come from NW making our passage a very comfortable and fast sail. It`s time for some more steering practice or maybe a napping practice?
Day 4: THE SISTERS
The sailing distance from La Digue to The Sisters is short, therefore we use this time to practice our sailing manoeuvers and learn more about how to master our sailboats. It`s us who sail the boats, not the boats who sail us! A lunch stop is foreseen at a beautiful and remote beach where no road leads to while in the evening we drop anchor at the shores of The Sister islands. It`s a small island but the beauty of it surpasses many. Palms? Granite boulders on the beach? White sand? All what you associate with Seychelles is here. Let`s enjoy!
Day 5: COCO ISLAND
Coco Island is one of the most impressive snorkelling spots. A few granite rocks with palms sticking out of it mark the marine park territory. Coral reefs surround this heavenly spot so we can anchor only if a few spots. Shallow turquoise sea fringed by expanses of corals provide the most breathtaking experience. If the winds are forecasted to be calm we can even stay here for the night!
Day 6: PRASLIN ISLAND
Our sailing holiday in Seychelles continues towards the 2nd largest island in this archipelago. On the Prasilin island we hike to the Vallée de Mai (Unesco World Heritage Site). It is so remarkable that it was once believed to be the original site of the Garden of Eden, this hauntingly beautiful primeval forest is home to some 6000 Coco-de-mer trees, considered to be among the botanical wonders of the world. The nuts of this tree weights up to 20 kilograms! The hike is crowned by a visit to a waterfall with which waters we can refresh ourselves and drink from the spring of eternal beauty, richness and happiness! As the town offers many facilities we can rent scooters and explore the island further to find a perfect spot for admiring the sunset.
Day 7: CURIEUSE ISLAND
The whole island of Curieuse is a protected area which aims to conserve the rainforest, preserve the biodiversity and care for the 150 Giant Tortoise living on this island. The trail from Bay Laraie to Anse José bay passes through thick mangrove forest and is one of the most breathtaking sites on the island. We can spot the giants, listen to the song of the most unique birds and finish the walk with a picnic on the other side. Snorkelling is excellent all around our yachts, so we stay here overnight and maybe even sit around the fire with the park rangers.
Day 8: SILHOUETTE ISLAND
Being one of the richest biodiversity hot-spots in the western Indian Ocean Silhouette Island is yet another protected area in Seychelles. Our sailing holiday route leads us here to spend the last night outside the Marina. It is home to many endemic plants and animal species and has large areas of primeval forest, mist forests as well as breathtaking viewpoints at the maximal height of 740m. What is more there is just one hotel, so beaches will be as empty as they can be in Seychelles. Perfect for laying on the white sand, watching the stars and thinking of what privileged and happy we are to be in this place. Garden of Eden it is.
Day 9: Mahe, Eden Island, Marina
At the end of our trip, we come back to the Marina where we started from (Eden Island Marina) and stay one last night on board. We need to check out the boats by 09h00 in the morning on the last day.
