Island hopping-in-the-Seychelles

There are many ways to island hop in the Seychelles, and many islands to hop between, but a great way to see a number of islands in one day is to join a cruise from Mahe to take in the delights of Cousin Island, Curieuse & St Pierre (Praslin).

The cruise starts from Baie Ste Anne Jetty for the short crossing to the Special Nature Reserve of Cousin Island. Here your cruise boat moors off-shore and you are taken to the island on a reserve boat to prevent the accidental introduction of pests to the island. A warden takes you on a tour of the island with its abundance of species and habitats. Start from the coast - with its protective mangroves, then move on to the wetlands - which attract dragonflies, moorhens, caecilans & Seychelles terrapins, and afterwards see the rejuvenated forest on the hill plateau - which provides ideal nesting sites for large populations of shearwaters and bridled terns amongst the endemic trees which include mapou, Indian mulberry and bwa sousouri. Endemic birds found on Cousin Island are the Magpie Robin, Sunbird, Fody, Blue Pigeon and the Warbler.

From Cousin the cruise continues with a 30-minute boat ride to Curieuse Island, where a splendid BBQ lunch is served on the Catamaran. Curieuse Island has a large population of giant tortoises, some of which can be seen next to a natural pond on the coast, whilst the majority roam across the island freely and can sometimes be tracked by listening out for their exhuberant mating calls! The cruise ends with an hour’s snorkelling off the tiny island of St. Pierre which is close to the island of Praslin.

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