Seychelle Islands Cruises
Seychelle Islands cruises offer a unique opportunity to visit these unique, dynamically beautiful tropical islands that encompass a 75-square-mile archipelago are located in the Indian Ocean near the equator, a thousand miles east of Kenya and a thousand miles away from any another land mass. The islands were uninhabited until the mid-eighteenth century when France took possession. Over the years, the 115 islands (80 of which are still deserted) were settled by Europeans, Africans, and Asians, and today the 70,000 inhabitants speak Creole, French, and English. The Seychelle Islands are geologically unique in that they are of solid-granite origin rather than volcanic rock, with dramatic cliffs that rise from the sea, carpeted with lush vegetation and interesting boulder formations that are the debris of gigantic movements of the earth's crust thousands of years ago. The Seychelle beaches are the very best in the world, and the warm seas surrounding the islands offer countless opportunities for swimming, water sports, scuba, and snorkeling. Several of the islands are home for rare species of sea birds and plant life found nowhere else in the world. The weather is hot, humid, and sometimes windy during the monsoon season. December and January are the worst months and May through October are the best months for Seychelle Islands cruises. There are several international airplane flights each week into Mahe which is the largest of the Seychelle Islands. The harbor at Mahe's largest city, Victoria, is the port of call for many cruise ships. Ninety-five percent of the population of the Seychelle Islands is on Mahe. It is here where you'll find the best hotels, the best restaurants, the best shopping, as well as 68 beautiful beaches. The most pristine and picturesque beaches are Anse Royale on the southeast coast and Anse Intendence on the southwest coast; the most popular, but not the most beautiful, is at Baie Beau Vallon where numerous hotels are located. The capital town of Victoria which sits near the harbor is very clean but not terribly interesting. There are a number of shops and boutiques as well as several restaurants. The better hotels, resorts, and restaurants are located around the island and not in Victoria. Top really appreciate this incredibly lush island, you should rent a car on minimoke or hire a taxi to drive you around Mahe. Nowhere in the world can you witness such incredibly beauty. Prasline lies to the northwest of Mahe and is a 2 1/2 hour ferryboat ride or 15-minute propeller flight. Here you can enjoy the one-mile walk through the 450-acre Valle-De-Mai, a lovely forest and the home of the botanical rarity, the Coco de Mer Palm, as well as such rare birds as the black parrot, blue pigeon, and bulbul. Seychelle Islands cruises are worth the trip. |
