Some places stay with you long after you leave. The Seychelles is one of them. Beyond its postcard-perfect beaches and turquoise shallows, these islands hold places where nature still calls the shots, where history lingers in colonial ruins, and where conservation is ingrained into daily life. These are the places that shape the Seychelles – not just as a destination, but as a world apart.
If legends were landscapes, Vallée de Mai would be one. This primeval forest – now a UNESCO World Heritage Site – feels untouched by time. The coco de mer, with its giant double-lobed nuts, grows nowhere else in the world. Sunlight filters through its massive fronds, casting shifting patterns on ancient trails. Some called this the original Garden of Eden, and standing beneath these towering palms, it's easy to believe.
Mahé's central wilderness remains as unspoiled as it was centuries ago. Covering 20% of the island, Morne Seychellois National Park is a world of misty peaks, dense rainforest, and old spice plantations slowly being reclaimed by nature. Its highest summit, where the western coast stretches out below, stands as an untouched frontier, rarely reached by visitors. Along the Copolia Trail, pitcher plants grow wild on the rocks, while the Morne Blanc path opens to views that reach past the horizon.
Out in the remote western edges of the Seychelles, Aldabra Atoll tells a different story. Over 150,000 giant tortoises roam this coral ring – more than all other Indian Ocean islands combined. The lagoon drops away into deep blue, where manta rays and reef sharks patrol the edges. Few people make it here; the atoll allows only scientists and small conservation groups to protect its pristine state. For those who do, it’s one of the last places on Earth where nature exists on its own terms.
No roads reach Anse Major. The only way in is by boat or by foot, along a narrow coastal path where granite boulders drop into the sea. The walk takes about an hour, crossing through scrubland before opening onto a secluded cove. At low tide, natural pools form in the rocks, warming in the sun. Most visitors stick to the easier beaches, leaving this cove to the more adventurous.
It’s not just beautiful – it’s consistently named one of the best beaches in the world. Tucked behind swaying takamaka trees, Anse Lazio’s arc of golden sand meets a sea that never seems to lose its colour. Unlike some Seychelles beaches, there’s no protective reef here – the waves arrive straight from the horizon, bringing a deeper blue to the bay.
Anse Georgette is harder to reach, which is exactly why it continues to be one of Seychelles’ immaculate beaches. There are no roads leading here – only guests of Constance Lemuria Resort have easy access. Others must arrive by sea or hike through the private estate's forested trails. The effort keeps the beach peaceful – you might have the whole stretch of sand to yourself.
The Seychelles' first marine park, designated in 1973, is exceptionally biodiverse. Encompassing six islands just off Mahé, it is home to hawksbill turtles gliding over coral gardens and schools of angelfish darting through ancient currents. Moyenne Island, one of the park’s protected isles, shelters over 100 giant tortoises, left to roam freely.
A dive site with no land in sight – just a submerged granite plateau where marine life gathers in astonishing numbers. Schools of barracuda sweep past eagle rays, while reef sharks weave between granite formations. Here, in the open blue, the Seychelles’ underwater world reveals itself in its purest form.
A tiny island with an outsized role in conservation, Cousin was once a coconut plantation. Today, it’s a nature reserve, restored to its original state. Critically endangered magpie robins, once down to just 26 birds, now thrive here. Nesting turtles return to its shores each year, their journey uninterrupted. Visiting is carefully controlled – only guided tours are allowed, ensuring the island stays exactly as it should.
Victoria Market has been part of the capital since 1840. Its open-air stalls still fill each morning with spice sellers, fruit vendors, and fishmongers calling out their daily catch. The market brings together the island's African, European, and Indian influences – you'll hear it in the mix of languages, see it in the spices, taste it in the food.
What remains of Mission Lodge is only ruins, but its past lingers. Built as a school for freed slaves in the 19th century, it later became a retreat for colonial governors. Now, its stone remnants frame astonishing views of Seychelles – a panorama so striking that Queen Elizabeth II herself once stopped here, just to take it all in.
Set in an old plantation house, Takamaka isn’t just a distillery – it’s a story of Seychelles in liquid form. Using locally grown sugarcane and pure island spring water, this is where the Seychelles’ signature rum is made. Tours walk through the process, ending with tastings that bring a different side of the islands to life.
A living showcase of Seychelles’ colonial past, Domaine de Val des Près preserves a 19th-century plantation estate, complete with Creole-style houses, a working craft village, and traditional spice gardens. Rather than a museum, this is a place that still feels lived in – where the rhythms of the past echo through the buildings.
The Seychelles’ oldest cemetery is also its most mysterious. Pirates, early settlers, and the so-called "Giant of Bel Air" – a man supposedly over nine feet tall – are buried here. Some gravestones are cracked and leaning, others are almost swallowed by vegetation. Yet, among them, Seychelles’ early history is written in stone.
Aride is different. In contrast to other islands, there are no hotels, and no permanent residents – only seabirds. The most important breeding ground in the Indian Ocean, it’s home to species found nowhere else. With no artificial light, nights here belong to the stars, and during the day, the sky is never empty.
An island reclaimed by nature and once a leper colony, Curieuse is now a protected refuge for giant tortoises, who roam freely across its red earth. The mangrove boardwalk runs through a maze of twisted roots, home to crabs that scuttle between shadows.
A glimpse of Seychelles as it once was. A working coconut plantation where ox carts turn the old copra mill, and Creole architecture looks much as it did centuries ago. A walk through the estate leads to Anse Source d’Argent, but the real allure lies in the journey through history before the beach even comes into view.
These islands challenge what we think we know about them. Yes, there are perfect beaches, but there are also forests older than memory, peaks wrapped in mist, and corners where giant tortoises still roam free. The Seychelles asks us to look closer, to venture further, to understand that some places can never be captured in a single image or story.