Sun, sand and sea
In Seychelles, travelling to and fro is almost as dreamy as the beaches themselves
Anse Source D’Argent reveals herself slowly and seductively.
My wife, Kerry, and I discover this beach, reputed to be the best in the world, after flying Ethiopian Airlines from Toronto to Addis Ababa and onto Mahe.
Mahe is the main island in the Seychelles, the smattering of 115 specks of land in the Indian Ocean off the northern tip of Madagascar.
We meet Hybert Hortence, the cool Seychellois dude in dreadlocks who captains the Moorings catamaran we hire for a week, to take us to La Digue island, 44 km away.
On the pier in La Digue, our rental bikes are waiting. We cycle south past beguiling beaches, wondering how Anse Source D’Argent could possibly outdo them.
After paying admission of 115 Seychellois rupees (about $15) at the gate of L’Union Estate Park, we continue on two wheels along the palmtreed path to the bridge where there are already a mishmash of parked bikes. You have to walk from here.
As we cross the bridge and hustle along the sandy path, our excitement builds. The first small cove of Anse Source D’Argent appears, glistening emerald green, bordered by powdery white sand and bookended by towering granite boulders.
Superlatives are uttered. Photos are snapped.
The next three coves are only more dramatic.
National Geographic put Anse Source D’Argent atop its best beaches in the world list because it’s much more than just a white-sand piece of eye candy fronting pristine waters.
It has the added interest of stunning — and geographically significant — granite boulders. Rather than detract from the beach’s beauty, the giant chunks of rock serve to punctuate the space, creating alluring swirls of water and making the strips of sand between them more mysterious and magnificent.
We swim, we lounge, we nap. We are awed to have found this special place.
It’s a sentiment we’ll feel again and again as we sail from island to island, beach to beach, village to village in the Seychelles’ Inner Islands. A Moorings catamaran truly is the best way to explore this endlessly exotic paradise.
In conjunction with our captain, we customize a dayby-day itinerary focusing on indulgence and beauty-seeking in this African island nation with Indian and French charm. There are landings on an array of other beaches that could easily claim best-in-world titles: Anse Severe, Anse Lazio, Anse Major and Anse Jasmin.
We snorkel and spy abundant tropical fish at Coco Island and Baie Ternay Marine National Park. We eat the Seychelles national dish, octopus curry, at Constance Ephelia Resort. And we feed 120-year-old tortoises on Curieuse Island.
In between it all, we simply enjoy the A to B, perched on the front net of the 40-foot catamaran as the sails flap overhead and the wind propels us between the bluest of blue ocean and a cloud-freckled azure sky.
Surprisingly, we found Ethiopian Airlines is the quickest and easiest way for Canadians to get to the Seychelles. Ethiopian flies non-stop from Toronto to Addis Ababa in 13 hours and, after a two-hour connection, onto Mahe in three-and-a-half hours.
The airline has a fleet of new Dreamliner jets and an aptly named Cloud Nine business class with lie-flat seats.