The Bicycle -a most convenient travel companion
Few things are more rewarding than exploring a place by bike.
If I look back att the travelling I’ve dione the last ten years, it’s intresting to see that I’ve most often bought, or brought my own bicycle. So it has develloped into an equally important criteria as the food when I choose places to go to. What’s it like to bicycle in..?

Foldable Bicycle
I bought my first one in NYC 2009. Some kind of mountain bike inspired version of a city bike. I remember I liked it, but never used it back in Sweden and sold it five years later. I DO hope the new owner is using it. My second I bought at Decathlon in Spain, and even though she came with me and my 2-seater sports car driving all around (outer edges) France, I didn’t really come to appreciate her until I went interrailing in mostly Italy and Norway 2022. Now, she‘s my best travelling bud.
Since I have two home addresses, one in Malmö and one in Stockholm (Sweden), I felt ok getting a similar one to Sally to keep in my Stockholm apt. May I introduce… Red. I kindof feel illoyal to Sally. The addtitional travel bud is from Decathlon. We’re not quite best buds after this trip, but I really like Red as well.
The thing that prevented me from absolutely loving it was the lock on the pole for the steering. When you’re kind of pulling it while going steep uphill, it can unlock itself which is downright dangerous. I won’t return it cause all the’ll do is take it back. I rather keep it and use a band of velcro to “lock” the lock. Cause so like some other things with it. The color for one, even though it’s adouble egged sword. It’s sooo nice looking, but get a bit too much attention. The other thing is that the handlebar is improved, menaing you can sit more upright, which is so very comfortable. I think our relationship will improve as we make more trips together😊
Bicycle Helmet
It’s impossible to suggest anything BUT that ypu’re supposed to have and wear one. But I don’t. I’ve had some serious accidents, but the one I wear is an airbag kind of helmet that is like a heavy scarf. I absolutely love it. But it’s also heavy and take up space in my very small luggage. With the experience I have + studies showing a few different consequences from rinding a bicycle with a helmet made me decide not wearing one.
Using a helmet while bicycling, or not?
CNET
The Guardian
Road.cc
NIH (National Library of Medicine)
Velo
Reddit
PeterAttia MD
This being said and shared, I do NOT under any circumstances advocate NOT wearing a helmet. I’m just sayng my experiences have made me a much better bicyclist. Of course that doesn’t cover all aspects of bicycling and the risks with bicycling.
I’ve just develloped my bicycleriding to the brink of submission to it can be dangerous, so no bicycling under stress, no cocky mannors where I prove my rights on the roads.
Transporter Bag for the Foldable Bicycle
My current soft transporter bag is singing it’s last verses. I’ve done some repairs of it, but it’s time to start looking for a replacement.
It’s tricky though, buying online and the measurements. The current one suits my bicycle perfect. While a bit larger one makes the bike slinde around a bit = more bruises. Yes, you’ll easily aquire bruises from carrying a bike over your shoulders. Not only do I bruise easily, they also stay on me for quite a while.
I still prefere the unpadded ones, cause the’re easier to fold into a smaller bag once you unpack and ride your bicycle with the luggade strapped on the back. Lif’e full of compromises.
Transporter bags for foldable bicycles
Greatbike
Rhinowalk
Ebike24
Flying with a Bicycle
Just picking airline was a dilemma since the affordable ones with reasonable flying hours are more or less all owned by dictatorship nations. I picked Ethiopian Airlines and felt shame due to Ethiopia keeping our Swedish citizen Dawit Isaak emprisoned without a real trial. The flight is 7 h 30 mins + 3h 45 mins.
Their luggage rules are accordingly 2 checked in luggages with max weight of 32 kilos each, and with hight+length+width not exceeding 158 cm. There are other, but similar rules for sports equipment.
My luggage didn’t exceed the measurements in either size or weight with it’s 17 kilos. They did wan’t to charge me for the bicycle though. But since my small Osprey Fairview 40 was only 13 kgs I managed to make them let me check in both without any extra charge. But you all know… the luggage flexibility when it comes to checking in luggage is a lottery. Good luck.


Check in & Flexibility
Since I’ve totally lost the habit of flying, I totally drop my teddy while trying too book online. Choosing a seat on flight for a total of 150 usd… if I didn’t choose the addition of a… seat, was I going to be packed into the plane with the boxes of bananas? After a suggestion by my close friend Malin I called Odenresor and they gave full assistance. I was propably one of the few that followed the airport recommendation of being at the check-in three hours before departure. Oh… moder people check in on-line….
Prepared for the extra charge for my bicycle in a bag, In still wanted to sport getting it on the plane without the extra charge due to my total low weight. 😊💪 I was successful and managed to avoid the 100 usd extra charge. Don’t count on it though, cause we all know it’s just a matter of coincidence with check in staff, regardless of company.
Bicycling Bloggers
Since it’s pretty much impossible to make a spontaneous trips to the Seychelles, I’ve had to prepare this journey in a completely different way. I plan most things in my life. However, most plans outside of work aren’t really followed.
You’re not even let into the country if you don’t have all your lodging pre-booked, which also affect your travelling route in the country. I was going to start on the main island Mahé, and then continue to Praslin, La Digue and finish up with some days on Mahé again. Well… that route didn’t happen.
Looking back at this MOST dissapointing trip, I still think the bicycling blogs I had read were very relevant and helpful. Not like the other asskissing lying bloggers. Oh, I’m sorry. But, I’m also honest. Cause… I happen to like honesty.
The blog I read the most was Epic road rides, found it very intresting and inspiring.
Cycling Seychelles, your ultimate guide: https://epicroadrides.com/destinations/cycling-tropical-islands/seychelles/
Must-read tips for cycling in the Seychelles: https://epicroadrides.com/cycling-blog/tips-cycling-in-the-seychelles/

Bicycling &… and Walking in the Seychelles
The blue marked stretches are the one I bicycled, once or many times, and with plenty of enjoyment. I should add that not rarely I also walked puching the bike in front of me, like a stroller. The hills are steeeeep. There actually so steep that it gave me a lumbago, that I “cured2 with a most amazing hike in the jungle.
The better shape you’re in, as well as if you’re equipped with quite som stubbornness, the more you’ll propably enjoy bicycling in the Seychelles. Cause… the hills are not only steep, the’re also very very long. I had read about the risk of overheated breaks in Epic Road Rides, which made me get of the bicycle going down hill as well. On top of that, by breaks squeak quite loud when it’s cold, hot and wet which I assume is a killer for people living along the roads.
Here & Now & Road Safety
There are no better way to describe bicycling in the Seychelles. Especially not using a helmet. You just got to be 100% focused.
The roads are narrow, and on the west side of Mahé most roads lack railing on the side. This while they have a most simple and well functioning side drainage for rain water. It wery often falls in a 90° angle, so just watch out. I did see quite a few rail being built though.
The Highway
The one, possibly the only one, that runs inbetween the airport and capital Victoria on the main island of Mahé. I met police along the roands repeatedly, and they don’t really greet you. But when I was going out on the highway, they actually did. I took that as I wasn’t breaking any law by doing this. Do I recommend it? Hell no. But there is no alternative road if you want to transport yourself this stretch.
Avoid it, is my recommendation. Take the bus instead. Or if you’re really wealthy, you could always take a taxi. I’m not.
At the highway there is a small -really small- verge along the road that you can stick to. Of course the cars run by very fast, and possible a bit too close to an unprotected bicyclist. Which contributes to one of my main impressions from this journey. In the Seychelles they only like very wealthy tourists.




Locking Your Bicycle in the Seychelles?
All that I had read was how in the Seychelles there was absolutely NO need to kock your bicycle. And according to my much loved father, my trust in other people is annoingly high. According to myself is a very comfortable feeling, even though I have experienced things that prove my faith not being 100% bullet proof. As well as I have plenty of other confirming experiences❤️💪
So I wasn’t going to insult the locals by looking it. I just placed it WITH my luggage including computer & Co outside of the roadside mini markets while going into stock up on my -unhealthy- fuel. It didn’t matter if there were a bunch of beerdrinking men in clusters commenting “nice bike” as I was leaving the bicycle. I just brought my small daypack with passport and money into the roadside stores.
Until… a man followed mi into one of these small markets and asked if I had a look for my bicycle? Which of course I did. Use it was his next comment. On that occasion there was actually a police station next to the mini market. From now on, I used the look.


Bicycling Rules at / on the Seychelles
The Seychelles has a bit of a remaining Stasi culture from their days as a communist dictatorship. They like to record everything. You can frequently read about how they like to make sure that “tourism” doesn’t get out of hands…. Really… it’s very clear they enjoy the financial side of tourism. But no other interaction… please.
I didn’t know if I was going to laugh or get mad, when a man approached me on an empty beach three hours before my departure commented Nice bike and then asked Do you have a license for that bicycle? Of course I didn’t, and I was clueless to the fact that I should have had one. And beleive me, I’ve never prepared a travel as extensively as this one.
I asked my host at the guest house I was staying at if it was true that I needed a licence for my bicycle? He said that one of the neighbours had been admiring my bicycle and asked if I had a license for it since she couldn’t see the license sticker on the bicycle. By then, I was so very dissapointed in the Seychelles as a travel destination that it only confirmed my general negative impression.
When I came back home I e-mailed the motor vehicles department and asked since I could’t find a 100% secure source confirming the license issue. They havn’t gotten back to me. This little country kind of made me slightly paranoid. Their tourist board contacted me while I was in the country and asked if they could repost one of my instagram posts. I was really trying to look at all the upsides of the country, but the final summary… I can think of sooooo many better places to go. And more sustainable as well.
You travel -live- and you learn.

Other Trafficants Care for Bicyclists
I’m not unlikely to be completely off on this one, but I kind of measure the friendliness of a place by reading how people in traffic behave to each other. All trafficants that is. How is the space shared, and how is the interaction. Remember I’m from the most unfriendly traffic culture there is to come by, Stockholm. The only thing that works beautifulle there is the rule about every other car, meaning when lanes join, you let every other car in like a zipper. A beautiful method.
On west side of Mahé there is a fairly friendly climate. Among trafficants and locals at least saying Hi, Good day or Bonjour. It’s not as friendly and caring as on the roads in Italy, but still, careful manners.
Cars and buses pull out a bit, and no one is rushing their engines at you. I guess I also contribute by really trying to stay out of the way.
I have to admit I’m SO very impressed by the tourists hiring cars here. The roads are VERY narrow, and there are plenty of serpentine roads with very steep edges or cliffs where you can fall into the ocean or the jungle. I had read that the blue buses have full awareness of other trafficants, and they sure do.


Beautiful Roads on Mahé, the Seychelles
I don’t know if it’s my general love for bicycling, or that many of the most beautiful beaches are recommended no swimming due tu very insafe currents, that contributes to my impression of more beautiful road stretches than… beaches. There are soooo many roads that are like art work with their varying patches and then framed with the most saturated greenery.
Renting a Bicycle in the Seychelles
I would’t. The roads in the Seychelles, or at least on Mahé are way to dangerous. Not in regards to how people drive, cause they drive nicely. Ant the ones that doesn’t you hear from afar and one can step aside for safety.
But it’s severely steep, and you really want to know your breaks are up for the down hill task. That goes for your own bicycle as well if you bring one.
There might be bicycles to rent or borrow at the gated luxury hotels, I don’t know. Not only doesn’t the locals interact with a solotraveller, the other travellers don’t seem to interact as well. I only saw one place along the roads at Mahé where you could rent bicycles, and that place is pretty far from everything on the tip of southeast Mahé. Opposite of the hotel Double Tree by Hilton.
Very few people seem to bicycle on Mahé. The few are younger men. I only saw one lycraman, who actually used a helmet💪as well.


Cultural differences on Mahé in the Seychelles
Even if the Seychelles consists of 125 islands, and Mahé, Praslin and La Digue are the most popular to visit, the’re small. With a car, you could easily get a complete tour of Mahé in a day. To do it by bicycle you have to be an elit bicyclist. I’m not. I just love to bicycle.
I started out by bicycling from Vitoria Airprot on Mahés east side, to Anse à la Mouche on the west side. It took me two hours, and by taxi it was supposed to take 20 minutes. Note that 70% of the times I write bicycled, that also includes a fair share of pushing the bike uphill, och leading it downhill.
My first six days at Mahé I was located on the west side of the island. Thats also the side where everyone says hi in some way. Either they go forst, or I go first. Just a polite encounter, that’s also pretty much all that is said. My last three days I was on the east side, where people, and traffic is less friendly. It may actually have contributed to my decisison to spontaneously leave 17 days before my planned departure.
This side isn’t UNFRIENDLY, but they will greet if you go first, otherwise no greeting. The traffic is at a higher speed, and closer. Less considerate. I didn’t suffer, but I noticed and became even more careful.
The east side is also much more littered. So it’s obviously two different cultures on the two sides of such a small island.
Dogs…
Yes, I DO love cats and dogs. Of course I’ve been chased by dogs on previous travels, and even attacked and bitten as a consequence. On Mahé the dogs mostly keep to themselves, and unfortunately some of them look very submissive and scared, which is heart breaking to me.
It did however happen that I got chased by two very aggressive dogs that got each other worked up. Oh boy was I thankful that I was on my bike and the upphill was small. If it would have been a steep hill I would have had to turn around or been bitten.
This made me google myself into the info that the Seychelles have no reported cases of rabies, but that the’re still not on the international list of rabies free countries. So… be careful. With that written, I did kiss upp to a few dogs… cause I wanted to pet them.
