Seaweed & dangerous undercurrents at Mahé, Seychelles
Of course you’ve seen images of amazing paradise beaches from the Seychelles. For sure, there are many. Some quite exotic with the grand granite rocks tossed out on some of the beaches. In reality it might happen that your expectations will collide with reality on some of the beaches since some of the most paradise like ones are not suitable for swimming.
Most important is to keep track of dangerous under currents, or what beaches will be covered in incoming seaweeds. One very dangerous, the other one just… unpleasant. Both of these are somewhat affected by the season. I myself know how decieving a calm and crystal clear water can be having been sucked out by dangerous undercurrents on the beaches of Bordeaux in France. With the difference of there NOT being signs on the never ending stretches of wonderful beaches. There are flags, and that’s it.
In the Seychelles the’re excellent at putting up warning signs, as well as in the most obvious of ways marking risky beaches.
Since I’m travelling solo, just like I was in France when I had this happen to me, I’m of course super cautious. Silly enough, I’m equally scared of fish and seaweed. So…
I hade printed out maps, and marked out what beaches had seasonal undercurrents, as well as what beaches would be full of seaweed on Mahé, Praslin and La Digue in November.
Mahé, Seychelles Map & Varnings
You can get this excellent, beautiful and free map of Mahé, Praslin and La Digue at the tourist information at the Victoria Airport.
I didn’t use GPS during my exploring of Mahé, even though I propably should have, because it was too expensive to use my own plan. Now I understand one can have international sim cards. Meaning… I have to learn something about phines smarter than myself…
Anyway, I didn’t really use the map either… cause I just too stubborn for my own good. Att I did was going forward, and getting pissed at not finding my guest houses cause they really don’t beleive in signs for directions in the Seychelles. And me getting lost… I always ended both very far from and almost alvays with a gigantic uphill inbetween where I realised I was lost, and where I was going. People will help if you approach them. But most of the time, they were almost as clueless as I was myself. Which of course makes me… again, wonder what they actually learn in school in this country.
The warning signs for dangerous waters, on the map and by the risky beaches are very clear. Thank you!! Cause people, including tourists DO drown (and have gotten lost and dissapeared in the djungle…) on these islands.
Beaches on the west side of Mahé
Oh boy did I try my very best to like the Seychelles. We had a really bad start in the immigrations, and it just kept adding on unpleasant experiences. So on the 7:th night after having been stopped by a motorcyclist hiding behind a helmet asking for my… husband, the decision was made. And I was so very lucky to find a flight home in to days at the delicate amount of 650 euros.
This being said, I didn’t get to go all around Mahé, and of course missed out on Praslin and La Digue. But here are the beaches I did visit, and what I trhought about them, and possibly also what I experienced on my bike inbetween the beaches😊.
Port Launay -National Marine Underwater Park
This beach is one of my two favourites, AND swimmable. Not bad for Mahé on the Seychelles. Niether does one need swimming shoes. Calm beautiful water. Towards the afternoon during the weekend, the water has lost it’s clarity due to many people visiting. Not many like in crowds, cause I wouldn’t even have stayed here if that was the case, just more people than on the other beaches.
One thing that made me like this beach beside that it was safe to swim at, was that the locals also attended. Not like you interact with them, or anyone else for that matter. I asked another tourist if I could leave my things on my blanket when I was going to walk my ants in my pants. He made it very clear that I was not to talk to him. Ok, so I took the risk of leaving them. It was fine, here and on other places. But it’s still not a recommendation of mine to leave your stuff unattended.
There are buses that take you to Port Launay. And you can also buy grilled food on the beach. I propably should have gotten some protein since I later ended up pretty much only eating peanuts as my proteins during there nine days. I just felt meat laying around in the sun wasn’t for me. There are some food trucks that sells… burgers and pizza Margaritas as well. One of the days that I visited I was able to buy some bananas and mango 🙏. I always enjoy buing from the smaller stands by the road, IF available.
Baie Ternay -Marine National Underwater Park
If you continue the road north past Port Launay a minute or two, you’ll end up on a mini beach, or more like a mini bay. But oh my what a beautiful bay!! A tiny little paradise, with sand as soft as the Port Launay Beach. I just passed it on my way to Anse Major, but had to stay and admire it’s beauty.
It was kind of late in the afternoon, and quite a bit of seaweed had flowed in. But I’m sure there are days with no, or less seaweed than this. Seaweed, as yuk’ee as I find it, is a sign of a healthy ocean. I’m just silly scared for no good reason.
Anse Major
When you’ve passed both Port Launay and Baie Ternay, the main road comes to an end and narrow down to a dingy and super cosy and almost deserted road with djungle feel to it. Of course, I absolutely love it. If possible, I often take off on these small roads and the solo serenity being the (social) loner.
I tried a few of the lonely road branches until they hit the private sign before I ended up at the beach Anse Major. The place surrounding the beach gives that mystic deserted vibe💚
The beach was fairly stretched out and perfect fpr a walk. The saind is more of the grainy and coarse kind, but you should be fine without swimming shoes. It’s far from as beautiful as the Port Launay beach. But if you like to be ALL by yourself, it’s certainly worth that extra effort. The water was calm and no signs of it being dangerous swimming when I visited.
Grand Anse
Beeeauuutiful and long beach, perfect for that beach walk with it’s fine sand and no sharp dead corals. But… no swimming without risk.
Anse à la Mouche
Is a long, and long shallow beach, and a LOT of sharp sea shelles and dead corals. So get your swimming shoes on if you’d like to hang out on this beach. It’s not my kind of beach, especially not with the road up close. But with some kind of flip flops on it’s a nice walk in the beautiful sunset.
I stayed at a reasonable guest house ca 300 metres away from the beach, and the food truck Lunch Box. If you’re lucky you get there before they run out of food, cause they do. And prepare yourself for some waiting, cause it’s not fast food just because it a fast food menue, or comes out of a food truck. The waiting is still nice cause there are other people around. No, but one… interaction though.
If you get there in time before they run out, you can get some really good local food. In my case it turned out being my ONLY good meal in 9 (NINE) days.
The menue is some local cooking, this evening a piece of grilled fish and a curried chicken stew with rice that was very tasty. Reminded me about some carribean cuisine, but slightly less spicy. If no local food, you’ll have to do with a burger, pizza Margarita or in the worst case… there is only fries left. It’s still cooked food though.
I so like that there is a comfortable mix of the locals and the tourists surrounding this little wagon. In just a couple of days it became very clear that the locals and visitors (tourists) DONT interact in the Seychelles. But even though any interaction takes place, it IS still nice to be sourrounded by 1. locals 2. other human beings. Mind you, in the Seychelles tourists DO NOT interact either… Even though I’m a bit shy, I’m an fairly experienced solotraveller, and sometimes I don’t really interact with people in a social way, but there is always possible to interact. Just a few words, or some eye contact. No, not here.
There is one kind of… interaction though. Guys with absolutely no shame approach me and offer me sex. The first evening when I was waiting for my food. Yes, I actually managed not finding cooked food, but at what turned out being the best place FOR food. Back to the waiting for it… A man approaches me and reads his CV in regards to work status and income. One thing was lacking on his CV though, sex with a white woman. Could I please help him in the matter?
At this point, not knowing I’d in one way or another was going to be offered sex almost daily, I had a very cheerful attitude turning him down. I almost found his verbal CV approach refreshing, cause that happens everywhere, but according to other formalia. But still, No.
One doesn’t have to be dismayed by someone approaching you with sex on their mind. But if it’s one of the few amongst…. already few… ways of interaction inbetween locals and visitors, then it becomes annoying. And in a way down right sad.
As you can se it’s a cute mix at Anse a la Mouche. Regardless of the… cheezy approach mentioned above, I would under no circumstances pass a dinner here. It’s not an unsafe or uncomforting place, quite the contrary. The only scary thing were the HUGE spiders in their webs under the lamps on the light poles on my way down to the place😱.
Baie Lazare
Very nice beach indeed, but you do have the road just on top of your head on the beach towel. Very nice sand, and some of those amazing blocks of granit “tossed out” on the middle of the beach. It won’t look any more paradise like than this❤️.
The road this close, makes it not a beach I won’t return to. But it’s worth it’s one visit.
Anse Tamaka
I didn’t experience this beach, even though I came all the way down to see it. I was disturbingly distracted by the most horrible enclosure of the land turtles. I absolutely detest animal tourism, and even more animal tourists that feed this disgusting market and industry. I just didn’t want to stay, cause of the risk of been assumed as one of the… animal tourists, so I left as soon as I realised how terrible these animals living conditions really are.
I do understand that they can’t roam freely considering the narrow roads with their steep curves. I can only imagine them being extinguished pretty soon, as well as many people would be injured and possibly dead in traffic accidents. But enclosed like this??! Don’t the Seychelles have any kind of dignity in regards to some of the animals they use as part of their marketing strategy?
Anse Intendance
Awwww, som gigantic hills to get here. Up, as well as downhill. But so very worth it. Paradisewhise Anse Intendance, is by a four millimeter margin beating Port Launay Beach. This is my ABSOLUTE favourite. It SO very beautiful here.
Unfortunately the water isn’t safe for swimming. Plenty of people do swim, and I dip as well. But a quick in and out, no undercurrant risks for me. I’m done with undercurrents since my experience in Bordeaux, France. There are clear warning signs as you enter the beach, as well as clearly marked with the yellow triangle on the map. People HAVE drowned here, so be very careful if you like to swim at this paradise beach.
Anse Intendance isn’t that long, but long enough for very nice beach walks. When I visit there is a grand hotel being bought at the further end (from the entrance) of the beach. Very noisy, but when you walk away from it the sound of the waves cover the noise, since it’s pretty turbulent water at this beach.
Signs for Directions at Mahé
It would be kind of wierd If I wined about the (to say the least…) challenging task of finding my way on this fairly small island of Mahé. And with my… sence of locality. To my defence, I had to always keep my eyes on the road, and especially the left side of the road not to fall into their rain water drainage, the jungle or… the ocean. It Does make it even more challenging to dicover their if any, tiny signs for let’s say a guest house or the road one is looking for. They don’t really believe in the system of publicly visible signs for directions. I’d say it’s more common with No Signs, than with signs.
Since moste people, or even almost all people in the Seychelles travel with company, they can have an assignes map reader, while the driver keeps track of… the edges of the roads, and possible other traficants. I don’t know if it was the season, but the roads doesn’t seem to have a lot of traffic.
But here I DO find a little sign for the beach I ‘m looking for. Don’t think this is the norm just because it looks normal here😂. You’re better off looking at the signs for the local minimarkets along the roads that often (not always) are named after their locality.
Sea Turtles at Mahé, Seychelles
At the most beautiful Anse intendance one can run into sea turtles. IF you happen to encounter any of them, you’re informed by this sign on how to behave towards them. Some of these directions are pretty obvious, but some are a bit aha, good to know!
Plain and simple, it’s their home and you follow their rules.
I didn’t run into any, and… How lucky they are not to be born… land turtles.
Summer bar at Anse Intendance
Even though you can’t swim here, and the gigantic hotel construction at the further end of this beach, it was the absolute favourite beach I did visit on this trip. I’m not a beach person in the context of lying on a beach towel and work on my tanlines in mode… relaxed. But this is an amazing place.
I also had my first beer, and a the local SeyBrew at their beach bar called… Summer Bar.
It’s difficult to understand if it’s high- or low season at Mahé duing the November that I’m visiting. According to the mere four occasions that I managed to spark up a conversation during my nine day long stay, it IS peak season in November, but also that the country is suffering from some post Covid, and things aren’t exactely like they usually are in November. It’s hard to get a grip of anything here since the locals doesn’t seem to want to have anything to do with people visiting. And there are so very few places open.
I have a full understanding of people not wanting to deal with, or interact with tourists. Neither I fancy us in groups. But it’s a bit extreme that pretty much all of the locals have this approach.
Dogs at Mahé
Since I happen to love animals (not snakes and spiders), but have been attacked and bitten with rabies shots as a consequence at other travels, it’s kind of a inner conflict when I run into dogs. All I want to do is pet and talk dog language with them, but I’d advice you not to.
At Mahé dogs are far more shy that dogs usually are in touristy areas. I don’t know if it’s beacause people don’t treat animals kindly. Some of the dogs seem very submissive, almost scared while others seem to atleast want to say hi (sniff at you). I’m super careful though.
I was chased once, bu two very aggressive ones that got each other all worked up. Thank god it wasn’t uphill. After 200 metres of chasing me on the bike they propably felt mission accomplished and stopped the chase, that felt more like a… hunt.
Rabies at the Seychelles
A bit of a mixed message in regards to this uncureable and deadly decease in the Seychelles. Everything from, not common, none but not on the international list of rabies free countries. So, stay safe. If you catch it, you’ll die.
Beaches at the East Side of Mahés
Don’t bother.
Yes, I mean it. The’re not cosy like on the west side of the island. The roads are often very close, the atmosphere is wierd and there a bit more littered.
People are in general even more distant here. Almost a bit unfriendly. The atmosphere on the roads are also a bit tougher. Not bad, just a bit less considerate when passing me on the bicycle.
It was also on this side of the island that a man on a motorcyle stopped by me on the road, in the dark, and asked… where my husband was. That was just too much for me. Then and there I had it with all the offers of sex. And what makes you do this towards a woman alone on a road in the dark?
Surfers Beach Restaurant
At this beach there is a conveniently located restaurant. It has a much larger menue, and a more diverse mix than the other one I went to on the east side. Here you can get a club sandwish, as well as a local grilled fish. I’m super happy to eat something else but nuts and potato chips….
Below the restaurant that has the “address” Tamak, is a small and nive little beach. And there are more people here. No locals though…. why would they… kind of.
