Secret Oasis of Raffles Seychelles

*Based on real events

"Yes... You really know where to go on holidays!"

This enthusiastic message was written in the early morning on the sun-drenched terrace of Raffles Seychelles. And at the same moment it was delivered to the sad smartphone of the author, who was in dull gray St. Petersburg in November.

For a laconic and, at first glance, unremarkable message, there is a long history of travel with the full confidence of tourists arriving at Raffles Seychelles that they have already seen the best in the world. In their list of countries.

Until now, as a result of trips to popular exotic resorts, leisure vacations traditionally boil down to two places: to where the musical fountains of the Persian Gulf are, or to other paradise islands of the Indian Ocean, which gained in popularity not only because of its natural beauty and warm ocean.

 

 Seychelles all this time modestly stood aside and out of the trajectory of those routes. Until the author's publications on social networks, even the most persistent and sophisticated tourists did not deviate from their usual routes to explore. As a result of the posts, however, a new clientele fell in love with the Seychelles so much that they decided to come here for all their beach vacations – once, or even twice a year.

Comparing the resorts with each other is not entirely fair, because everywhere has its own advantages and everything in its own way is interesting: there are no identical countries, cities, or even palm trees. However, you can enter this or that place objectively and pay attention to a number of factors.

 Since it so happened that the acquaintance of these tourists with the Seychelles began exactly with Raffles Seychelles, let's consider what could have happened on the paradise islands for these people to begin to fly there one or two times a year, sharply displacing the other two favorite destinations? We take into account the expectations of tourists and their desire to get the ideal price-quality ratio and location for a reasonable price.

Raffles Seychelles is distinguished by an amazing combination of these factors. For the amount for which you can usually get just a room (even if it's a suite) in many other hotels, here there is an entire villa of 125 sq.m at the guests' disposal, with a private pool and a furnished huge terrace with seating area. Raffles Seychelles is the only resort on Praslin where every room is a villa. They differ only in their location, view characteristics and size. You can even select the desired degree of panoramic view and the angle of the sunrise.

 

Raffles Seychelles is nestled in the north-east of Praslin, the very island that is considered the most "Seychelles like". On Praslin lies Valley de Mai– the only prehistoric forest on the planet in which grows Coco de Mer, the world's largest nut. Many people believe that it was here that Adam and Eve lived, and that the nut is the forbidden fruit that they were tempted to eat. Having been here, it is difficult to object to this assumption!

The resort was built on a beautiful hill directly opposite the marine reserve that is home to the islands of Curieuse and St Pierre. This view creates an original Seychelles panorama. The islands also protect the coast from the wind and provide a pleasant bath in a beautiful bay.

Travel can be tiring, and another benefit is that the hotel is located close to the international airport. You can choose to take an airplane, a helicopter, or a ferry. With air travel, the transfer includes a 20-minute panoramic tour, during which the Seychelles can be seen from a bird's eye view. This is an unforgettable sight, which is better to see once than hear 1000 times.

 

 What is especially popular with tourists in Raffles and the Seychelles? First, it is freedom of movement. In the Seychelles, not all of your time needs to be spent in the hotel. In the Seychelles, everywhere is safe, clean, well-groomed, and friendly. The freedom of choice is great in that you can enjoy the whole day and spend time at the villa tanning without a swimsuit, sit on the beach, or meet partake in many recreational activities on the island.

Raffles Seychelles offers 6 restaurants and bars in which you can pamper yourself with culinary delights. You can also explore other culinary institutions on Praslin, ranging from simple to glamorous. The hotel often hosts culinary master classes and tastings of local rum. In the Seychelles, there are no restrictions on the purchase and consumption of alcoholic beverages, like there is with the Maldives. Therefore, you can rejoice at the freedom of choice in this: do not drink alcohol at all, order drinks at the hotel, or buy in stores.

The natural paradise thus smoothly flows into the gastronomic and spreads even further past your villa. Why not take a bottle of champagne and picnic food and go to world famous Anse Lazio beach? Or to go on a trip on La Digue, Felicite, Il Coco, or even Mahe.

In Raffles Seychelles, the beach boasts a beautiful name - Anse Takamaka. It can be divided into two parts: the main and secluded. In the first, despite the fact that the hotel has 86 villas, there are always very few people on the beach. The second part of the beach is right behind the beach bar and is even more private. Usually there is no one here and you can sunbathe in complete solitude, directly in the water or on snow-white sand!

 If you are bored or lonely, you can easily return to the main beach. Here you can arrange a meal. If you want to talk with other tourists from different countries, go to activity & entertainment center.

 Bloggers and people who just love photos like the Seychelles' granite boulders of freakish shapes, where photo shoots are arranged. Filters here are unnecessary.

 Here is an example of a business life hack: a tourist with good communication skills got acquainted with one of the most famous lawyers in Europe on the beach of the hotel. Here they came up with a joint project in a relaxed atmosphere when their heads were free from unnecessary fuss and filled with the tremendous energy of this place.

What else can you do at Raffles Seychelles? Celebrating an anniversary or organizing a wedding! To the surprise of many, it turns out to be not only more unusual, more pleasant, but also much cheaper. You can dedicate the important day to yourself, not to thoughts of how to please 60 guests in a restaurant. And there is also a valid reason for refusing to celebrate your anniversary with lots of people: "Sorry, we won't be in the country!"

Raffles Seychelles has a solid experience in organizing wedding ceremonies including for celebrities (names are kept secret because of confidentiality) and is proud of the status of the founder of a touching tradition in the Seychelles: on the wedding day the newlyweds plant a tree and then every year they receive a photograph of how it is has grown. But in the Maldives, for example, an official wedding ceremony will not work because of the restriction of legislation.

Suppose that all of the above has enchanted the tourist. And what does he do next? He goes on the Internet and looks at the prices. Some people think they're reasonable, but some think they're

 too expensive. But just looking at prices is not the best approach to organizing a trip. In Raffles Seychelles there are many special offers at different periods: discounts for early booking, free dinners, special rates for newlyweds, etc. Often the offers are combined. You just need to know when and how to apply it. Sometimes it is worth shifting a week of rest in one direction or another, as the cost can be reduced by 30% or more.

Deducing the formula for an ideal holiday can seem a difficult task, because the needs, habits and dreams of everybody are different. But if you look closely at the Seychelles and start talking about a combination of factors (and still correct the situation with marketing), a picture opens that forever conquers even the tourist who has visited 153 countries, and compared to everywhere the Seychelles took the place of the best exotic islands.

As a result, the constituents of the formula could be:

• Seychelles is an all-year-round sunny destination

• absence of natural disasters, dangerous insects and animals

• if you are flying from Europe or the closest part of Russia – the absence of jetlag

• cleanliness, security, friendliness of the local population

• lots of different things to do – the main islands are large in area, there are countless picturesque beaches and coves, along with mountains and museums; there are also small island atolls

• food prices are comparable with Europe

 • objectively the most beautiful nature in the Indian Ocean, countless beaches where you will be completely alone

• terrific diving, surfing, trophy fishing, and opportunities to explore nature

At Raffles Seychelles, you will always want to come back, and it's not even that this is a unique deluxe resort at a price for which you can get the most out of the ratio. There is a feeling that you are at home and you were very much expected everywhere. On the day of departure it is always difficult to leave the villa, close the door and head towards the airport. Maybe that's why many tourists start planning their next trip to the Seychelles before they have even left!