115 islands and lots of water
The Seychelles archipelago lies between the4th and 11th degrees south latitude, and between the 46th and 57th degrees east longitude. The main island, Mahé, lies 2,800 km southwest of Bombay (India), 1,580 km east of Mombasa (Kenya) and 950 km north of Madagascar. While the marine territory extends over a surface area of around 1,300,000 km2, the land represents only 455 km2, and even 277 km2 if the surface area of the lagoons is eliminated. The percentages are significant: the surface area of the national territory (almost three times the size of France) is 99.997% water and 0.003% land(roughly the size of the city of Paris).
In all, only around thirty of these 115 islands and islets are inhabited. In some cases, the population can be counted on the fingers of one hand! Formed some 650 million years ago, the granitic, i.e. mountainous, islands are located in the north of the archipelago. The Morne Seychellois (907 m), on Mahé, is the highest point in the archipelago. Scattered to the south and southwest, the coral islands are only a few meters above sea level.
From inland to remote islands
The Inner Islands, the Seychelles group, comprises 43 islands or islets (all granite except for the two coral islands of Bird and Denis), the bits of land on which you'll be walking your flip-flops and flippers on a first trip in general. First on Mahé and its neighbors (Anonyme, Sainte-Anne, île au Cerf, Longue, Moyenne, Ronde, Thérèse, Conception), then around Praslin (Aride, Cousin, Cousine, Curieuse, Ronde, Saint-Pierre) and La Digue (Cocos Island, Félicité, Grande Sœur), two related islands separated by a mere 6 km arm of the sea and situated on the same granite bed. These inner islands are home to 95% of the Seychelles population.
Further out, the 72 outer islands are all coral islands, known as zil elwannyen. Far removed from the central Mahé group, the outermost islands are closer to the African and Malagasy coasts than to Victoria. They are divided into three groups: Amirantes, Farquhar and Aldabra. Long isolated, requiring several days by boat to reach, they are now much more accessible, the state having built numerous airstrips on Desroches, D'Arros, Marie-Louise, Farquhar, Astove and Assomption.
Seychelles group. Mahé, Praslin, La Digue, Sainte-Anne, île au Cerf, île Longue, île Moyenne, île Ronde, île Sèche, île Cachée, Grand Rocher, Anonyme, île Hodoul, île aux Rats, île Souris, Thérèse, Conception, L'Islette, Chauve-Souris (Mahé), L'Îlot, Cousin, Cousine, île Ronde, Chauve-Souris (Praslin), île aux Fous, Aride, Zavé, Félicité, Marianne, Grande Sœur, Petite Sœur, île aux Cocos, La Fourche, Silhouette, North, Mamelles, île aux Récifs, Frégate, îlot Frégate, Bird, île Denis, île Plate and Coëtivy.
Amirantes group. Remire: Étoile, D'Arros, Boudeuse, Desnœufs, Desroches, Marie-Louise. African banks: Banc Africain, South Island. Saint-Joseph atoll: Saint-Joseph, Fouquet, Ressource, Petit Carcassaye, Grand Carcassaye, Benjamin, banc Ferrari, Chien, Pélican, Vars, île Paul, banc de Sable, banc Cocos. Poivre atoll: Poivre, Florentin, South Island. Alphonse and Saint-François atolls: Alphonse, Bijoutier, Saint-François.
Farquhar group. Saint-Pierre. Providence atoll: Providence, Providence banks, Saint-Pierre, Cerf. Farquhar atoll: North Island, South Island, Manaha North, Manaha Middle, Manaha South, Schooner, Rabbit, Middle Island, Deposé, Sable Bank.
Aldabra Group. Astove, Assumption. Aldabra atoll: Grand Terre, Picard, Polymnie, Malabar, île aux Cèdres, île Michel, île Esprit, île Moustique, îlot Parc, îlot Émile, îlot Yangue, îlot Dubois, îlot Magnan, île Lanier. Cosmoledo atoll: Menai, île du Nord, île du Nord-Est, île du Trou, Goélette, Grand Polyte, Petit Polyte, Grand Île, Pagode, île du Sud-Ouest, île Moustique, île Baleine, île Chauve-Souris.
A little history..
Until 1881, the Seychelles comprised only granitic islands and three small coral islands (Denis, Bird and Ile Plate).
At that time, the islands of the Amirantes group, Alphonse, Providence and Aldabra, were detached from the administration of Mauritius and attached to that of the Seychelles. Coëtivy, an isolated madreporic (coral) island, and the islands of the Farquhar group, previously in the orbit of Mauritius, joined the archipelago in 1908 and 1932 respectively. On the other hand, Desroches Island (Amirantes group), the Farquhar group and Aldabra (Aldabra group), detached from Seychelles in 1965 (to form, with the Chagos group, the British Indian Ocean Territory), were returned in 1976 to the new state of Seychelles, which became independent on June 29 of the same year.
Beautiful national parks
There are several national parks on the main islands: three terrestrial and five marine.
Morne Seychellois National Park. Covering 3,045 ha on the island of Mahé. A national park since 1979, it offers superb hiking trails through lush jungle. The summit, at 905 m, is the highest point within a radius of 1,600 km and offers breathtaking views.
Praslin National Park (Vallée de Mai). Declared a national park in 1979 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983, the 675-hectare Vallée de Mai offers a Jurassic Park atmosphere and will delight botanical enthusiasts.
Silhouette Island. On August 7, 2010, President Michel officially designated 93% of the island as a national park. This mountainous island has an abundance of vegetation and offers superb walks through the equatorial forest.
There are fivemarine national parks across the archipelago. These include Baie Ternay and Port Launay, on Mahé in Beau Vallon. There is also Sainte-Anne, on Mahé's neighboring island, which became a marine national park in 1973. The island is said to boast 150 varieties of fish. Also Curieuse, famous for its sea turtles, and Silhouette, for diving among coral and multicolored tropical fish.
