The Seychelles: island life in the slow lane – The Jewish Chronicle

Big Pete has a habit of creeping up on you when you least expect it. The 90-year-old is a natural flirt and the closest thing to a celebrity on Desroches Island, in an isolated archipelago in the Indian Ocean. But Im not talking about a nonagenarian of the human kind, rather a giant Aldabra tortoise.

Desroches is one of the Amirante Islands, which make up the Outer Islands of the Seychelles. It is a wild and windswept place; door to door, it takes some 24 hours to get there from London, but once you do, you instantly forget the long journey.

Your shoulders drop, your shoes come off and its like youve stepped into the pages of Robinson Crusoe.

While the Seychelles is already known for a handful of smart hotels found on its far-flung islands such as Frgate and North Island Desroches still feels firmly off the tourist path, with an unpolished essence about it, despite it being home to a sustainably minded Four Seasons resort.

For many years, the skinny island, which stretches to just 5.5km long and 1km wide, was simply a coconut plantation, producing around 20,000 of them a month for coconut oil production.

Nowadays, other than the resort, theres a small Creole village and not much else, apart from Big Pete and his companions 150 giant tortoises who potter freely around.

Big Pete (Photo: Angelina Villa-Clarke)

Big Pete is the most outgoing and the largest of the tortoises, says Nasreen Khan, one of the conservationists working with the Island Conservation Society (ICS), which also has a base on the island and runs a tortoise breeding programme.

He adores attention and will follow visitors around to see if you have any tasty leaves in your possession. Most of all, hes probably after a massage. You see him stick his neck out and stand high on his feet if you stroke his shell and neck he loves it!

There has been a hotel of sorts on the island for 30 years, the first being a simple fishing lodge. Since then a variety of low-key hotels have set up shop, but it was not until 2021, when Four Seasons opened, that Desroches started getting noticed by tourists looking for a sense of adventure with a side serving of luxury.

Most guests arrive after a pit stop in Mah, the main island of the Seychelles where the capital, Victoria, is found. Four Seasons Resort Seychelles is located here, and guests can spend time there to break up the journey, whether for a few hours or a few days, before taking a 35-minute flight, 250 miles south to Desroches.

Landing strip on Desroches Island (Photo: Four Seasons)

The landing strip on Desroches cuts dramatically through the centre of the island, crooked, towering palms fringing it on either side, with the hotel tucked away along the western shore.

You stay in one of 71 villas, which have colourful interiors and winding paths to the beach.

Inside, the aesthetic is a nod to the Seychellois Creole culture, a multiracial blend of African, Asian and European influences. Youll find cheery pops of colour, such as an oversized, fuchsia-pink peacock chair and green palm print cushions.

Grand, high beds are swathed in mosquito net curtains and laid with crisp linens, while a vintage, wooden chest hides the TV. The ceilings are vaulted and the walls have oversized copper bowls as decoration.

The huge bathrooms continue the rustic theme with plenty of natural details, such as curvy stone baths, wooden vanity units and traditional woven rugs.

Plunge pool at Desroches Island (Photo: Four Seasons)

Central to the ethos of the Four Seasons resort is sustainability and conservation and it works alongside ICS and WiseOceans, which runs marine discovery programmes here, to support the regions precious wildlife and environment.

As well as looking after a further 174 tortoises in a breeding programme, ICS supports WiseOceans with research and rehabilitation of sea turtles, sea birds, coral reefs and seagrass meadows and guests are encouraged to get involved via the resorts Discover Centre and the Tortoise Sanctuary.

The ICS centre opened in 2009, explains Nasreen. Our main objectives have always been to protect wildlife and to make sure Desroches Island is an environmental rehabilitation success.

One area we are working on at the moment, for instance, is the eastern end of the island. We are restoring it to its former natural state and replanting native Broadleaf trees to help maintain the biodiversity of the island.

By day, you can immerse yourself in all of this by making a slow cycle ride across the islands nine miles of trails, to land at beautiful tropical beaches.

Madame Zabre and Bombay Beach both offer arcs of shell-scattered, talcum-powder sands, lapped by impossibly azure waters but, you are spoilt for choice, as there are 14km of beach in total.

Desroches beach (Photo: Angelina Villa-Clarke)

As you pedal, youll skirt the dark, dense interior of forest, brushing against fragrant frangipani and avoiding skittish geckos, while huge orange butterflies dance in front of you. You might spot a bright red Madagascar Fody bird balancing on a branch or perhaps see a regal Grey Heron dipping its feet in the sea.

As well as helping with tortoise monitoring, guests of all ages can get involved with a variety of conservation activities, from planting coral to beach clean-ups.

The snorkelling and diving are also exceptional here, with a variety of sharks, dolphins and rays often spotted, as well as Green and Hawksbill Turtles.

The Desroches atoll also hosts some of the healthiest seagrass meadows in the western Indian Ocean an important feeding habitat for a wide variety of marine life so you will swim into a kaleidoscopic, rainbow world of Yellowscale Parrotfish, Peacock Grouper, Giant Clams and Sea Stars.

On the eastern tip of the island, a white, wooden lighthouse is home to the islands smartest restaurant, the Island Grill. Climb to the top for sunset views across the Indian Ocean over an Island Breeze, made with sweet, local Takamaka rum, passion fruit, pineapple and lime.

Afterwards, you can tuck into a menu that uses locally sourced ingredients and offers plenty of vegetarian options from a beetroot tartare to tamarind-glazed aubergine steak.

The Lighthouse at Four Seasons Desroches (Photo: Four Seasons)

For guests staying longer than a few nights, theres no risk of getting bored, with plenty of dining spots to choose from across beach bars and relaxed restaurants.

Take breakfast at Claudine, for instance, and you can indulge in a vast buffet with a fresh bakery corner, as well as an la carte menu, which includes delicious cinnamon crpes and healthy tropical fruit-laced granola bowls.

By night, the restaurant offers creole-influenced cuisine, such as Desroches Hearts of Palm Salad, Capsicum Curry and Saffron Rice and a standout Takamaka Caramelised Pineapple (a must for sweet-toothed guests).

All dining spots also offer inventive child and teenage menus to keep all ages happy. In fact, as far-flung as Four Seasons Desroches is, it is incredibly family-focused with more than 70 island experiences to pick from whether you fancy surfing tuition, paddleboarding, creole cooking lessons or beach volleyball competitions, all run from the Castaway Centre.

Adults may want to sneak off for a rum-tasting session, showcasing locally made varieties.

Night descends quickly on Desroches, like star-spangled curtains coming down, while the day starts early. At sunrise, you can join a yoga class on the islands runway or take a dip in your private pool before the temperatures soar.

For those wanting some me time, the Circle of Connection Spa offers nature-inspired treatments, such as the Sound of the Waves massage, which sees the therapist use a rolling technique to mimic the sound and motion of the ocean.

All in all, its blissful. No wonder Big Pete is still so sprightly.

Flights from London to the Seychelles cost from 802pp with Qatar Airways.

Rates at Four Seasons Resort Seychelles at Desroches Island start at around 620 per night, including breakfast but excluding taxes.

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The Seychelles: island life in the slow lane - The Jewish Chronicle