Geocaching on Mahé, one of the main islands of the Seychelles
Mahé, as the main island of the Seychelles group, also has a lot to offer for geocachers. Since it is easy to arrive and depart here by plane from Germany, we want to report a little here.
Before our departure with the Aida at the port of Mahé, we have 1.5 days to explore the island. We also had 2 more days at the end of the trip to complete our picture of the island.
Arrival
For the first night on Mahé we booked a relatively cheap holiday apartment. Not because we wanted to self-cater, it was more due to the lack of affordable hotel rooms that are close to the port. If you are looking for cheap, nice accommodation right in Victoria, the capital of Mahé, Les Maissonettes is the place for you. It can be booked via the well-known booking portals.Car rental
We booked a rental car in advance for the last 2 days of our stay. If you want to explore the island of Mahé on your own and also want to stop at one point or another for a cache, then that is a wise decision.At Mahé airport there is There are a variety of car suppliers, they are all housed in small "houses" in the airport. In addition to Hertz, Avis and Sixt, there are also a large number of local providers to be found there.
We had ordered a small vehicle with full insurance in advance via Check24. Rental cars can also be picked up at other locations on the island. The airport was convenient for us because we handed the car back there when we checked in. Like many things on the island, the car rental service is very, very small but surprisingly well organized. As soon as we arrive by taxi from the port (EUR 25) we are greeted at the airport by a Sixt employee. Not that it was waiting for us - it's always there. We are asked to go to the airport and with the usual documents (voucher, driver's license, ID card and credit card) we soon have the key for our small rental car in our hands. A quick check, squiggles for all possible scratches are made and we can then move into left-hand traffic.
For us, a small vehicle the size of a Hyundai I 10 was perfectly adequate. Even if these vehicles appear a little underpowered. You can't do many kilometers on the island, but you can climb a few meters.
Excursion provider
If you would like to book an excursion instead of driving in left-hand traffic yourself, you have various options. On the one hand, there are of course always the excursion packages on board the cruise ships. Relatively expensive, but completely tailored to the ship's lay times. The excursions start right at the jetty.A large variety of other excursions – mostly to the islands of La Dieg and Praslin – can be booked with local providers. If you are on Facebook, you can join suitable groups in advance and quickly get to know the “top dogs”.
We've only heard positive reviews here.
There is nothing wrong with simply walking a few meters through the harbor gate at the harbour. Numerous providers advertise here with their excursion posters. However, you can't make any bargains here - that's our impression. The providers all know the prices and forgive nothing.
In this respect, we can only recommend, if you don't want to go out on your own, which works very easily with a rental car, to book a tour in advance at home. Significantly cheaper than by ship, but reliable and well organized.
Die Seychellen und die Schildkröten
We meet our first turtle at the Victoria Botanic Gardens. Of course, we first logged the cache in the small parking lot - and thus got our country point Seychelles. But then on to the turtles. We dutifully pay the entrance fee of 7 EUR per person and then stroll through the botanical garden. The coco de mer is a frequent presence here and the turtle enclosure cannot be missed. That's not how I would have imagined it here. Thought they would be able to move freely. In addition, countless clusters of tourists in front of the small wall, where you have a view of the turtles' terrain. After all, they have a lot of space here - there are really a lot of the big turtles that live here. For 5.- EUR or 4 USD (or was it the other way around?) you can buy a large leaf and you can use it to see the turtles. We save ourselves that and let the other tourists go first. So we don't get to enjoy an exclusive picture of us with the turtle, but they can also be photographed well from the outside. We take our time and of course take some great photos of these animals. The further walk through the botanical garden is then less exciting…. We wrote a separate blog about our country point Seychelles with the cache at the Botanical Gardens in Victoria. Have a look there!
At the end of our trip we come along the coastal road in a rental car and a small tradition lures us to the site of a rum distillery. Shortly before arriving at the cache in the garden behind the house, we come across another – smaller – enclosure with 2 giant tortoises. Yes, only 2, but all to ourselves. They love to be petted (not so hesitant please, turtles love a firmer neck massage) and stick their heads out to us. We also get a feeding by a domestic worker. We almost forgot to log the cache, we were so fascinated by the animals.
Beaches
As well as turtles, the Seychelles are also known for their beautiful beaches. White sand, turquoise water and large, round washed-off stones - that is the picture of the coast of Mahé. Even if this picture should be even clearer on La Dieg and Praslin - we were also quite flashed by the beach sections on Mahé. We'll let the photos do the talking here...Earth caches
There are a few earth caches spread all over the island. No wonder, with the many stones and volcanic rock .... Many questions revolve around the appearance and origin of the stones.
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