IT IS ‘BYE BYE SEYCHELLES’ FOR THE ROYAL COUPLE
Having been amongst the very first to accurately predict the Seychelles as the honeymoon destination of the recently married Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, aka Royal Couple aka Prince William and his it was satisfying to be in destination, when officials on the archipelago finally broke their long self imposed silence on the subject and confirmed that the honeymooners had left yesterday after spending 10 blissful days on North Island, arguably the highest rated honeymoon resort across the entire Seychelles and from here on the focus of many many more wishing to also spend their first married days where the Prince and Princess spent theirs.
It is understood that the Seychelles Coast Guard had thrown a secure cordon around the island, supported by Royal security officers, to ensure the paparazzi were kept a long distance away. The couple, as happened on their arrival, were flown by Zil Air helicopter from North Island to the International Airport on Mahe from where they took the long flight home to Britain and to start married life in earnest.
The Seychelles Tourist Board had remarkably lived up to their commitment to keep this under wraps until the Royals had departed for home, although amongst close observers it was an open secret for some time, with the repeated security checks of North Island probably the biggest hint one could unearth, although Royal security was thought to have done decoy recces to put the media on a wrong course.
For the archipelago this honeymoon is a priceless opportunity to gain a yet higher profile around the world, if this is at all possible, having catapulted the destination over the past years right to the top of the world’s ‘must visit’ destinations. Yet, a Royal honeymoon will like little else find their way into the glossy travel magazines, the wedding magazines and other media and remain there for a long time, giving the Seychelles free PR and exposure where other destinations are both struggling to worm their way into the media’s good books and having to pay for it.
The Royal couple were seen off at the Mahe International Airport by the Seychelles Minister for Foreign Affairs, the British High Commissions to the Seychelles, the Seychelles High Commissioner to the UK and notably the Seychelles Tourist Board Chief Executive Alain St. Ange, at which time the couple was presented with a Coco de Mer, which will undoubtedly remind them ever once in while to return to the archipelago for another holiday.
While obviously no official statement was available from the palace at this time it is understood from the same impeccable source which gave the first tip off to this correspondent, that the Royal couple was clearly very happy on North Island and enjoyed every moment of their time there, probably pointing to one or the other significant anniversary being spend again in the future in the Seychelles.
Happy Landings to the Royal couple back home and well done Seychelles for this media coup extraordinaire.
