AFFORDABLE SEYCHELLES RELOADED VERSION 3.0
(Posted 21st May 2014)
The recently concluded ‘Carnaval International de Victoria’, which has today, in the space of only four years, turned into the Seychelles’ highest profile event, saw once more pictures of the parade and the glamorous opening night splashed across the newspapers in East Africa and of course on my blog and the main media organization I write for as Chief Correspondent for Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, www.eturbonews.com/africa or in short eTN. CNN just showcased this extraordinary festival in one of their travel shows and so have other global TV stations, growing that desire in their audience that at least once in a lifetime, perhaps a lot more often, they want to set foot on the archipelago to explore and enjoy the pristine crystal clear waters, the award winning beaches, the Creole culture, music and food or just take a hike in the Mourne National Park and visit Mission Lodge, aka as Verne’s Town, where the children of freed slaves from Africa were able to receive education and skills, a place which for Africans should be a pilgrimage point of sorts.
Wannabe visitors then have a look at airfares offered by Kenya Airways, which now flies four times a week between Nairobi and Mahe and connects Africa to the Seychelles’ main island – Ethiopian Airlines will be returning to the archipelago in October – and it still looks as if all was set for a visit before the search for accommodation then puts a damper on the travel plans of many would be African visitors. ‘But you, have you even seen the tariffs in those fancy hotels you write about’ do they ask me in their mails or ‘We always knew you must be a rich man to afford going there because there is no way us normal mortals can ever do more than read about it and dream about it’.
Point well taken and it is true of course that there are many resorts on the main island of Mahe, on Praslin or on La Digue which charge their tariffs for the quality of accommodation, the often unbelievable attention to detail, their food and of course their location, and global hospitality names like Constance, Raffles, Four Seasons, Banyan Tree, Hilton and Le Meridien stake their reputation on giving value in return for the prices they charge.
So I agree with my readers sentiments that when a dinner sets you back some 1.250 Rupees plus taxes that is a steep price to pay as is of course a daily rate for a room, at times with and at times without breakfast, which can rise from 300 to 500 Euros to a thousand and more.
I can sense the ‘… but I knew it, this is just not for us’ moan emerge from the combined throats of many of my regular readers and if you give me but a little bit more of your time and attention you might just change your mind and soon head out to the islands in person with your loved one in tow. ‘How so’ you might ask and I will tell you exactly how so and how to.
Over the past years has the economic empowerment programme launched by President Michel’s government accomplished the creation of Seychellois owned small hospitality family businesses, B&B’s, guest houses, self-catering chalets, holiday apartments and the like with rates charged per day or per week which are truly pocket friendly and which can make that dream to come to the Seychelles finally a reality.
At the B&B’s breakfast is of course included while in self catering establishments the fridges are often stocked with a ‘starter pack‘ containing such essentials as a loaf of bread, milk, often juice, margarine or butter, sugar, salt, pepper, vinegar and oil, water, tea bags and biscuits, giving those arriving and weary from their travels the chance to have a cuppa and a slice of toast. In fact, as I experienced and witnessed, many of the owners pick their guests from the airport, or arrange for transport at equally affordable cost, and the first stop after the Bureau de Change is then the supermarket where the visitors can, while enroute to their holiday home, get those items they need for the first couple of days. That said, some of these places do in fact happily provide a cook, at a fee, who will even go and buy fresh fish and vegetables to prepare a meal, mostly of course with Creole spices and ingredients, making every meal a new creation of colours and tastes. But more about such services and specifics later on.
I travelled to Mahe a few days ahead of the Carnival festival kicking off, a three day weekend event, to be able to make my way across the island and visit B&B’s, apartments and chalets, this time mostly off the beaches, at times in the hills and at times within walking distance to the ocean. From past experience it is clear that locations right on the beach cost more, while those across the beach road cost a little less, most of the time anyway and those locations up in the hills cost less still, unless for those of exceptional quality and believe me, there are some which for the location alone take your breath away and then some more when setting eyes on the rooms and how tastefully they are furnished and decorated.
Mostly does the cost not go much beyond 150 Euros a night, all rates in the Seychelles are expressed primarily in Euros though US Dollars are of course widely accepted, and there were low end figures quoted to me in the 20 Euro range, those latter ones being very simple but also very clean and yet offering a decent bed and an ensuite bathroom, ideal for those who want to spend their money exploring and feasting rather than on fancy hotel suites.
I visited over a period of three days about a dozen Seychellois owned places, some quite incognito and I will not name those but let it suffice to say that as I walked in unannounced I was treated in most hospitable ways, offered a cool drink and shown around, given rates and contacts and that showed me how keen the owners are to engage with guests, and potential guests, in order to fill their beds and make a decent living from their investment. One can still travel across the island by public transport at a fare of 5 Rupees, no matter if it is for one station or to the end of the line and I used my free time to literally steal myself away from the Kempinski Seychelles Resort to explore and be able to give a truly first hand insight into the way affordable vacations in the Seychelles can be put together.
Courtesy of Tourism Seychelles I was in addition able to see 5 more locally owned establishments. High up in the hills are the Evergreen Apartments, 4 single bedroom / sitting plus dining apartments, air-conditioned, with a fully equipped kitchen and a sofa bed in case there are more than two in the party. At 84 Euros a night, that makes it 42 per person and with the bus stop a short distance away, which brings take aways and shops into easy reach, visitors there are set in a typical local home environment.
Talk about take away’s here for a moment. This time as on previous occasions, more recently at the Festival Kreol in October last year, I did try those take away meals, and while generally they cost 50 Rupees for a box, I managed to get one of mine for 45 Rupees, or less than four US Dollars which now stands at approximately 12 Rupees to 1 USD. Depending on one’s choice they load the boxes at the counter with rice, vegetables, fish or meat – I mostly took the fish option – nicely spiced and then sat down on a nearby bench to eat, surrounded by surprised locals who were quick to engage and chat and who actually did say that tourists are now a more common sight in the busses and the take away’s, the local restaurants and the public beaches.
(Cottage at La Rocaille)
My second stop, not too far from the Kempinski and the Four Seasons, was the La Rocaille, where the owners, a retired couple, are now putting up a second one bedroom cottage as the first one, slightly larger and able to easily accommodate up to four people, seems booked up much of the year. Repeat clients in fact love the place as I witnessed, a couple and their son from Germany who had for the duration of their stay hired a small car at a cost of 55 Euros a day, with some options cheaper and some larger cars more expensive and they were raving about the place, the tropical garden and the fact that they were made to feel like family members, but at the very least as long lost friends when they returned, year after year for that matter.
At a cost of just 60 Euros a night for the new, and smaller cottage, ceiling fan, no aircondition and fully equipped, that has to be a bargain few can refuse and the owners do pick the clients from the airport on request and stop for the first shopping they might want to do.
(Anse Takamaka View)
Next on my visiting list was the Anse Takamaka View, where up to 7 rooms in 3 bungalows are able to accommodate even a small group of friends travelling together and with a pool and the hillside view of the Indian Ocean, this place offers great value for money. The ‘small’ cottage goes for 90 Euros a night while the larger ones go for between 130 and 170 Euros a night, to be split among the guests of course, making the individual figure quite affordable. Airport transfers are free, giving not only an added saving but it takes care of arrival and departure without any stress. The first stop is made at the supermarket enroute to Anse Takamaka View to allow guests to buy their initial provisions. If I were a bargain hunter this one and La Rocaille would probably be my first choices but then there are different tastes and different budgets which come in to play and there is for sure one place which can meet the expectations of mainland visitors vis a vis location, comfort and price.
On my journey went to see the Koko Grove Chalets, also featuring a pool, and the three cottages go between 80 Euros and 150 Euros a night.
The Central Apartments, across the road from the Kaz Kreol Restaurant, which itself is right on the beach, offers a different style, air conditioned of course and single bedroom apartments go for 100 Euros a night while two bedroom apartments set guests back 135 Euros a night, all for the entire unit and again making the per person cost between 33 and 50 Euros per night, or the equivalent in US Dollars at the prevailing exchange rate.
Additionally there are many other options which are listed on the Seychelles Tourism Board website, which shows location and cost per night, simply by clicking on the following links via the main STB website: http://www.seychelles.travel/en/plan_your_visit/seychelles_secrets.php
http://www.seychelles.travel/en/plan_your_visit/budget_holiday_accommodation.php
http://www.seychelles.travel/en/plan_your_visit/small_hotels_guesthouses.php
http://www.seychelles.travel/en/plan_your_visit/self-catering.php
Perhaps the coin is now beginning to drop that indeed, as far as the cost of accommodation is concerned, as far as the cost of public transport is concerned, as far as the cost of take away food is concerned – meals in restaurants frequented by most Seychellois cost anywhere between 65 – 95 Rupees in a sit down / serviced environment – and what remains now to explore is the cost of living while on the island. The main cost difference will be a result of visitors either opting to eat at their holiday home, eat take away, eat out in a local setting as mentioned before or else opt for a fancier restaurant where a meal can easily set one back by 250 to 500 Rupees, taking a three course meal into account, plus drinks that is. However, that is a choice each traveler can make for her or himself, depending on how much spare cash there is, or else one can eat in, i.e. shop at the Seychelles Trading Corporation main supermarket in the heart of Victoria or one of the smaller supermarkets or local shops nearer by and buy the food they want to cook just as they do back home.
The expense for that will largely depend on the individual life style of course as a bottle of wine per meal for instance would add between 90 and 160 Rupees per bottle of an average quality type of wine, while vintage wines of course can cost quite a bit more. An average shopping basket for two, lasting a week – apart from fresh fruits, vegetables and fresh fish for instance which one might want to buy daily – would run into anywhere between 500 and 1.500 Rupees, depending on how frugal or how elaborate the shopping is.
A loaf of sliced bread, suitable for toasting, for instance costs 11.50 Rupees while a bag of buns costs 13.00 Rupees, all prices valid as of end of April at STC in Victoria, and perhaps a little more pricey at smaller places nearer to one’s accommodation, which however may safe on the cost of transport.
100 local tea bags sell for 60 Rupees, a packet of pasta from 12.50 Rupees and pasta sauce for 23.70 Rupees while soup noodles of the quick meal type go for as little as between 3.65 and 5.65 Rupees with Chinese noodles selling at 13.50 Rupees. One kilogramme of Basmati rice, ordinary, is available at STC for just 15.75 RS while the premium quality is about twice as expensive with 28.25 RS per kg. Irish butter, yes it is available, starts for a 250 gr block at 29.65 RS and margarine sells from 19.75 RS. 10 eggs for breakfast go for 42.45 RS, yogurts from 25 RS upward and sausages or bacon per packet cost 43.15 and 55 RS respectively. Frozen chicken nuggets or chicken steaks, enough for two meals cost between 24.15 and 31.75 RS.
I compiled a detailed list of over 70 items one will or might require over the duration of a week or 10 day vacation and the addition rarely goes over 1.500 Rupees or 125 US Dollars, able to be trimmed down or pushed up depending how one’s food preferences are and if global brands are a must or local brands can just as easily do.
If visitors, and I am talking of a couple here, opt for take aways for say 4 days a week while bussing across the island to explore the sights, that will come to some 800 RS going by two meals a day, eat out in a sit down local restaurant on two days will add some 400 RS for two including drinks as a rough guide and then perhaps 1.000 RS for a nice meal in a nice setting, totaling to no more than about 200 US Dollars, give and take a little. Cooking ‘at home’ will lower those costs needless to say.
I hope I have made my case that they Seychelles can be quite affordable, if only one knows where to look and how to go about. Depending on the season do airlines have special deals and excursion fares available, in addition to which comes the accommodation, the shopping and the meals, plus transport, either public or by hired car and suddenly that vacation on the Creole Paradise Island is really within reach.
The Seychelles admit visitors from around the world without the need for any Visa, as long as tourists can show their return ticket, have a hotel booking confirmation, have sufficient funds to pay for their upkeep while in country and, when coming from most parts of Africa, have a Yellow Fever vaccination certificate.
Guests from elsewhere in the world, seeking a bargain to make their fancy for the Seychelles islands a reality, Emirates flies 12 times a week, soon double daily, and Air Seychelles / Etihad multiple times a day, from their respective hubs in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Also flying to the Seychelles are Mihin Lanka from Colombo and Condor from Frankfurt.
The Seychelles islands are primarily seen, and in fact are, the glitz and glamour destination of today, where the rich and famous go to the smaller islands where but one very posh resort awaits them, often costing more per day than the budget traveler spends for an entire holiday. On the main islands of Mahe, Praslin and La Digue are top notch resorts operated by international hospitality giants and those of course do cost a fair penny, or rather a fair pound. Yet, visitors to both the top end and the home made hospitality both breath the same air, enjoy the same unique Seychellois hospitality and can walk on the same sand along the same beaches, snorkel or fish the same waters and visit the same attractions, just from the different base.
Both types of visitors go home entirely satisfied of course, those from the fancy 5 star luxury resorts certain that they truly had a holiday of a life time and those who stayed in B&B’s or self-catering chalets, they too will have the same opinion, except that the latter have been in close up and personal touch with the Seychellois way of life, colourful, rich in scents of home cooking, fish sold on the road side, frangipani flowers or the spices in the market, in other words, uniquely Creole – and that one only gets while interacting with the grass roots, the people themselves.
As the saying goes, Seychelles – truly Another World.
