Seychelles 7 Day Itinerary (No Traps)

Seven days is the version where nothing gets rushed

Seven days is enough to give Mahe, Praslin and La Digue two full days each, the first length in this family where you are not trading one island’s time for another’s. It also means an extra Mahe day up front, which is genuinely the best place to put it: the interior trails and south coast villages that every shorter itinerary here has to skip. Everything runs in SCR, euros are quoted but not legal tender, and two ferry operators, Cat Cocos and Cat Rose, carry you between the three islands on their own separate schedules.

Book these before you go

Day 1: Mahe, arrival

Land at SEZ with your Travel Authorisation already approved, about EUR11 via seychelles.govtas.com , applied up to 30 days ahead; “visa-free” is not the same as paperwork-free. A taxi to Victoria or Beau Vallon runs a commonly quoted SCR300 (~EUR19) fixed fare, cash, agreed before you get in. Victoria takes two to three hours: the 1903 Clock Tower and the Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke Market, best before 10am on a weekend. Beau Vallon fills the afternoon, free and good for swimming, though keep bags off the sand given the beach’s petty-theft reports.

Day 2: Mahe, the interior most itineraries skip

With a second Mahe day, head into Morne Seychellois National Park, over 20% of Mahe’s land area, priced trail by trail: Copolia at SCR100, Trois Freres at SCR150, the summit trail at SCR250 with a licensed guide required. Or take the south coast road to Anse Royale and Anse Intendance, fishing villages and quieter beaches that the Beau Vallon crowd never sees. Book your Cat Cocos ferry to Praslin for the following morning tonight; peak-season sailings (Christmas, Easter, July to August) sell out.

Day 3: Praslin, day one

Cat Cocos, about 1 hour to 1h15, economy around EUR56 plus a EUR2 port fee (~EUR58 one way). Vallee de Mai, the UNESCO reserve holding the world’s last wild coco de mer palms, costs SCR450 (~EUR28 to 30, 10% cheaper booked online through the Seychelles tourism board ) and is worth two to three unhurried hours, not a rushed pass-through. Sleep in a self-catering chalet near Anse Volbert (~EUR120).

Day 4: Praslin, day two: Anse Lazio and Curieuse

Anse Lazio, free, before 10am to beat the crowd bussed in from the Mahe day-tripper boats. In the afternoon, a boat trip to Curieuse Marine National Park (entry SCR300, ~EUR18 to 19, card-only on-site) for hundreds of Aldabra giant tortoises from a 1978 to 1982 conservation program, plus a nursery for young tortoises before release.

Day 5: La Digue, day one

Cat Rose, the separate operator running only the short Praslin to La Digue hop, 15 to 20 minutes for about EUR15 one way. Anse Source d’Argent sits behind the L’Union Estate gate, SCR150 (~EUR9 to 10) for all-day re-entry plus the vanilla plantation and tortoise pen. Rent a bicycle at the jetty (SCR150 to 200 a day); the island’s one remaining ox-cart operator is a photo-op novelty, not a real transport option. Time the boulders for late afternoon, once the day-tripper boats from Praslin have gone.

Day 6: La Digue, day two, then back to Mahe

Cycle out to Grand Anse and Petite Anse, quieter than the marquee beach and rarely reached on a shorter trip. Grand Anse has genuine surf on its west-facing shore during the May to September southeast trades, better for watching than swimming; check for current before entering the water anywhere on this coast. In the afternoon, Cat Rose back to Praslin and the connecting Cat Cocos to Mahe, or the direct Mahe-La Digue Cat Cocos sailing (~1h45 via a brief Praslin stop).

Day 7: Mahe, departure

Use the last morning well: a half-day snorkel trip to Ste Anne Marine National Park (SCR200, ~EUR12, card-only on-site, so bring a card not cash) or the National Botanical Garden near Victoria (SCR250, non-resident rate, tortoises and coco de mer specimens for anyone not making it to Praslin’s reserve). A final pass through the Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke Market for vanilla and cinnamon beats the airport gift shop on price by a wide margin. Build a real buffer before your flight; SEZ is Seychelles’ only international gateway, with most long-haul connections routing through Nairobi, Doha or Dubai.

Does a full week actually need two Mahe days?

Yes, if the interior or the quieter south coast interests you at all. Every shorter itinerary in this family gives Mahe a single day, which is enough for Victoria and Beau Vallon but leaves Morne Seychellois National Park and the southern villages untouched. Seven days is the first length where that extra day does not come at another island’s expense.

Which islands get shortchanged on a 7-day trip?

None, which is the actual selling point of this length. Two days each on Mahe, Praslin and La Digue is roughly the minimum for a genuinely unhurried version of all three; the 5 day itinerary and 6 day itinerary both still trim one island somewhere to make the math work.

Day Island Ferry / travel time Rough cost per person
1 Mahe (day 1) Taxi from SEZ, ~SCR300 (~EUR19) ~EUR60 to 90
2 Mahe (day 2) none, interior/south coast ~EUR40 to 70
3 Praslin (day 1) Cat Cocos, ~1h, ~EUR58 one way ~EUR100 to 150
4 Praslin (day 2) none, on-island + Curieuse boat ~EUR100 to 170
5 La Digue (day 1) Cat Rose, ~15 to 20min, ~EUR15 one way ~EUR90 to 130
6 La Digue (day 2) Cat Rose + Cat Cocos back to Mahe ~EUR70 to 100
7 Mahe (departure) none, buffer day ~EUR50 to 80

Book La Digue accommodation for both nights before anything else on this trip; it is the most limited lodging pool of the three islands and fills fastest in July, August and the Christmas week. For the ranked rundown of which beaches and sights above are actually worth the entry fee, see the Seychelles places page .