Mahé, Seychelles Hotels and City Guide

Mahé, Seychelles Travel Guide

Located 4º - 10º south of the equator, 1000 miles off the coast of Kenya in the southern Indian Ocean, the idyllic Seychelles archipelago consists of 115 islands and atolls. Mahé is the biggest island where the small capital, Victoria, is situated.

The islands and coral atolls were spawned many million years ago when the Supercontinent Gondwana split, scattering debris to form the coralline and granitic islands. The latter represent mountain summits of the ancient giant continent consisting of the Inner Islands which include Mahé, Praslin, Silhouette and La Digue.

Seychelles Local Population and History

The majority of Seychellois live on Mahé where most tourist resorts are found. The remote Outer Islands are divided into five groups made up of the Amirantes, 25 tiny coral atolls halfway between Mahé and Aldabara, and the groups of Alphonse, Farquhar, the Southern Coral Group, and Aldabra, the latter being the world’s largest coral atoll, a World Heritage Site.

The Seychellois are descended from a centuries-old blend of Arab merchant seamen, Chinese and Portuguese discoverers, English and American pirates who buried their treasures in secluded coves, African slaves, and French settlers from Mauritius looking further afield for new territory and wanting to stop Britain’s colonial expansion ideas.

In 1756 the French laid the Stone of Possession at Victoria Harbour, naming the territory Seychelles. A small capital was established on Mahé, named after a French Governor of Mauritius, and the colony was ruled from Mauritius. The British Royal Navy anchored in Victoria Harbour in 1794 and raised the Union Jack. Seychelles was ceded to Britain in 1841. After the abolition of slavery in 1835, Britain sent freed slaves as labourers to Seychelles. In 1903 the colourful Seychellois nation achieved full colony status. The Victorian Clock Tower in the centre of Victoria became the symbol of this new status. Universal suffrage was introduced in 1967. Two lawyers, James Mancham and Albert René, became the main political players, running the country for four decades.

The Seychelles became independent in June 1976 with Mancham at the helm. He was overthrown in a coup d’etat by René in 1977, Tanzanian troops on standby. Coups and counter-coups followed until free elections returned René to power in 1993. After his retirement in 2004, James Michel took over as President.

Seychelles Facts

Capital: Victoria on Mahé Island
Main Islands: Mahé, Praslin, La Digue
Population: 88,000
Area: 400,000 sq.km
Highest point: Morne Seychellois, 905m
Language: Kreol, French and English
Currency: Seychelles Rupee
Time Zone: GMT+4
Electricity: 240 AC, 3-pin square plugs
Telephone International Area Code: 248
Telephone Code Victoria: 3
Religion: Catholic
Spices grown: cinnamon, vanilla, lemon grass, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, patchouli

Hotels in Mahé, Seychelles