destinations / Seychelles
Denis Private Island
Seychelles
Isolated and unspoilt, this is a true castaway resort with strong eco values.
The hotel
One of our all-time favourites, Denis Private Island is low-key, family-run and big on sustainability, far flung and remote on the second-most northern island in the Seychelles, a 30-minute plane ride away from mainland Mahé.
This is the place to come when you want to flop and drop, the closest you’ll ever get to being a castaway. with no TVs or phone signal, and wi-fi only available in public areas. Owned and run by the charming Mason family, you’ll step from the plane onto soft white sand and immediately be whisked to your own private cottage. Dense with palms, takamaka and casuarina trees, the 375-acre private island is ringed by beautiful, soft sandy beaches and the bluest and clearest seas, offering safe swimming and excellent snorkelling. There are bikes for pottering about, and cottages with sea views.
Swim with turtles at Belle Etoile, enjoy in-room spa treatments using locally-made virgin coconut oil or visit the island’s small organic farm, with its own chickens and pigs.
Susie Loves
Don’t miss a chance to feed the 130-year-old giant tortoises. Ask the staff at breakfast for a bunch of mulberry leaves – their favourite dish.
Go bird watching for the Seychelles magpie robin, one of the world's rarest birds, now breeding on the island.
Try deep-sea fishing (catch and release), with a boat charter to ‘The Drop-Off’, where ocean depths plunge to 2,000km at the edge of the Seychelles plateau.
