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on Desroches, in the idyllic Outer Amirante Islands, a 35-minute flight from Mahé. One must-do, if you can fit it in, is the Vallée de Mai
Nature Reserve on Praslin, a UNESCO-recognised site with a preserved prehistoric palm forest that is home to the legendary coco de mer – the largest seed in the plant kingdom, found only in Seychelles. On Praslin you could opt to stay at Accor’s exquisite Raffles Seychelles resort, but for a more low-key slice of life do also make a day trip to sleepy La Digue. Local tour companies usually include the cost of the boat trip and bike hire so you can cycle around this virtually car-free island, past vanilla plantations and giant tortoises, discovering beaches such as little Anse Patates, Petite Anse, Grand Anse and the blinding white sand of Anse Source d’Argent, one of Seychelles’ best-known.
THE MALDIVES If ever there was a time for some clever thinking on how to attract travellers back on to planes, it’s now – and the Maldives has come up with a novel option: the Maldives Border Miles initiative. Tought to be a world-first for a destination, the loyalty programme encourages you to spend more time there with the offer of points across three tiers, earned depending on the frequency of visits and whether you’re travelling for a special occasion such as an engagement, birthday or honeymoon. Tere are already plenty of reasons to visit the country, from the beautiful marine environment of its 1,200 islands
bus ine s s tr a v el ler .c om
to the middle-of-nowhere escapism of its luxury resorts. Te best of the islands try to bring a slice of everything to you, from boduberu, an intoxicating dance to drums, to lessons on cooking spicy Maldivian curries or keeping mind and body occupied with a constant rota of visiting or on-site marine biologists and wellbeing gurus. And when it comes to the hottest new thing to try in
the Maldives, how about skydiving? A modified Cessna 208 is now in the country at Dhaalu airport, marking one of the first steps to establishing permanent skydiving drop zones in the country. Under the water, one of the newest phenomena is
spending the night down there, with Conrad’s Muraka – a three-bedroom ocean residence with a master suite located five metres below the surface – leading the way. Accor’s Pullman Maldives Maamutaa has two new Aqua Villas featuring underwater bedrooms so you can relax while the fish swim by your floor-to-ceiling windows. If actually being in the water is more your thing then
the Maldives is the ultimate destination, with incredible dive sites. One of the most ingenious options can be found at Como Maalifushi, the only resort in the remote Taa Atoll, which runs a “whale shark hotline” at night. Te resort has teamed up with Ecocean, which monitors these majestic creatures, to give guests the chance to swim with them. You’re given a mobile phone, wait on high alert and as soon as a whale shark is spotted in a known feeding area, you’re whisked out.
CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE FAR LEFT: One of Soneva Fushi’s new Water Retreats in the Maldives; Hilton Seychelles Northolme; Como Maalifushi, the Maldives; giant tortoise at Four Seasons Seychelles at Desroches Island
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