Praslin is often described as the quieter, greener sibling of Mahé — an island of coco de mer palms, slow roads, and beaches that appear on postcards around the world. Yet the most memorable side of Praslin doesn’t reveal itself from land at all. The island sits at the heart of the Inner Seychelles, surrounded by a constellation of islets, marine parks, and hidden bays, most of which lie just ten to forty minutes away across calm, turquoise water. For travelers willing to step off the sand and onto a deck, Praslin transforms from a beach destination into a launchpad.
This is precisely why Praslin yacht charters have become one of the most popular ways to experience this part of the archipelago. A boat opens doors that stay firmly closed to land-based visitors: the tortoise-inhabited shores of Curieuse, the palm-crowned islet of St. Pierre, and stretches of Praslin’s own coastline where no road has ever been built. This guide walks through everything worth doing on and around Praslin by boat — from the famous stops to the coves most visitors never hear about.
Why the Water Is Praslin’s Best Road
Praslin’s road network hugs only part of the island, and several of its finest corners simply have no overland access worth the effort. The northern shoreline of Curieuse, the seabird colonies of Cousin and Aride, and the granite islet of St. Pierre can only be reached by boat. Even beaches that technically have land access, such as Anse Georgette, require resort checkpoints and advance registration when approached on foot — whereas from the sea they are open to anyone who drops anchor.
Boat trips from Praslin typically depart from two points: the jetty at Baie Ste Anne on the eastern side, and the beach at Anse Volbert on the Côte d’Or, where many excursions load passengers directly from the sand. Outings generally fall into three formats — half-day trips covering one or two nearby highlights, full-day journeys that combine islands with a beach lunch, and late-afternoon sunset cruises along the northwest coast. Private departures follow the same geography but allow the day to be shaped around the guests rather than a fixed schedule.
Timing matters more than many first-time visitors expect. Mornings almost always bring the calmest sea and the clearest water, making them the prime time for snorkeling stops. The season plays a role too: from May to September the southeast trade winds ruffle the eastern and southern coasts, pushing boats toward the sheltered northwest, while the northwest monsoon from November to March reverses the picture. A good skipper reads this daily and adjusts the route — one of the quiet advantages of exploring by boat rather than by fixed itinerary.
Anse Lazio from the Sea – A Famous Beach, Seen the Right Way
Anse Lazio needs little introduction. This sweep of powder-white sand framed by smooth granite boulders appears on virtually every ranking of the world’s best beaches, and it draws crowds accordingly. What most visitors never realize is that the beach was, in a sense, designed to be seen from the water. Approaching by boat, the full composition comes into view at once — the takamaka trees leaning over the sand, the sculpted rocks glowing pink in the morning light, the gradient of blues deepening toward the anchorage. Arriving this way also sidesteps the winding drive over the hill and the midday parking scramble.
The snorkeling at Anse Lazio concentrates around the granite formations at both ends of the bay. The boulders shelter parrotfish, butterflyfish, and the occasional hawksbill turtle grazing between the rocks, and entering the water directly from a boat puts swimmers over the most interesting terrain immediately, without the long swim from shore. Conditions are usually gentlest early in the day, before the afternoon breeze builds.
Because Anse Lazio occupies Praslin’s northwestern tip, it pairs naturally with Anse Georgette just around the headland. The two beaches together form one of the classic half-day routes from the Côte d’Or — a combination that shows off the island’s most celebrated sand with none of the logistical friction that land visitors face.
Curieuse Island – Where Tortoises Outnumber People
Just across a narrow channel from Praslin’s north coast lies Curieuse, a national marine park and arguably the single most rewarding boat stop in the Inner Seychelles. The island has no hotels, no roads, and no permanent population beyond its rangers — but it is home to a free-roaming colony of giant Aldabra tortoises, many of them well over a century old. Boats land near the ranger station at Baie Laraie, where the tortoises wander openly across the grass and sand. Visitors can watch them feed and interact at close range, though the animals set the terms: they are wild residents, not exhibits, and the rangers ask guests to let the tortoises approach rather than the other way around.
Beyond the tortoise colony, Curieuse rewards those who walk. A boardwalk trail leads from Baie Laraie through a tangled mangrove forest and over a low ridge to Anse St. José on the far side of the island, passing the restored Doctor’s House — a colonial-era residence from the island’s days as a leprosarium, now a small museum. The walk takes roughly forty-five minutes to an hour at an easy pace, and it offers a rare cross-section of Seychellois ecosystems: mangroves, coastal forest, and open granite slopes in a single stroll.
Curieuse holds one more distinction that few visitors appreciate. Together with Praslin itself, it is the only place on Earth where the legendary coco de mer palm grows naturally. Travelers who have already walked the Vallée de Mai on Praslin will recognize the enormous fronds scattered across Curieuse’s hillsides — the wild, unfenced counterpart to the famous UNESCO reserve. Many full-day excursions round off the visit with a traditional Creole barbecue on the beach at Anse St. José, grilled fresh under the takamakas — a fixture of the Curieuse experience for decades.
St. Pierre – The Islet Every Camera Loves
A few minutes from Curieuse rises St. Pierre, a cluster of granite boulders crowned with a handful of palms — quite possibly the most photographed islet in the Seychelles. There is no landing here; St. Pierre is a snorkeling stop, and that is exactly its charm. Boats moor beside the rocks and swimmers slip straight into an underwater landscape of coral gardens and fish traffic: parrotfish crunching at the reef, schools of fusiliers, moray eels tucked into crevices, and green turtles passing through the channel. The water around the islet is shallow enough for confident beginners near the boulders, while slightly deeper terrain on the outer side keeps experienced snorkelers occupied.
Geography makes St. Pierre the natural companion to Curieuse — the two sit so close together that combining them is less a route decision than an inevitability. The pairing of tortoises, mangrove trails, and a world-class snorkeling stop is the reason the Curieuse–St. Pierre circuit remains the most requested day on the water from Praslin.
The Coves Nobody Drives To
Praslin keeps some of its best sand for those arriving by sea. Anse Georgette, tucked behind the golf course at the island’s northwestern corner, is frequently called the “second Anse Lazio” — the same white sand and granite drama, with a fraction of the visitors. Reaching it on foot requires passing through resort grounds with prior arrangement; reaching it by boat requires nothing but an anchor.
The east and south of the island hide quieter treasures still. Anse La Blague, on the eastern shore, sits in a deep, calm inlet that stays glassy when the northwest winds blow elsewhere. Down south, Anse Marie-Louise offers seclusion during the southeast trade season is reversed — a small, honey-colored crescent that most tourists never see because no excursion bus goes there. The practical rule experienced skippers follow is simple: when the trades blow from the southeast between May and September, favor the north and west coasts; when the northwest monsoon arrives from November to March, the east and south come into their own. Travelers who let the wind choose their cove are rewarded with flat water and empty sand nearly year-round.
Island Hopping – Praslin as the Hub of the Inner Seychelles
No island in the Seychelles sits closer to more worthwhile neighbors than Praslin, and a boat turns each of them into an easy outing.
| Island | Approx. travel time from Praslin | Main draw | Landing |
| La Digue | 15–20 min | Anse Source d’Argent, bicycle island life | Open, via La Passe jetty |
| Curieuse | 10–15 min | Giant tortoises, mangrove trail, coco de mer | Marine park, ranger-managed |
| Cousin | 15–20 min | Seabird and turtle nature reserve | Morning visits only, organized landings |
| Grande & Petite Sœur | 20–30 min | Twin beaches, snorkeling channel | Managed access |
| St. Pierre | 10–15 min | Signature snorkeling islet | No landing — water only |
| Aride | 45–60 min | Largest seabird colonies in the region | Weather-dependent landings |
La Digue deserves special mention. While ferries run the channel on fixed schedules, arriving by private boat allows travelers to time Anse Source d’Argent — the granite-framed beach that has fronted a thousand advertising campaigns — for the quieter hours, and to leave when the day feels complete rather than when the timetable says so. Cousin, by contrast, runs on nature’s schedule: the reserve accepts only organized morning landings, and during nesting season its trees and ground teem with fairy terns, shearwaters, and nesting hawksbill turtles in one of conservation’s genuine success stories. Aride, the wildest and most distant of the group, crowns the list for birdwatchers — though its exposed landing beach means visits always depend on the sea’s mood.
Beyond the Beaches – Days Built Around the Water
Snorkeling stitches the whole Praslin boat experience together, and the island’s greatest hits form a compact circuit: the boulders of Anse Lazio, the reef off Curieuse, the channel between the Sister Islands, the quiet corners of Anse Georgette, and St. Pierre at the center of it all. Sunset cruises add a different register — a slow run along the northwest coast as the granite turns copper and the coco de mer ridgelines darken against the sky, best in the months when the evening light lingers longest.
For travelers who want a line in the water, the crossings between islands double as trolling runs, and it is not unusual for a day trip to return with bonito or jobfish taken along the way. Those drawn deeper into that world will find the archipelago’s offshore fishing a subject worthy of its own journey — and its own article.
Making the Day Work
A well-packed dry bag makes the difference between a good boat day and a great one: reef-safe sunscreen (the marine parks take coral protection seriously), sturdy sandals for granite landings, a hat that survives wind, and a camera with more storage than seems necessary. Snorkeling gear is typically provided on board, though travelers with prescription masks or preferred fins should bring their own.
The marine parks around Praslin operate under clear conservation rules, and they are easy to honor: keep a respectful distance from tortoises and turtles, never stand on or touch coral, and take nothing from the islands but photographs. Landing formalities at protected islands such as Curieuse and Cousin are handled by the boat operator, so guests need only show up.
For those sketching an itinerary, two proven templates cover most ambitions. A single full day pairs Curieuse and St. Pierre in the morning with a Creole beach lunch and an afternoon swim at Anse Lazio. With two days on the water, the first can be given to La Digue and the Sister Islands, leaving the second for an unhurried exploration of Praslin’s own hidden coves, chosen according to the wind.
The Island That Rewards Those Who Cast Off
Seen from its roads, Praslin is a beautiful island. Seen from the water, it becomes an entire world — a hub ringed by tortoise sanctuaries, bird islands, photogenic islets, and beaches that the wind keeps secret from everyone but sailors. The pattern that emerges from a few days on the water here is worth reflecting on: in the Inner Seychelles, the destinations that leave the deepest impression are almost never the ones with the easiest access. Perhaps that is the real argument for exploring Praslin by boat — not convenience, but the quiet privilege of reaching places that ask a little more of those who want to see them.