It might be just a 45 minute flight to Desroches Island, but it’s hard to think of a more isolated part of the planet to spend a holiday – nor a more gorgeous one! Part of the remote Amirantes island group, Desroches certainly ticks all the boxes when you picture the ideal tropical island paradise holiday – great beaches, luxurious accommodation, pristine coral reefs, a huge range of outdoor activities, not to mention superb personal service and excellent food!

Unlike many similar “one island, one resort” islands found elsewhere in the Seychelles as well as in places like the Maldives, one of the most refreshing things about Desroches is that it is actually pretty sizeable and lends itself to more extensive exploring than the “can stroll around it in half an hour, so now what’s next?” type islands. At around 5 km long and 1 km wide and with 14 km of gorgeous beaches, there’s loads of space and places to explore – in fact one of the great features of Desroches is that each room come complete with a couple of bicycles which you can use to take an easy pedal through the coconut palm plantations using the island’s network of sandy paths (just remember to keep an eye out for the handful of giant Aldabra tortoises that roam freely about the island!) One of the real highlights of Desroches is the chance to enjoy a gorgeous picnic packed for you by the lodge on one of the idyllic secluded beaches before heading into the water to check out the teeming underwater life!

Whilst a deserted beach is always easy to find (although you may have to share them with the hawksbill turtles that clamber ashore to lay their eggs!) there’s also some of the very best snorkeling to be had in the Seychelles on the extensive coral reefs that lie just offshore. One of the real highlights of Desroches is the chance to enjoy a gorgeous picnic packed for you by the lodge on one of the idyllic secluded beaches before heading into the water to check out the teeming underwater life!

Of course if you’re feeling like a little less activity the lodge area itself is also a gorgeous place to spend some time – or to be more accurate that should really be the “two lodge areas” as Desroches really consists of a couple of separate areas: firstly on the western shoreline of the island there are the main lodge buildings including the restaurant and bar, swimming pool, watersports centre and Spa as well as the 20 lovely semi-detached Suites that together constitute the heart of the lodge; then lining gorgeous Madame Zebra beach on the north-west shore about a 5 minute cycle from the main lodge are Desroches’ latest attraction – 26 stunning 4 bedroom villas (complete with their own private swimming pools) which must constitute the ultimate way for family or a group of friends to holiday in the Seychelles!

As you can see from the pics above Desroches has some of the very nicest and most luxurious accommodation in the Seychelles boasting gorgeous polished wood finishes and contemporary styling details. Guests staying in the villas also have the choice of dining with all the other guests at the main restaurant or in the comfort of their own villa. Talking of dining, this is also one of the main highlights of a stay at Desroches and guests consistently rave about the delicious meals especially the just-out-of-the-water fresh seafood! The lodge also does its best to keep things interesting for guests too, so one meal you’ll be dining on the beach, the next around the pool deck, the next under the palm trees and so on. And given the eye-watering prices for alcohol that usually apply in the Seychelles, perhaps the best news of all is that the prices at Desroches include all meals and drinks!

Throw in the phenomenal fishing, including excellent bonefish on the fly on the flats off the southern shoreline of the island and superb deep sea fishing including those giants of the deep, marlin and tuna, excellent scuba diving through the lodge’s PADI dive centre, not to mention the many other activities available including kayaking and tennis on the floodlit court, it all amounts to perhaps the finest “reasonably priced” experience available in the Seychelles today!

Explore the island by bicycle and discover your very own idyllic and secluded beach on which to enjoy a delicious packed picnic!

Superb fishing - both deep sea for marlin, tuna and other game fish, or by fly for the bonefish that lurk on the flats of the island's southern lagoon

Luxurious accommodation with stylish and contemporary design touches

Some of the very best food in the Seychelles - and drinks are included in the rate too so you avoid nasty surprises come check-out time!

Remote, beautiful and unspoiled - what more do you need!

Pity the Suites weren't completely separate (as opposed to being semi-detached) as privacy would be even greater then

The island's distance from Mahe combined with the early flight back to South Africa means that you have to spend the last night of your holiday on Mahe

The 4 bedroom villas could perhaps be spaced slightly further apart - otherwise not much!