Beaches of Mahe Island

Learn everything you need to know about the beaches of Mahe Island in the Seychelles. There will be a comparative table, tips, and recommendations for choosing a beach, advice on where it’s best to stay, and where snorkeling is ideal. You will discover which beach has the best infrastructure and which is suitable for children. You’ll even find out where to spot sea turtles and sharks (spoiler alert: you can encounter sharks everywhere).

Beaches of Mahe: General Information

Mahe Island is the main island of the Seychelles archipelago, the largest and most populous. With dimensions of 30 by 10 km, the island is home to 70-75 thousand people, and its beaches occupy almost the entire coastline. Therefore, throughout the year, Mahe beaches look approximately like the photo below

Brief general information about Mahe beaches, what unites them, and what you need to know before your vacation:

• All of Mahe Island’s beaches are free and public. Except for those “occupied” by 5-star luxury hotels, which you can’t access without booking a stay in such a hotel.
• In the Seychelles, there are generally no overcrowded beaches like in resorts in Spain. Similarly, there is no familiar beach infrastructure. You won’t find banana boat rides or parasailing, no one is selling excursions and hot corn even during peak season. You can’t just come to the beach, rent a sunbed for money, and sunbathe because there are no sunbeds 🙂
• From November to March, the Seychelles experience predominantly west winds, and west currents prevail. During this time, there may be strong waves on the western beaches, while the eastern ones usually have calm waters. From May to September, east winds begin to blow, and waves are more common on the eastern beaches.

These are general points; you can read more facts about the beaches, safety on the beaches, sea urchins, sharks, etc., in the article: Top 10 Best Beaches in the Seychelles.

Mahe Beaches List: Comparison Table

In the table below, I have compiled all the beaches of Mahe Island that are of interest to tourists in one way or another. If I missed any beach, it doesn’t mean it’s bad; it probably means it’s not suitable for tourists and is likely used by locals, with many fishing boats and little tourist accommodation.

Important to understand:

If you plan to rent a car in the Seychelles, you can stay anywhere on the island, near any beach. Within a 30-minute drive, you can reach almost any beach on the island. How to choose a villa or apartment, what types of accommodations are available in the Seychelles for tourists, whether they have kitchens, what to pay attention to – you’ll find all this in the article: Accommodation in the Seychelles.

All beaches in the table are listed in order, starting from the northern Beau Vallon, clockwise. Coordinates for each beach are provided.

• 1 point – very poor
• 5 points – excellent

A few about the table:

• Anse – in French means beach.
• If there is a score of 1 in the “Infrastructure” column, it means it’s a wild beach accessible only by foot, not even reachable by car. There is nothing: no hotels/shops/cafes, absolutely nothing.
• In the “Child-friendly” column, I considered all factors: no waves, a good water entry, no sharp corals, rocks, or sea urchins.
• If you love snorkeling and want to swim to see fish from the beach, just read the article: Snorkeling in the Seychelles, where everything is detailed, including coordinates of snorkeling spots.
• A beach with a score of 1 does not mean it’s bad. It may be beautiful but wild, with no people, infrastructure, with waves, and accessible only by foot. However, it may become your favorite beach, and you’ll remember it for life.

Best Beaches in Mahe: Top 10

To make it easier for you to choose your dream beach, below are categories and winners in each category. The jury awarding the victory and choosing the best beach in each category is me, so all ratings are subjective. But you have no choice; I know these beaches, and you don’t 🙂

• Best Beaches on Mahe for Children: Port Launay and Beau Vallon. I would also add the very small and beautiful Fairyland Beach. But Port Launay is incomparable; the beach is situated in a bay, surrounded by land on three sides, and all year round, it’s protected from wind and waves.
• The Most Infrastructural Beach: the winner is only one – Beau Vallon. There is more infrastructure here than on any other beach in the Seychelles. A promenade, shops, restaurants, takeaways, and even excursion vendors, which is a rarity.

• Best Wild Beach on Mahe with Excellent Jungle Hiking: undoubtedly Anse Major. A very beautiful and easy trail with panoramic viewpoints. You can even go with children.

• Beaches on Mahe where it’s just you and the ocean, but reachable by car: Anse Takamaka, Anse Intendance, Police Bay, North East Point.
• Similarly secluded beaches, but not accessible by car, only reachable by walking through the jungle: Anse Major, Anse Petite Marie-Louise, Anse Capucins, Petit Boileau. All beaches are beautiful, but the difficulty of reaching them varies. For example, you’ll be alone on Anse Petit Boileau; it’s just challenging to get there.

• Best snorkeling beaches on Mahe: Anse Petite Marie-Louise and Fairyland.
• Best beaches on Mahe for sunsets: Anse Takamaka, Anse Intendance, Anse Soleil.
• The coziest, compact, and beautiful beach according to the author: Anse Soleil.

• Beaches on Mahe where there’s a high chance of encountering sea turtles. If you’re lucky, you might witness turtles laying eggs on the beach or watch hatchlings crawling into the ocean. All these are southern and deserted beaches on the island: Police Bay, Anse Takamaka, Anse Intendance, Anse Capucins, Anse Petite Marie-Louise.

Everything about the underwater world of the Seychelles, when sea turtles lay eggs, whether you can encounter sharks and whales while snorkeling, is covered in the article: The Ocean in the Seychelles.

• Mahe beaches with budget accommodation: Anse Takamaka, Grand Anse, Anse Royale. Below are two useful articles on this topic. Since renting accommodation in the Seychelles is not cheap, the topic is very relevant for budget travelers:
  • Budget Accommodation in the Seychelles
  • Good 3-star Hotels in the Seychelles

In conclusion, I hope this article about the beaches of Mahe Island in the Seychelles has provided the necessary information, and now you have an understanding of which beach suits you best, where you want to stay, and which beach on the island you definitely want to visit. On one hand, all Mahe beaches are worthy of admiration, and they have a lot in common, but on the other hand, they are all different, and each beach has its strengths.

Remember, Seychelles is all about beaches. The biggest mistake tourists make when they come here is spending the entire vacation on one beach. You can and should visit different beaches here.

IMPORTANT: essential links to organize your dream trip to the Seychelles:

• FLIGHTS: WayAway – direct flights and best deals.
• CAR RENTAL:
  • Mahe and Praslin, no deposit required – LocalRent
  • The most famous car rental company – DiscoverCars.
• TOURS and EXCURSIONS:
  • GetYourGuide – 90+ activities and tours in the Seychelles.
  • Viator – 130 + activities in Seychelles.
• TRAVEL INSURANCE: EKTA.
• HOTELS, VILLAS, APARTMENTS:
  • TripAdvisor compares prices among a dozen other services and platforms and offers to choose the best one.
  • Trip.com – one of the most popular accommodation booking platforms.
• PACKAGES: from budget to luxury – CheapOair.
• AIRPORT TRANSFER: Intui.
• INTERNET: eSIM of local telecom operator – Airalo.