Reviews of trips to Mahe Island

"We had a great trip to Seychelles. This is our first overseas travel since Covid started. It was postponed from initially scheduled for December 2021 - thanks to Megan for contacting hotels and ground operators that makes it very smooth.

We enjoyed our stay at both accommodations in Mahe and Praslin and all the transfer logistics are very well organized. I felt our stay at Praslin was a little short and I wish we can have time to visit La Digue, hopefully we can revisit again.

We had 2 scary moments during this trip (no fault of Expert Africa). I got verbal abuse from the owner of Anse Soleil restaurant on a day we explored Mahe on our own. Apparently I parked my car at a place where they do not allow, he kept giving me verbal abuse even though I apologized and told him that we will leave immediately. Found out later on reviews and from Katerina (Le Sans Souci) experience with her family that this guy is very bad and may have mental problem.

The other scary moment was when our rental car got struck in the sand in the parking space near Anse Lazio. Luckily, the local people (3 of them) were so nice that they helped us for almost 30 minutes until we can get our car back on track.

Overall, we had a great trip and thanks to your excellent services and thoughtful advice and arrangement throughout." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 8 on a Seychelles holiday

"We had the most amazing trip this summer for three key reasons:
1) Expert Africa,
2) Giving Back to Africa,
3) Enjoying the benefits of traveling during Covid.

First, Expert Africa, and in particular Maruska, helped us work through all the challenges that Covid 19 presented during planning. Our original trip was for 2020 so we had to deal with many flight changes and reworked our complicated itinerary several times. When planning for 2021 there were important details Maruska worked through for us regarding transitions between countries, all of which required covid testing and declaration documents etc. It was a little tricky because we were traveling to so many countries over just a couple of weeks, but with Expert Africa's help it all came together perfectly. Having Expert Africa people on the ground in each country understanding the situations and meeting us and smoothing the way at every step made it painless and very VIP. Everywhere we went in all countries the local people were very helpful and understanding.

Secondly, the locals who rely on tourism were so happy to see us that it made our trip that much more rewarding. We felt like we were giving back to them by supporting their important tourism industry all the while we got to experience a most amazing vacation.

And third, we were able to enjoy our sightseeing with limited other tourists which made it all absolutely exclusive and magical. Our transfers and flights were awesome because we had room to spread out. The number of guests at the hotels, lodges, safari camps was still low and again we were able to feel like we had the places nearly to ourselves which was very exclusive and lovely.

Everyone we came into contact with was vaccinated, as it is a regulation of the travel and tourism industry and so we were very safe from Covid and never worried.

This was an amazing trip two years in the planning and so we had very very high expectations that were not in any way dampened by covid details - in fact, we benefited by traveling now when we did. Our trip far exceeded our expectations." Read full review: 30 nights in Africa; 5 on a Seychelles holiday

"First and foremost we enjoyed our trip immensely and have no regrets about having gone to The Seychelles.

The comments we have made above are therefore intended to be constructive. We did however feel that, like so many other places, we were visiting about 30 years too late and that what we really wanted to see, like the wildlife, peaceful places and the real Seychelles, had been overtaken by events, tourists and tourist facilities. We are not beach people. Knowing what we know now, we would have revised our itinerary somewhat. But for the poor food, we could have stayed on Bird Island for at least one more night but would definitely have added two days to the Coco de Mer on Praslin. We would however have excluded any nights on La Digue and just covered that island by a day trip from Praslin and a taxi tour.

Mason's Travel had made all our local arrangements and these generally went well and efficiently as did the local trips we booked through the good island representatives. The one hiccough was caused by our delayed Bird Island to Mahe to Praslin flights. We were supported well at Mahe Airport but no message from there to Praslin with our revised details seemed to have got through and we, a French family and a French group were kept waiting at the Mason's desk for some time until staff eventually arrived and transportation or hired cars were sorted out. The staff member at the Praslin Jetty could also have been more helpful and friendly on our last day on that island. Trips to Aride did not seem to be operating while those to Cousin were heavily booked. We did not attempt to go because of my mobility problems, the number of noisy participants, and a major mosquito presence. Chris had already reacted badly to sandfly bites on Bird Island and we didn't want a further similar occurrence. We made quite detailed lists of the wildlife we did see and those I shall send separately to Lucy soon.


Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

None. I shall use Expert Africa again." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 17 on a Seychelles holiday

"We had a really superb honeymoon.

Every flight, connection, transfer, car hire and hotel was planned with our requirements in mind in a totally seamless manner. The recommendations of what to do and see and how to get about were spot on.

Thank you very much Lucy at Expert Africa for such superb personal recommendations which really made the difference.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

I really can't find fault with anything at all and look forward to travelling with you again.

We read about you in the Daily Telegraph and look forward to using you again next year." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 10 on a South Africa trip

"Overall we had a great time.

All the connections worked well.

All the accommodation was good, apart from the few details we have mentioned in the report" Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 8 on a Seychelles holiday

"This was a wonderful trip.

Our family group of 13 people aged in range from 9 months to 72 years. We were in 2 villas, each of which had a generously sized swimming pool. This was a great success, providing endless fun for the children and relaxation for the adults.

The beach was about 200 yards from the villas and was beautiful with safe swimming in warm clear water. There was a selection of activities to try, some of which were free whilst others (scuba diving, zip wire) incurred an additional charge.

The staff at the resort really did everything that they could to provide an excellent and friendly service in every way." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 10 on a Seychelles holiday

"Overall a lovely trip.

Certainly Bird Island was a highlight." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 6 on a Seychelles holiday

"We chose Expert Africa on the recommendation of a close friend who had used the agency a couple of years ago. We are so glad we did!

We dealt with Maruska, who was amazing. She is knowledgeable, efficient and our questions (which seemed endless) were answered promptly and cheerfully. We were particularly impressed that Maruska put us in touch with a colleague in the UK office because she was not as familiar with the Seychelles. Admitting that, and getting us the information, is not something everyone is good at doing.

The Zambia portion of the trip was amazing and exceeded all of our expectations. The camps Maruska suggested were excellent - she asked us lots of questions and really tailored the experience to our preferences. She was very familiar with all the camps and her comments were spot on. We would definitely go back to Zambia.

We enjoyed the Seychelles. Seeing those amazing beaches and swimming in the warm ocean was delightful.

We would recommend Expert Africa." Read full review: 18 nights in Africa; 10 on a Zambia safari

"I thoroughly enjoyed my trip. All the transfers were on time and the hotels were nice.

Everything ran smoothly and my holiday was great." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 7 on a Seychelles holiday

"We very much enjoyed the Seychelles. Many people think of this as a beach holiday destination but it is an awful lot more. The wildlife was superb.

Giant fruit bats in the sky and trees, Hawksbill turtles in the sea, tenrecs among the forest leafs and myriads of different crabs along the shoreline. The tortoises were, of course, in pens - but watching them mating was something else.

The birdlife was great with the bright red Madagascar Fody everywhere. A kestrel used our balcony as a look out spot. And we hiked the trails to see the rarer Black Parrots, Blue Pigeon and Paradise Flycatcher (on La Digue). Officially, we went in dry season (September) but it rained almost constantly for first 7 days! That was a bit disappointing but it didn't stop us doing anything.

And the last 3 days in the sun were great for a spot of warm water swimming in the Indian Ocean.

All arrangements went smoothly and the accommodation (including food) was great.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Nothing really - unless you are able to stop the rain!" Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 5 on a Seychelles holiday