As I wrote about a couple of installments back, we were spending a total of eight nights in the Seychelles. We spent our first three nights on the island of Mahe at the Four Seasons Seychelles, while we spent our last five nights at the Four Seasons Desroches Island, which just opened earlier this year…
Continue reading: Review: Four Seasons Desroches Island
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Thanks for the review and happy birthday! How was the air conditioning in the villa?
Also, is there a PADI dive center? Did anyone you met mention the dive quality by any chance?
My wife and I have been exploring a stay at Desroches Island and are seeking an island were we can truly RELAX and erase the daily bruises of life... your review was extremely helpful! Thank you.
-James & Donna
Great review. I am surprised there are no big granite rocks that define Seychelles.
While some may prefer the exclusiveness of Four Seasons and the deserted island, the islands of Praslin and La Digue with some of the best beaches in the world should not be missed. Biking on La Digue is fantastic. Anse Lazio beach on Praslin is really really gorgeous and one can snorkel right off of the beach.
Interesting review. Clearly beautiful scenery. Personally, I think $20++ for a potato somosa is outrageous. But then, I also think €724/night for a hotel is outrageous.
On a totally different topic, is there any chance you could possibly screen IPs and only make readers from the EU check off that ridiculous consent box every. single. time. This just seems a bit ridiculous.
Looks wonderful, although they really went overboard with the number of fries with the Tartar - that's 3 times the number of fries most people eat.
Love these types of posts; I'll never be able to afford a vacation like this, but reading about it allows me to take a little break during the day through your eyes.
The prices are outrageous but....
"On the first day they noticed I liked avocado, and on every subsequent day they brought me a plate of avocado without asking."
This certainly helps. Should be standard at all hotels.
That looks awesome! I was going through some old trip reports yesterday and found out that you published your Etihad Residence flight almost exactly a year ago (it was on June 2). It sure seems like you've gotten over the Etihad Residence Blues 😉
You get what you pay for. A stay at most Four Seasons or Amans is worth the cash even if it seems crazy. It’s amazing how service elevates any experience. Not only did Lucky get avocado every day but if he goes back in four years avocado will magically show up. That’s what you are paying for.
Great review thanks Ben. My favourite picture the meal with 3 chips ha ha ha love it
This is a great, in-depth review and the photographs are lovely. Glad you had a wonderful holiday.
great review ben! regarding the weather- when it rained, did it rain for 20 min then the sun came out, or was it an all day thing? that can really put a burn on vacation plans
While I like to read reviews also of places I will or would not go to, and while I’m not exactly a backpacker, for me this one just crossed the border towards a pampered entitlement where I start feeling viscerally uncomfortable. What saved it for me was actually the on-going construction, as a reality check within this Truman Show; like the purposefully left incomplete details in some architecture or art.
That said, I think restaurants picking up on preferences after one orders the same thing twice in a row is quite common, especially in India (but I recently had it at a Belgravia club for breakfast as well), and half an avocado is a non-expense after all. But sometimes I want to change what I eat, and getting softly locked into one’s preferences (as decline would be food waste and one is lazy after all) is also as it is.
Great review. I'm considering going here, but torn between here and the Six Senses Zil Payson (which seems closer to Praslin and La Digue, and being able to check out their beaches).
Please exclude the references to 'Ford' and things related to your companion, I find them to detract from what is otherwise a good read. Thanks
Sorry reading this late but it says "Four Seaons Desroches villa" in on of your titles it's missing an S. I know how much you care about your grammar so I wanted to alert you! Thanks again Lucky and I absolutely love reading what you have to say!!
Just stayed here for 5 nights. Overall it was a great experience, but a few things to note. First, construction was still ongoing, certain touches in our villa seemed incomplete still (missing light fixtures, etc.), and one day there was a bulldozer on the beach in front of the main pool moving sand around. It seems like they still haven't come up with a permanent solution to the problems that arose during Lucky's stay here. The beach in front of the main pool and bar has a lot of sandbags and a steep drop off, and during high tide all but disappears. It seems to me that they built the pool far too close to the ocean, and the only real solution at this point would be to build the beach out ~50 feet or so to prevent future flooding and have a proper beach in front if the pool.
As for service, it was great at first but somewhat inconsistent later on in our stay. A few times at breakfast nobody came by to take our orders, didn't fill our water glasses, etc. We noticed several other small annoyances as well. Also, our flight home from Mahe left at 6pm, which meant we had to take the 11:30am flight back to Mahe from Desroches, and the hotel arranged transfer to/from the Four Seasons on Mahe to spend 3 hours on the beach there. This was an excellent way to fill the time, but it was something we had to ask for--I'm surprised that the resort doesn't proactively offer this option given that a lot flights leave around that time every day.
The resort seems great for families due to the number of large villas and the ability to bike around the island, which seems great for kids. It didn't bother us, but it's something to note if you're planning a more romantic/couples type vacation. If you're looking for a place to take a family and have the money, it seems like an excellent place.
Last thing I'll note is the weather seems like it might have a big impact on your enjoyment here, depending on what you want to do. May-September is the "dry monsoon" in the Seychelles, which means little rain but it was VERY windy during our stay. This made snorkeling more difficult due to more waves/lower visibility, swimming in certain areas was more difficult, and at some times even sitting outside at the Lighthouse bar was not very pleasant because the wind was so intense. Also, there were extremely large deposits of seaweed at certain beaches during our stay, which I believe is seasonal as well but I'm not entirely sure. In any event, it made it basically impossible to swim at some of the marked beaches, as they were literally covered with a foot of seaweed that was built up.
I enjoy most of your reviews. If, however, you are are to insist on populating your reviews with so many photographic image, please use a better camera.