Give Victoria a morning. Start at Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke Market before the fish sells out, walk the four blocks past the clock tower, the cathedral and the Hindu temple, then head uphill to the Seychelles National Botanical Garden for the tortoises and the coco de mer. Afternoons belong to the island: a boat into Sainte Anne Marine National Park, the Copolia trail for the view back over town, or bus 20 to Beau Vallon.
Victoria is a capital you can cross on foot in twenty minutes, and that is the point. The market, the museums, the temple and the clock tower sit inside four streets, which leaves the rest of the day for Mahe: reefs off Sainte Anne, granite trails above town, and a beach on the far coast by bus.
The one room where the whole country turns up. Whole fish on the slab at the back, spice and fruit through the middle, craft stalls upstairs. It runs Monday to Saturday and is busiest on Saturday morning. Go before 10am either way: the best fish sells out and the heat under the roof builds fast.
Fifteen acres laid out in 1901, a short climb from the market. The draw is the coco de mer palms at the gate and the Aldabra giant tortoises in the enclosure below them, plus an orchid house and a resident fruit bat colony. Entry is 250 rupees for non-residents.
Six islands and the water between them, protected since 1973 and the first marine park in the Indian Ocean. Boats leave from Victoria and Eden Island for a day of snorkelling and a beach lunch. The channel between Sainte Anne and Moyenne holds the best coral and the most fish.
The short highland walk that pays best. Under two kilometres each way through cinnamon and pitcher plants to a bare granite dome at 497 metres, with Victoria, the Sainte Anne islands and, on a clear day, Praslin laid out below. Two hours return, and the climb is relentless in the humidity.
Seychelles from settlement to independence, in a compact colonial building beside the clock tower and opposite the post office. It is the best hour in town for context on slavery, the plantations and the Creole language. Hours are short and split around lunch, so check before you walk over.
The only Hindu temple in Seychelles, built in 1992 and impossible to miss: a Dravidian gopuram in full colour rising over a street of low colonial shopfronts. Ganesh Chaturthi and Diwali are when it is at its loudest. Take your shoes off and ask before photographing inside.
A small silver clock tower at the town's only real junction, inaugurated in 1903 to mark Queen Victoria's death and still the point every direction in Victoria is given from. Two minutes of your time, and the natural place to start the walk between the market, the cathedral and the museum.
The island's easiest beach day and the one bus ride every visitor makes. A long flat crescent on the north-west coast with calm water for most of the year, dive shops, and enough hotels behind it to find lunch. Bus 20 runs from Victoria for under 10 rupees, roughly every half hour.
The ruins of an 1876 school for the children of liberated slaves, on a ridge below Sans Souci with the whole west coast underneath it. A paved lane leads to the memorial and the ruins, then a wooded path to the Queen Elizabeth lookout. On the UNESCO tentative list since 2013.
A reclaimed island 3.5 km from town, joined to Mahe by a 300-metre bridge, and one of the largest marinas in the western Indian Ocean. It is where the superyachts and charter catamarans tie up, and where Victoria goes for a waterfront dinner and a supermarket that stocks everything.
Endemic birds, tortoises and geology. Call ahead, it has been closed for works.
Built in 1874 and French colonial to the core, the seat of the Catholic diocese.
Trwa Zwazo: three pairs of wings for Africa, Europe and Asia, raised in 1978.
Granite boulders, bicycles and no traffic, reached by ferry via Praslin.
Charity road race on Mahé's north coast, run on the last Sunday of the month.
Public holiday marking the Seychelles constitution. Offices and most shops close.
Independence from the United Kingdom in 1976, and the biggest holiday of the year.
Public holiday and the year’s largest Catholic feast across the islands.
Charity weekend at Beau Vallon with a funfair, concerts and traditional games.
A week of Creole music, food and storytelling across Victoria. Free to attend.
The temple's biggest night, lamps and rituals in the middle of town.
Underwater imagery and marine ecology talks, held around November each year.
The country's only international airport, 10 km south at Pointe Larue. SPTC buses run into town for about 10 rupees; taxis quote SCR 300 to 600 for the 15 minute run.
One flat-fare network covers all of Mahé from the Victoria terminus, roughly 5am to 8pm on weekdays. Timetables and a live app are on the SPTC site.
Fast catamarans leave the Inter-Island Quay for Praslin in about an hour, several times a day, with connections on to La Digue. Book a day or two ahead in season.
Airport and cross-island fares are quoted rather than metered, so agree the price first. A hire car is the only way to reach the south coast beaches on your own schedule.
Whole bourzwa scored, stuffed with garlic and chilli, grilled over coconut husks.
Octopus curry in coconut milk, the dish the islands are actually known for.
Green banana and shredded fish simmered in coconut milk with ginger.
Plantain or breadfruit in coconut milk with nutmeg and vanilla, served sweet.
Shark chutney: the flesh boiled, then mashed with lime and bilimbi.
Leafy green broth, everyday home cooking rather than restaurant food.
Green papaya grated raw with onion and chilli, the standard side plate.
Fruit bat curry, dark and gamey. Marie Antoinette is where to try it.
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