Mahé Transportation

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To my amazement cruise ships dock here in Mahe about every 14 days. While we were staying on the island the Costa cruise line was in port for two days. Mahe would be a wonderful port on a cruise but I would want more than two days to explore.

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Emirates is one of the best airlines I have flow to date. We flew Emirates from London to Dubai then on to Mahe. The airline was excellent. Service was top notch, food was very good, entertainment options were vast and the plane was incredibly clean. Flight attendants were the best I have seen of any airline. They passed out special packets for kids with coloring books, games, bags and toys. People with babies were given packets with baby food, formula and hand puppets for the babies (during our flight we saw camels and tigers handed out for puppets). The in-flight entertainment in each seat has a vast array of movies and TV programs.. there was an extensive selection of new releases as well as a large archive of older movies. I actually watched Ghostbusters on the flight down as my wife watched The King's Speech.

On the way home we flew the A380 and it was incredible. The plane was huge and every detail was perfect. Even the bathrooms were immaculate and had wood accents.

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The Seychelles International Airport is the main airport of the Seychelles and is located on the island of Mahe. The airport is small considering it handles big flights from Emirates, Air Seychelles and Qatar Airways. When it comes to facilities it has limited shopping and only one cafe for food. Check in lines can be rather long so make sure to give yourself plenty of time before your flight to check in and clear security.

Even if there are busses I would still advice you to rent a car.
The busses were not respecting any schdule that I could see. You would have just to wait for one to stop whenever it sould come.
With a car is much more easier to move arround at your convenience. And it is also fun!
Renting a car will cost from 50 up to 80 Euros.
You can rent it from a renting company or speak directly to the receptionist at your gusthouse. By the way, some goesthouses have an agreement with people who rent cars and they could get it for you for a reduced price. Also, the price is lower if you rent a car for more days.

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The national airline of the Seychelles does not appear to operate a regular schedule of flights. Both the inbound and outbound international flight departed late and from discussions with the tour operator this is a regular occurrence. Residents and guests should be warned if they choose to fly with this airline, since the outbound delay resulted in me missing my onward flight and meant an overnight in Johannesburg.
In case of delays and changes in schedule the airlines airport staff is most incompetent in dealing with the situation.
Inter Island flights also have to be treated with caution. Air Seychelles keeps changing the schedule according to load factor and the scheduled flight may not operate at all. Inner Island flights also are not air-conditioned making the aircraft to resemble a steam bath.
Schedule checks with the airline do not bear any fruits since communication is as incompetent.
My return flight even though it was booked and confirmed on an Air Seychelles aircraft was operated by an Italian/Irish charter airline.
The above is due to the limited aircraft the airline owns that are over scheduled.
Alternatives that operate more securely are Emirates, Qatar Airways and Kenya Airways. All other airlines to the islands operate a charter service only.
In regards to inner island travel one could divert to scheduled ferry services.

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Mahe International Airport is the gateway to the Seychelles. All international flights both scheduled and chartered land here. There are two terminals one inernational and one for domestic inter island flights. A duty free zone and a bar and restaurant offer services in the international terminal and a small shop allow purchases in the domestic terminal.

When I arrived in Mahe, the taxi driver wanted 30 Euros for a taxi ride to the Plantation Club Hotel
I didnt have any euros but gave him 20 British pound plus a tip.
Found out after arriving at the airport that the taxi drivers are not supposed to get foreign currency for a taxi ride and should have been about 150 rupees about 14 Pounds or $25.00
Ask one of the people from Masons Travel or Creole travel what the taxi fare should be
or see if they have a ride available in their passenger minivans for the same price
the taxi drivers also will offer to change your currency for you which is against the law
but were offering 14-15 rupees for a GBP instead of the 11.72 for the official rate , but without a receipt you cannot change it back if you dont spend it all .
ATM cards work almost everywhere
Ask if the bus goes to your hotel when you arrive at the airport as its only 3 rupees (depending on your luggage)