Finding Rest, Renewal & Nature at Avani+ Barbarons in the Seychelles
If you are seeking to get off the beaten path and experience the beauty of a lush, verdant group of tropical islands, with a supremely interesting environmental, cultural, and political history, look no further than the Seychelles Islands.
Located in the eastern part of the Indian Ocean, off the coast of East Africa, a sojourn on the main island of Mahé is excellent all on its own, whether as a restful base before island hopping further afield, or before or after a bucket list safari experience in Kenya or Tanzania, or a life-altering gorilla trek in Uganda.
The Seychelles are an archipelago state, an independent republic since 1976, comprised of 155 islands, most of which are uninhabited, and several of which are dedicated nature reserves. Home to giant magnificent tortoises and a habitat to a plethora of birds, make it ornithologically speaking, a veritable orgy for birders and naturalists.
A former British colony, and before that a French colony, thus, the Seychellois speak their native Creole, in addition to French and English. Their currency is the Seychelles Rupee and owing to the several decade British presence, the Seychellois drive on the left.
While the Seychelles are the smallest African nation and the least populated one – with just over 100,000 inhabitants – it boasts the highest literacy rate of sub-Saharan Africa at nearly 96-percent.
The Seychelles are a wonderful place to visit, not only due to its great physical beauty, balmy turquoise waters replete with abundant underwater life, beautiful flora and fauna, but also because the Seychellois, a mix of French, British, Indian, and African, are incredibly hospitable, friendly, and take great pride and evident joy in sharing their slice of island paradise with visitors.
The Bed
Recently remodeled and refreshed in June 2025, the Avani+ Barbarons has 192 spacious rooms and suites starting at 310 square feet. Staying in a spacious Premium Lagoon Access room, it had a large patio fronting the lagoon pool shared only by nine other rooms, all of which faced the azure Indian Ocean.
My accommodations had a comfortable king-sized bed with high-count cotton sheets, a 60-inch flat screen television, a working desk, separate seating area, mini refrigerator, and thankfully for me, a Lavazza coffee machine, and tea pot. Most important, the lovely, large patio had an exceedingly comfortable double daybed ideal for reading and afternoon naps under a large umbrella, and a separate seating area.
The bathroom boasted a deep-soaking tub, a separate walk-in shower with both European and rain shower heads, voluptuous thick cotton towels, environmentally sized Malin & Goetz amenities, and a separate water closet.
Guests wishing to have a more exclusive private villa accommodation experience may wish to consider the Anantara Maia Seychelles, under 10-minutes away, also on Mahé’s west coast.
The Meals
On St. Louis hill above central Victoria, the Seychelles capital, is the landmark Restaurant Marie Antoinette and is a fantastic spot to enjoy Creole cuisine. Here delights such as chicken bathed in coconut milk, grilled ahi, mango salad, and to-die-for coconut chutney, will make a return visit to this local and historic eatery inevitable. Architectural aficionados will note the structure’s tall red roof, white-shuttered windows, and expansive verandas as a classic example of a traditional Creole-style house. Oddly though, there are several large tortoises housed in the rear of the restaurant in a dreary, shed-like area.
The Pti Bazaar (Creole for the French word petite), at Avani+ serves breakfasts lunches, and dinners buffet-style with daily international offerings, including all manner of continental, Creole, Japanese, Thai, Indian, and Mediterranean specialities.
The Avani+ Seyumai Sushi Bar, just off the hotel’s airy expansive lobby, serves made-to-order sushi, sashimi, and rice bowls at dinner. Room service is also available from 8am to 10pm.
The hotel’s Executive Chef Robin Etienne and his international team prepare a wide variety of dishes to satisfy guests culinary wishes, including a good selection of gluten-free offerings. The exceedingly talented pastry chef ensures that the word ‘diet’ is a bad one in all languages. You will certainly want to save some room and delight in the mandarin cheesecake, the creamy vanilla cake, and the decadently delectable chocolate chip cookies.
The Finds
The Avani+ is about 20-minutes from Victoria, a charming port town with an informative and well-curated National History Museum – which also contains some great canvasses by local artisans. Victoria centers around its clock tower, known as the mini–Big Ben, unveiled in 1903 as a memorial to the British monarchy’s Queen Victoria and then painted silver in 1935 to commemorate King George V’s silver jubilee. Victoria is a pleasant town to stroll around, with shops, restaurants, and a local farmer’s market.
Mahé is a good place to recover from a long-haul flight. It’s also the jumping point to explore the Seychelles nearby ‘inner’ islands. Moyenne island, 15-minutes from Mahé by boat, was purchased in 1962 for 8,000 pounds by British newspaper editor, Brendon Grimshaw. Working in Kenya, Grimshaw, with assistance from René Antoine Lafortune, replanted the once neglected island, home to a rich biodiversity and now has national park status.
Praslin island, 45-minutes away by ferry from Mahé, inspires far stronger feelings of Jurassic Park than anything Hollywood could muster with several endemic species of slugs, frogs, and snakes. On La Digue, where transportation is by bicycle and carts, is well-known for Anse Source d’Argent beach, impressive for its pink granite rocks, an abundance of flora and fauna, and many rare and endangered species.
The Avani+ Barbarons Spa has a full menu of facials, body wraps, and massages with five treatment rooms, two of which are doubles designed for couples. Here a truly excellent deep tissue massage made me forget completely the long journey to get here. The spa complex also has a quiet pool in a Zen-like space, in addition to a sauna, steam room, and fitness center with TechnoGym treadmills, rowing machine, spinner, and weight machines. In the interest of the environment and to preserve energy when not in use, guests must call the spa 30-minutes in advance for those systems to be engaged. There are also yoga classes Mondays and Fridays, and a Zumba class on Wednesdays.
There is a weekly complimentary mixology class where local Takamaka rum can be sampled. Also available is a weekly Creole cooking class with the Avani+ culinary team. Three days a week at the large main pool, a disc jockey spins island sounds, while three evenings a week local musicians provide lobby ambience. For those traveling with children, Avani+ has dedicated kids’ activities to keep them engaged.
Local cultural excursions can be arranged by Avani+ such as HH Farm Company, an organic farm producing cassava and lemongrass located about 20-minutes away in the Baie-Lazare district. Here guests can learn how this local staple is cultivated, take their hand at planting, then taste the many ways this gluten-free product is utilized.
The Lessons Learned
As we all know, many good things in life take time. And so it is with getting to the Seychelles. However, once you arrive here, you will wonder what took you so long to experience the marvels of the Seychelles and all that it offers. This is true whether you are seeking natural beauty, a rich culture, or simply to enjoy getting off the grid for a spell to escape the chaos and noise of urban life, all while reveling in your good fortune to experience the sensational Seychelles. Happy travels!
Postscript: Special deep thanks to Dr. Ameer Ebrahim, a Seychellois who received his PhD in Australia, and is one of the Seychelles foremost fisheries and naturalist experts. He provided the writer with a veritable wealth of information about his remarkable island home.
Julie L. Kessler is a journalist, attorney, and the author of the award-winning memoir: “Fifty-Fifty, The Clarity of Hindsight.” Her work has appeared in major publications around the world, including The L.A. Times, The S.F. Examiner, The Asia Times, The Jerusalem Post, The Vancouver Courier, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, and The Daily Journal, among many, many others. She can be reached at Julie@VagabondLawyer.com
