The Seychelles are the oldest islands on earth and the inner islands of the Seychelles are also the world ’s only granitic ocean islands. All other ocean islands are made of coralline or volcanic matter.

• The islands can be divided into two main kinds: the inner (or granitic islands) and the outer islands, which include the Amirantes, the Alphonse Group, the Aldabra Group and the Farquhar Group.
• Most of the people and tourist resorts are found on the main inner islands, of which Mahe is the largest and most populated.
  

Other locations in the Seychelles:

• Bird Island - If you’re a bird lover, this island is the most obvious place to visit. Home to over a million sea birds, it’s a 30 minute flight from Mahe and relatively remote. There is only one place to stay here, Bird Island Lodge, but many visitors find the experience addictive, returning again and again to enjoy its simplicity. While there is not a huge range of activities on offer, guests on Bird Island are encouraged to roam freely and to participate in the island’s turtle conservation project. The island is also a popular game fishing destination. The best time to see the birds is between April and October – their breeding season. An enormous tern colony takes over a chunk of the island and the sheer number of birds has to be seen to be believed.
• Cousin, Cousine and Aride - Bird Island might have the right name, but these three islands are also brilliant for bird lovers. Breeding grounds for hundreds of thousands of seabirds (Aride is home to more than a million) you will also find several rare land birds on these islands. Cousin is a nature reserve which can be visited from Praslin on a guided tour although you cannot stay here overnight, whereas its sister island, Cousine is a privately owned conservation island with four chalets where daytrippers are not allowed. Aride is possibly the most unspoilt of all the islands and it too is a nature reserve. You can organise a day trip to Aride from most of the larger hotels on Praslin to explore the fantastically rich flora and fauna. The sheer number of birds living on Aride makes it a pretty noisy place, however!
• Denis Island - As with several of the smaller islands in the Seychelles, there is only one place to stay on Denis Island, but it may be one of the best. You have to stay at Denis Island Lodge for a minimum of three days, but it is doubtful anyone would actually want to leave sooner. Denis Island is an excellent game fishing destination and several records have been broken in its surrounding waters. Tuna, bonito, barracuda, sailfish and marlin are plentiful in season. There is also an old lighthouse (still operational) that you can climb to the top of for a fantastic view.
• La Digue - La Digue is the island where tourism meets the traditional way of life. The fourth largest island of the Seychelles group, La Digue is considered to be one of the most beautiful islands with palm–fringed beaches, towering granite boulders and turquoise waters. Most of the tourist accommodation is situated on this island and you are only a short sail away from the larger island of Praslin. There is much to explore on the island – the fish market in La Passe is often bustling with fishermen selling their catch, bicycles are also for hire and provide the best way to explore the flat coastal plateau and beaches from Grand Anse to Anse Fourmis. The upmarket resort of La Digue Island Lodge is situated further inland close to the Veuve Reserve, home to a variety of birds including the beautiful Seychelles paradise flycatcher. The island also features one of the Seychelles’ most beautiful beaches, Anse Source d’Argent where silver white sand and exotic palms make it look like something out of a photo shoot. The wild, unspoilt scenery and friendly, laid back atmosphere of this exotic island make it a destination not to be missed.
• Mahe - Mahe is the main and largest island of the Seychelles. Most of the Seychelles’ population lives here on the north and east coasts of the island. Many visitors arrive here only to carry straight on to their hotels on one of the other islands, but Mahe is certainly worth a look if you have the time and inclination. Away from the beaches, the landscape climbs up hills covered in dense rainforests frequently shrouded in mist. There are also plenty of art and cultural attractions. On the east coast of Mahe is Victoria, the capital of the Seychelles. Mahe’s main tourism centre is at Beau Vallon, on the west coast just opposite Victoria. Beau Vallon has a great bathing beach and there are also good facilities for sailing, waterskiing, windsurfing, parascending and banana rides. Other places to visit include Baie Lazare with its long expanse of beach and the Seychelles’ largest hotel, the Plantation Club, and the artists' studios in Anse a la Mouche and Anse aux Poules Bleues in the south. Mahe is surrounded by a string of satellite islands, six of which are found just off the east coast and help to create Victoria’s natural harbour. Sainte Anne is the largest of the six and is the site of the five star Sainte Anne Resort. Ile au Cerf used to be the home of Wilbur Smith, the novelist. Ile Moyenne shelters a double mystery – a pirate treasure and the ghost of an old woman who lived there with her dogs. Ile Longue used to be a quarantine station and is now a prison. Ile Cachee is just a tiny dot in the ocean and Ile Ronde’s main attraction is its excellent restaurant, Chez Gaby, set in an old leper’s camp!
• North Island - North Island lies just north of Silhouette and was recently used as the location for the filming of the movie The Thunderbirds. The beautiful beaches are separated by dramatic rock formations on each end and a five star resort has recently been opened there. The island was first farmed in 1826 by a woman named Marie Josephine Celerine Beaufond, a descendant of French settlers from Reunion. The island remained in her family for the next 150 years and was used as a plantation for growing fruit and spices, as well as producing guano, fish oil and copra (coconut oil). The farm was sold in the seventies and fell into disuse, being taken over by coconuts and alien weeds, but the new resort has already started to return the island to its former pristine state of beauty.