August beach options?

loro929 · October 2014

FI and I were really set on the Seychelles for our HM. But, after some research, it seems that August is kind of a hit or miss month there - and we aren't sure it is worth the risk.
Anyone have any experience with beachy August HMs, especially in the Indian Ocean region? If so, what was your experience?

Jells2dot0 · October 2014

I was in the Seychelles in early September, which is the start of their dry season. It rained almost every day. The locals told us that their wet season was super dry. It figures we'd travel all of the way there and have iffy weather.

On that trip, we also went to Mauritius. It was a little on the chilly side, but pleasant.

We're trying to get to the Maldives and will target an early winter trip.

Based on all of my research, I think you can travel to the Seychelles or Maldives any time. The weather can be dry in monsoon season or wet in dry season. Personally, after having been to the Seychelles, I would not go back there unless I was already in that area for something else. I have been to Tahiti, Fiji, the Cooks, and along the GBR in Australia and thought those were just as nice, if not nicer, for a lot less flying time and in some cases a lot less money. I will def make the journey for the Maldives when I can get my life back on track

loro929 · October 2014

Thanks for the tips. We were so excited then got discouraged and now, I don't know any more.
How does one make the decision! LoL.
We also looked at Maldives and Mauritius and we ranked them as follows:
Seychelles, Mauritius, Maldives.
The reason for this ranking is we want a honeymoon atmosphere (He wants to snorkel and I want the spa / relaxation - we both want good food and relaxing / luxurious accomodations - although does not necessarily have to be an over the water bunglaow, a private jaccuzzi would be nice). The Seychelles seemed to really fit what we were looking for.
I could be wrong though because I have never visited any of these three places. FI's parents have been to all three, so I am going off of the pictures they have shown us and the reviews that they have given.
@Jells2dot0 am I very off-base with this assessment? What has your experience been?

Jells2dot0 · October 2014

We enjoyed each place, but for different reasons.

Mauritius- it was not quite as stunningly beautiful as we expected. The beaches weren't as nice and the water wasn't as crystal blue. However, the resorts were stunning. We stayed at the Westin Turtle Bay (which was the Grand Mauritian then). The rooms were gorgeous, the food was good, and the staff made us feel like royalty. We enjoyed the activities we did- a private boat tour of the island and a walk at Casela Nature Park. We got a lot for our money there, but all of the excursions were very far from the resort. We spent an hour each way in the cab anytime we wanted to do anything.

Seychelles- Will be warner than Mauritius during your honeymoon. We stayed on Mahe at Le Meridien Fisherman's Cove and then spent the rest of our time on Denis Private Island. Upon return, I'd skip Mahe (unless needed for flight connections) and spend time on Praslin. Mahe has the more dramatic views that I was hoping Mauritius would have. The beaches are also a bit nicer. We did an island tour through Victoria and I didn't see very much to do outside of the resort in the town area, except maybe some shopping. Going out to Denis further isolated us, but this is what my DH and I love. DH and I love small, exclusive, boutique properties on private islands. Our room at Denis did not have a private pool, but it has it's own sala and daybed and a massage treastment area in the back. The rooms were spaced apart so well that we felt like we had the island to ourselves and we had our own stretch of beach. There isn't much to do here, other than exploring on your own. The food was awesome. They do a lot of buffets, but have some made to order items in them. I'm the pickiest eater in the world and hate buffets, but they were very accommodating to me and to my DH's allergies (mango.) They took him aside each meal and walked him throgh the buffet and pointed out the foods he could not eat.

The Malives, at least in my mind, are what I consider to be the ultimate destination for our travel tastes. Flat, crystal blue lagoons, gorgeous white beaches, many private island resorts, high level of service, luxurious accommodations with private pools or water access, high end spas, and well prepared food. I have stayed in an OWB in Tahiti a million times, so that is not very important to me, but having privacy is. Hence, why we married on a small, private island

I'm sure perception of these places depends on where someone has stayed and what someone enjoys. I imagine the Maldives would bore a super active person to death. When we do tropical travel, we usually seek to remove ourselves from our lives completely.

loro929 · October 2014

Thanks so much for your insight Jells!

In fact, if we head over to Seychelles, Denis Private Island is where we would / are looking to stay.

Although FI wants to snorkel, I would consider us more luxury / relax travellers, rather than adventurers so it is really important that we are very comfortable at the resort on the island. Give me a good book or a magazine, cocktail and sun lotion and I am good for the day (an occasional massage thrown in wouldn't hurt either).

Over the next few weeks we want to start making decisions.I will probably be back with more Indian Ocean questions over the next few weeks when we start to concrete some plans a bit more!

pattyandmichael · March 2015

lovelyalexie - that is hard to resist!! We didn't hit the Maldives on our honeymoon but one of our stops was in the Philippines. It was their rainy season but the weather was beautiful the whole time we were there! You just never know when it comes to weather.

We'd love to check out the Maldives in the future. If we do, we'll probably use free nights from Hyatt to keep the cost down. Have you looked into that option? It could save you thousands of dollars!

August beach options?

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