Curieuse, Seychelles

Curieuse Island is a small granitic island (1.78 sq mi) in the Seychelles close to the north coast of the island of Praslin. Curieuse is notable for its bare red earth intermingled with the unique Coco de Mer palms, one of the cultural icons of the Seychelles, only being present on the two islands.

In 1979 Curieuse and surrounding waters were declared the Curieuse Marine National Park in order to protect the native wildlife. Today it is the home of roughly 500 Aldabra Giant Tortoise, 300 of which live at the Ranger's Station and approximately 200 in the wild. In the late 1970s a conservation project was started to move tortoises from Aldabra to Curieuse. On the southern part of the island is a mangrove swamp which is traversed by a walkway for park visitors. The island is also known for coco de mer palms, giant takamaka trees, a large hawksbill turtle rookery and several bird species including the rare Seychelles Black Parrot Coracopis nigra barklyi, which is found only here and on Praslin.

Things to See & Do

* Walking trail from Baie Laraie to Anse St. Jose
* Mangrove forest
* Giant Tortoises
* Curieuse Marine National Park
* Museum

General Information

Cruise Season - Jan - Dec
Currency - Seychellois rupee (SCR)
Language - French, English, Seychellois Creole
Land Area - 1.78 m²
Electricity - 2 vertical square pins and one perpendicular below British style
Time - GMT plus four hours
International Country Telephone Code - + 248

Travel Links - The only international gateway to the Seychelles is Seychelles International Airport (SEZ) near Victoria. Flights are available from Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Dubai, Doha, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Abu Dhabi.