Archive | February, 2014

Boat trip to Ile Coco and Ile Felicite Seychelles, La Digue

Boat trip to Ile Coco and Ile Felicite on the Seychelles

La Digue is well known for its rich underwater world. Many divers come here to spend their days in the big aquarium called Indian Ocean. Different diving schools are located, one of them just 50m next to the Port. One dive is about 55€, but they often go out for two dives in a row weather you booked one or two, you need to wait.

A more family oriented trip is a half or full day trip to Ile Coco and Ile Felicité. We did it with Belle Petra Catamaran Tours. They were really relaxed and very friendly. The half day trip is 50€, the full day trip including lunch 110€. Children are free of charge. One trip starts at 9am, one at 1pm. The contact details are: +248 423 43 02 or [email protected]

Ile Coco

We have been on the speed boat with four other persons. There was a lot of space and we didn’t feel like on a crowded tourist boat. First the cruise goes to Ile Coco to spend 1.5h there. It’s only 15minutes away. One can snorkel or wander around the island. We had some biscuits with us and fed the fishes wile standing in the water. Unbelievable, but there even came a small shark around to see why all the small fishes spend their time with us.

Ile Coco is a very small island without any inhabitants. It is mostly visited by day guests who come around to spend relaxing time there. There’s no reef around so the waves might make it a little difficult to walk into the water. Nevertheless everyone there enjoyed it and we were snorkeling with the kids. Luckily we brought snorkeling equipment for our kids with us. They provide only for adults. For our 2year old daughter we even had a life jacket with us, on the boat are ones but starting only as from 4year old size.

Ile Felicité

After a 10minute drive we arrived in front of Ile Felicite. This island is known for its turtles living there. According to the skipper they are always here. And so it was not surprising that we saw one:

The water is maybe 2.3m deep and the visibility is just unreal. Even from the boat you can watch the colourful fishes. Our 2 left packages of biscuits were eaten by these fishes. Laughing little daughter made it impossible to eat them by ourselves. She had so much fun watching purple-turquoise-striped fishes.

So my recommendations after this day are:

Take enough suncream and sun protection clothes with you.
Have bread with you for feeding the fishes.
Get some food and drinks for yourself (at a half day cruise)
Choose which time is more convenient. If your child takes a nap maybe the morning is better.
Train your children above 4 to use snorkel equipment or at least goggles and take them with you.
Go only on sunny days. The visibility is much less when it’s cloudy or rainy.
Enjoy your time!

Boat trips are tiring. We needed to have ice cream afterwards, soon dinner and bedtime was early.

Anse Source d`Argent La Digue, Seychelles, one of the best beaches worldwide

There’s one must see on La Digue (Seychelles): Anse Source d’Argent. If you see a picture of the Seychelles the probability that it’s this beach is quite high. Located in a nature park it costs 100SR (approx. 8€) to get in. Preferably by bicycle, as the way from the entrance to the beach takes at least 3minutes. In our traveller mind a nature park is a bit different from a Domaine where Vanilla is planted. Nevertheless: It’s like this, one rides through the Domaine on sandy streets until he reaches the beach. There the bike has to be left. We haven’t locked it, as everyone rides anyway his bike and stealing on such a small island won’t be very successful. Continue Reading →

Seychelles: Ferry from Mahe to La Digue

We arrived late evening on Mahe, the biggest island of the Seychelles. Our one night stay had to be at Chez Batista, which has the perfect view to wake up in a good mood. Having breakfast with the feet in the sand and only 30m away from the sea is wonderful. They provided yummy fruit salad with Passionfruit, Mango, Papaya and several others. Not to forget the omelet and pancakes.

The location is breathtaking!

Next morning we took the ferry via Praslin to La Digue. It is 1060 SR for adults and 570 SR for children. No need to book in advance. In Praslin one needs to change the ferrys and unfortunately carry their luggage from one ferry to the other. Not so convenient organized if you travel with two small children and a lot of luggage. After 1,5h we arrived on La Digue. The ferry itself is of high standard. One almost feels like in a plane. There’s a small cafeteria inside, selling drinks.

Another option is to fly from Mahé to La Digue or Praslin. Tickets are even bookable 1h before take off online at Air Seychelles.

La Digue island is only 3kmx2km “big”. Taxis are allowed there, otherwise everyone rides bicycles or walks. There’s no far distance 😉 For children it is perfect here! Being safe all the time and having the beach to play makes it relaxing for everyone. The best beach is Anse Source d’Argent. It was many times the best beach worldwide.

The Seychelloise know that they live in Paradise – this is reflected in their prices. Accommodation and food is far away from western standard or price level. We rented a 120sqm house, called Kaz Ladouceur, on a small hill with seaview and 3 bedrooms. As a befriended family accompanies it was important to have enough space for 3 children, a own kitchen and 3 bedrooms. At our arrival the owner had prepared the whole villa very friendly and showed us around to make us feel comfortable. Nevertheless it feels a bit odd to stay in someone elses house who didn’t tidy up his belongings. The washing is still on the terrasse, medicine lying around and no key to lock the front door. For over 300€ per night we expected a bit more, as a cleaner in the hotel earns only 250€ per month. Anyway, today we drove around on our rented bikes (6€ per bike per day) and explored the island. We had the impression that other houses are still worse and don’t provide the space and convenience than ours.

Where have you made similar experiences? Share in the comments.

Etihads’ Flying Nanny

We recently flew with Etihad to Bangkok. During our preparation we found out that exactly on our departure date the Flying Nannies operate for their first time. I was quite curious how that will be, as I travelled alone with a 2 year and a 4 year old. Etihad announced on their website that the Flying Nannys are trained by a childcare training college in the UK. Their goal is to make long distance flights more relaxed for parents (and their children, I guess). With little presents, drawing stuff and other small games kids can be entertained.

What I experienced:

I had a very bad flight. We had to stop over at Abu Dhabi and stay 7 hours at the airport in the middle of the night to wait for our connection. Normally it would have been only 3 hours but due to reorganization they enlarged it to 7h. My kids slept only 5hours on the way to Abu Dhabi. One of them on my arm, means, I haven’t cought a minute of sleep.

The Airport in Abu Dhabi offers a play corner for children, which is actually only 3 Bobbycars and nothing else. I managed to make them sleep on the floor between the seats, but again I haven’t slept as one of both was always awake.

So we stepped onto our airplane to Bangkok early morning, I totally sleep deprivated and there she was: our Flying Nanny. Maybe I looked horrible or she was just very motivated, but she was fantastic. Immediately when we entered she took the smallest one and guided us to our seats and helped us to get settled,

After we took off she asked me at what time the kids might be hungry. I was surprised: Is there no fixed time for eating? No. The Flying Nannys responsibility is also to warm up the meals whenever it’s convenient for us. Great service!

Amy and Talia were fit and wanted to play whereas I wanted to have a rest. Our Flying Nanny came around and played with them. She even coloured their faces! Both of them got backpacks gifted and hopped off the airplane in a very good mood.

Thank you Etihad and The Flying Nanny!

Taxi, Tuk Tuk, Motorbike Taxi and Watertaxis

Bangkok is full of taxis. So there shouldn’t be any problem in getting around. But there is. Most travel guides recommend to take only taxis with taximeter. Like this you make sure to get a fair price and not the touristy one. The reality is: “Oh, my taximeter is broken.” We heard this sentence approximately 70% of the taxis we asked. The other 30% are divided half half. One half doesn’t speak English or doesn’t want to drive as far as we wanted to go. The other half accepted us as clients.

So we were a bit unsatisfied with taking taxis. For making the kids happy and have a funny way of getting around there are Tuk Tuks. You have to add 50% on the taxi price, but it’s a very unique way of travelling. Luckily they have enough space to fix the pram at the back.

Many Motorbike Taxis are on the streets, recognizable on their yellow/orange jackets. Just hop on the back “seat” and you’ll be very fast at your destination. It is adventurous and uncommon to hold on someone you don’t know. The asian ladies solve the situation very ladylike. Sitting with both legs on one side and holding on the back handle makes them look like riding a horse 300 years ago.

Another option are watertaxis.

The perspective on the city is totally different. Although the water is not crystal blue and a bit dirty, it is still fantastic.

There are different types of taxis, some seem more secure than others. Depending on how brave you are and risk averse you can choose 😉

For us this meant, the boys tried them and the girls stayed safe.

Taking the train in Thailand

Have you ever been sick of airports? Here are 5 reasons why taking the train is much more fun:

The overnight trains from Bangkok to Hua Hin are purple. That’s a main argument for our kids to take it, as they also prefer the purple taxis instead of the yellow-green ones.
One job of the train guard is to make your bed. Nice, isn’t it?
If you pay for a first class cabin you get a single room with a 90x190m lounger facing the window. Adjustable backrests make it possible to capture the image of passing by housing areas, rivers and rice plantations. We’ve never seen so much of the normal life in Thailand. We spent a very relaxing night in our first class beds and woke up curious with our nose touching the window to see what happens next. Better than watching TV.
But travelling third class can be also quite funny. Or at least hot and cheap. 1€ for 200km is amazing.
We travelled first class, second and third. We were always welcome with the kids. Although buying tickets has to be done at least 5 days in advance. They are soon sold out and you won’t get any good ones and need to sweet in third class. Selling point is the train station.

Bangkok – shopping but nothing else

Bangkok is certainly piloted by most airlines. So either you have only a short stopover or you stay for some days and journey on later. That was our choice.

Instead of staying in a hotel we decided to rent an apartment. It offers us more space and the possibility to cook own food, if the children don’t like thai spices or are hungry at uncommon times due to jet lag. But we didn’t want to surrender a pool or a good location. Nothing is impossible in Thailand and so we found easily one near the metro. The pool on the sixth floor was stunning and one of the girls highlight. Every evening we had a pool session.

So what can one do in Bangkok with kids?

Shopping. There are several shopping malls with a broad variety. If your children don’t like shopping you must at least eat there. Most of them have their food court located on the first floor.

During bad rain or with unsatisfied children we recommend the indoor playground: Funarium. One can drive around a small circuit with bikes or roller blades, loose energy at jumping castles and even do creativity activities. Lovely made this playground had every thing we needed. It was not too big to loose sight but also big enough to entertain them for several hours. In the area upstairs a creativity room invites them to draw pictures whereas the parents have a sofa room next to it. Equipped with a DVD player and comfortable armchairs even the parents enjoy the stay. The restaurant is a bit overpriced but with delicious pasta, ice, cappuccino and chocolate cake one can turn a blind eye.

Nevertheless there’s always something to explore in Bangkok. We went one evening to Khao San Road. It’s a pedestrian area fringed by restaurants and massage salons. Different small food stalls sell pancakes with banana and condensed milk, others fried insects and maggots. We very only brave enough for the maggots and left the scorpions and locusts aside. Our small two year old daughter had no clue yet which food is considered to be yummy and which is tagged as ugly. For her food tastes like it tastes, no matter what is is. And she proofed that by eating the whole bag of maggots. She even asked for more, or shall I say: She screamed for more?

Ants in our pants

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