North Island is one of the 40 granite islands belonging to the inner
Seychelles archipelago, and lies near the main islands of Mahé,
Praslin and La Digue. In contrast, however, North Island was never
settled. It served instead as a base for fishermen, but also housed
a vegetable and coconut plantation. By the 1960s, the plantation was
no longer economically viable, and the island was returned to nature.
As the island has fertile soil and a good natural water supply, it
seemed to be perfect for a "Noah's Ark concept" of ecologically aware
hotel development. Under the creative leadership of two architects,
Silvio Rech and Lesley Carstens, the hotel was built over a two-year
period by a team of craftsmen from Bali, Zanzibar, Malawi and, of
course, the Seychelles. The former coconut plantation was transformed
into a fabulous luxury lodge, which can be reached by helicopter in
15 minutes.
Since the four beaches align with the four points of the compass, at
least one is guaranteed to be protected against the wind, whatever the
time of year, ensuring a gentle, enjoyable swim. The beaches are only
a few minutes on foot from the main beach, where the 12 Villas are
situated, generously spaced from one another and separated by dense
tropical greenery.
Rooms/Accommodation
The Villas are built on wooden platforms set into the palm groves and
fully hidden between the beach and granite cliffs. Each Villa has
450m² living space divided into a sleeping villa, a huge terrace area
with private pool and "sala Thai", as well as a living room or study
which can be converted into a second bedroom, and a large dining room.
It goes without saying that each Villa has a fully equipped kitchen,
that each room has a spacious bath, including a huge tub set in
sandstone and sunk into the platform, and that there is an outdoor
shower and a massage desk. The Villas are additionally furnished
with telephones, satellite TV, CD players, DVD, internet hook-ups,
minibars, safes and personal service.
The resort's restaurant is headed by Geoffrey Murray, who left his
hometown of New York to treat guests on North Island to a fresh,
creative and light cuisine Créole. An expert hand at French cuisine,
he garnishes fish fresh from the ocean with the fruits and vegetables
that grow in abundance on the island. The resort also has its own
wine cellar, across a small, artistically laid pond from the
restaurant. The spa is situated above the swimming pool in three
villas. It offers a skin and beauty-care line of its own, as well
as first-class East meets West treatment programmes. From the pool,
which is carved from the granite rocks, you can enjoy a magnificent
view of kilometres of surf.
Activities
Water sports such as sailing, windsurfing, kayaking and snorkelling
are free of charge. Diving, deep-sea fishing, treatments at the
Health Spa, chartered yachts and helicopter sightseeings trips are
available at a surcharge.
