Seychelles honoured with Best Islands award from Outside magazine

VICTORIA, Seychelles – The Seychelles islands have been selected by

VICTORIA, Seychelles – The Seychelles islands have been selected by Outside, America’s leading multimedia active-lifestyle brand, as a recipient of its first-ever Active Travel Awards. The Seychelles islands was honored as Best Islands. The full list of award winners will be published in the April issue of Outside magazine, available on newsstands March 13, 2012 and online at Outside Online.

To select this year’s awards, Outside tapped its global network of correspondents to showcase a definitive roundup of the best new adventures, exotic retreats, beaches, local food, bars with a view, on-time airlines, screaming deals, gorgeous islands, and more. The awards reflect more than just a collection of unforgettable trips—it’s a road map to life-changing experiences. The issue also highlights a list of the best online travel tools, as well a roundup of Outside’s all-time favorite destinations.

Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture, said that his ministry and the islands’ Tourism Board were thankful to the correspondents of Outside for choosing Seychelles as their Best Island.

“Seychelles prides itself as being the best in sun, sea, and sand holidays. But we have more – we have diversity of islands with our collection of granitic and coral islands available to our visitors, we have the unique diversity of people which has brought about our Seychelles Creole cuisine and music, we have a unique mid-ocean flora and fauna, over and above diving, sailing, big game fishing, idyllic walks in an ornithologist paradise, to name but a few unique selling points, and it is good that these unique attributes have been noticed by readers of Outside,” Minister St.Ange said.

“Outside magazine has long been one of the world’s most trusted advisors for active and adventurous travelers,” said Outside eEditor Christopher Keyes, “This year, we’ve bottled up 35 years of collective wisdom to select our first Outside Travel Awards, an annual edit franchise that honors the best trips, hotels, lodges, luggage, islands, and new destinations that will be an invaluable travel resource for years to come.”

Seychelles is the land of perpetual summer, blessed with world-beating beaches and awesome diversity, where a people with multi-ethnic roots continue to live in enviable harmony. Boasting some 115 sparkling islands, Seychelles offers almost a surreal contrast between towering granite islands with mist-clad peaks and low-lying coral islands surrounded by pristine, sapphire waters.

Situated between 4 and 10 degrees south of the equator, the mid-Indian Ocean tropical Creole islands offer a diversity of people who make up its population, rich culture, architecture, delicious Seychellois Creole cuisine, and suite of activities that includes fishing, diving, sailing, walks and trails, spa and wellness holidays, unbeatable romantic breaks, golf, island hopping, bird watching, and honeymoon holidays, to name but a few.

The Seychelles islands also host a broad choice of international events that includes the annual Seychelles Carnaval International de Victoria in March, SUBIOS – the Seychelles Festival of the Sea in November, Festival Kreol in October, plus the Seychelles Eco-Friendly Marathon, Seychelles Regatta, the Seychelles Ball, and the Miss Seychelles contest.

In celebration of the Outside Active Travel Awards, Outside will launch the “What Trip Are You?” Facebook promotion, which will allow members of the Outside community to take an adventure travel quiz to determine what type of vacation best suits their adventure style from five categories. The categories include: Enlightened Explorer, Powder Hound, River Runner, World Traveler, and Adrenaline Junkie. Participants will be able to choose between a series of travel favorites—Hotel or rustic lodge? Tropical escape or powdery heaven? Guide or no guide?—that will lead to their ultimate adventure travel escape.

Five grand prize winners (one per category) will get the chance to go on their dream adventure provided by Outside’s travel partners. Trip options include: Dory or raft trip down the Grand Canyon with OARS, Heli-ski in AK’s Chugach range with Valdez Heli Ski Guides and Tsaina Lodge, Safari in Botswana with Wilderness Safaris and South African Airways, Multi-sport in Machu Picchu and Galapagos with REI Adventures, and an Andes to Amazon multisport trip with BikeHike Adventures. In addition, participants who take the quiz can come back for daily adventure travel gear prizes.

About the author

Avatar of Linda Hohnholz

Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

Share to...