Denis Private Island

Set on a coral islet of 375 acres at the edge of the Mahé plateau, Denis Private Island lies about 95 kilometres north of Mahé, reached only by a 30-minute flight that lands on a grass airstrip. The lagoon around it carries official protected status, a no-take zone thick with reef fish and nesting turtles. Twenty-three cottages and villas sit at walking distance from the beach, spaced apart by native forest so that no two share a view. Rooms carry a colonial-era plainness: wood floors and furniture made in the island's own carpentry workshop, open-air bathrooms opening onto private garden courtyards. The Beach Villa alone runs to 325 square metres, with its own plunge pool and dining pavilion steps from the sand. There is no mobile signal and no in-room internet. Food comes largely from the island's working farm and its own cattle, fish, and fowl, with dinner often served as a five-course table d'hôte in the dining pavilion or beside the sea. Fifteen minutes out by boat, the seabed drops from 60 metres to 2,000, a ledge known as the Drop-Off that draws marlin, sailfish, and tuna; the island has taken more billfish tag-and-release awards from The Billfish Foundation than any other resort in the Indian Ocean. Giant tortoises move along the paths. Guests travelling with children under twelve must book through reservations directly.