According to some sources, Victoria is the smallest capital city in the world. It might be small, but this makes it a very walkable city which is well worth a day or two away from the beach. Read on for my ideas on the best things to do in Victoria, Seychelles.
In this article
Go to the tourist information office
- Independence Avenue, Victoria
- Open Monday to Friday 8am – 4pm, Saturday 9am – 12 noon, Sunday CLOSED
It is a good idea to call in at the tourist information office when you first arrive in Victoria. The staff are very friendly and helpful. Make sure you ask for a city map. Be aware that the office often closes for lunch between 12 noon and 1pm.
Visit the National Museum
- Independence Avenue, Victoria
- Open Monday 9.30am – 12 noon, Tuesday to Friday 9.30am – 4.30pm, Saturday 9.30am – 12.30pm, Sunday CLOSED
- Entrance fee for foreigners – SCR150
One of the best things to do in Victoria, Seychelles is to visit the National Museum. The museum opened in 2018 and is housed in Victoria’s restored Supreme Court building, which dates from 1885. It is well laid out with three exhibition rooms downstairs that take the visitor on an informative journey through 300 years of Seychellois history. Upstairs, there are interesting exhibits describing Creole culture, focusing on fashion, food, music, fishing, and architecture.
NOTE – there is a National Natural History Museum on the opposite side of the road to the National Museum. At the time of our visit, it was closed for refurbishment.
Have a look at the Clock Tower
The Clock Tower is the focal point of the city. It really isn’t that big, but it acts as a central meeting spot, standing at the intersection of Independence Avenue, Albert Street, and Francis Rachel Street. It is a miniature version of the clock tower on Vauxhall Bridge in London. It was a gift of the British government and was erected in 1903 when Seychelles took the first step towards Independence.
Shop at Sir Selwyn Clarke Market
- Market Street, Victoria
- Open Monday to Friday 7am – 4pm, Saturday 7am – 1pm, Sunday CLOSED
A must-do in Victoria, Seychelles is to wander through Sir Selwyn Clarke Market. This bustling, vibrant market named after a former British governor is small by African standards but well worth a visit. If you are self-catering, make sure you come here to buy the freshest local fruit and vegetables, as well as spices and freshly-caught fish. After all, it’s where local people shop, so you can be assured the prices will be the best you can get (TIP – avoid imported produce!). If you are not catering for yourself, you should visit the market anyway just to experience the atmosphere and soak up the sounds and smells.
A market has existed on this site since 1840. It was renamed in the 1950s to honour Sir Percy Selwyn-Clarke who served as Governor of Seychelles from 1947 to 1951. His sympathy for and understanding of the Seychellois people and their ways, as well as his efforts to improve their lives, made his tenure so successful that he is still fondly remembered.
The market is busiest early on Saturday mornings when small growers from around the island come into the city and join the regular traders to sell their wares. Local ladies make sure they are first in the queue to buy the best fruit and vegetables for their families.
Be sure to explore the small shops located all around the market. These establishments serve local people and offer better prices than larger supermarkets away from the city centre.
TIP – I would say that the Market Bistro on the first floor of Sir Selwyn Clarke market is probably best avoided. It is expensive with poor service and food and aimed at tourists, not locals.
Walk along the waterfront
When the humidity of the city gets too much, head for the waterfront where you will invariably benefit from a welcome breeze. A walk here is surely one of the best things to do in Victoria, Seychelles. There are a couple of pleasant bars and restaurants where you can sit and watch the colourful boats coming and going. The prices of food and drink are generally lower than city centre places.
I would particularly recommend the Waterfront Café run by a Seychellois lady married to an Englishman. She used to live in Kingston, Surrey. We understand why she prefers to be in Seychelles! We enjoyed a simple toasted sandwich and ice-cold drinks for lunch, the perfect respite from the heat of Victoria.
Pause at the Peace Park
Not far from the Waterfront Café, you will find the Peace Park. Here, there are 3-metre tall bronze statues of Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, and James Richard Marie Mancham, the founding President of the Republic of Seychelles. I don’t know what Mr Mancham looked like, but I can vouch for the likenesses of Gandhi and Mandela – I thought they were brilliant!
Check out the Botanical Gardens
- Sans Soucis Road, Victoria
- Open Sunday to Thursday 7.30am – 5.30pm, Friday and Saturday 8am to 5pm
- Entrance fee for foreigners – SCR250
One of the best things to do in Victoria, Seychelles is to visit the Victoria Botanical Gardens. They were established in 1901 by Mr Paul Evenor Rivalz Dupont, Director of Agricultural Services and Naturalist of Seychelles. Today, the Ministry of Environment is responsible for the gardens and has its headquarters within the grounds. The main objective of the gardens is to contribute towards Seychelles’ efforts in environmental education, plant conservation, landscape management, passive recreation, and eco-tourism.
For us, it was nice to find a bit of respite in the shade of magnificent trees. It was lovely to see plants and flowers that we saw at the Eden Project in Cornwall a few weeks ago thriving in their natural environment.
A highlight was an impressive 40-foot-tall Coco de Mer tree, which was planted by the Duke of Edinburgh as a sapling in 1956. I’m sure he would be impressed with how well it’s done!
The Coco de Mer tree (scientific name ‘lodoicea’) is only found naturally in Seychelles. It generally grows to around 30 to 40 metres tall. The tallest on record, measured on the ground after felling, was 56.7 metres. The leaves (branches) are fan-shaped, 7 to 10 metres long and 4.5 metres wide. It is dioecious, meaning that it has separate male and female plants. The one planted by the Duke is female. There is a male standing nearby. The mature fruit is 40 to 50 centimetres in diameter and weighs 15 to 30 kilograms. It contains the largest seed in the plant kingdom. This seed is synonymous with Seychelles. You see representations of it everywhere – on advertising hoardings, on packaging, and on countless souvenirs. If you want to take an actual seed home with you, you need a special licence – and it will cost you a huge amount of money!
There is a delightful café in the grounds of the Botanic Gardens where you can stop for refreshments. The Wildflour Café (yes, that is the way they spell it! 😊) serves a range of drinks, snacks, and delicious ice creams. I can recommend the rum and raisin!😋
Admire the Unity and Bicentennial Monuments
On neighbouring roundabouts near the waterfront, you will find the city’s two most famous monuments.
The Bicentennial Monument was erected in 1978 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the founding of the city of Victoria and is said to represent the three continents (Africa, Europe, and Asia) where the Seychellois people originated from.
The Unity Monument was unveiled in 1987 and depicts 4 large white fish. Each fish represents one of the pillars of the economy in Seychelles – tourism, agriculture, fisheries, and small businesses.
Visit St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral
St. Paul’s Anglican Cathedral is just around the corner from the National Museum. The original church was consecrated in May 1859 by the first bishop of Mauritius, Vincent William Ryan. In the years since, the building has been extended with a new tower being added in 1910 and the sanctuary being relocated in 1978.
We were particularly impressed with the striking stained glass. It is definitely worth a few minutes of your time.
Admire the street art
For a small city, Victoria has a lot of street art, particularly in the area around the bus station.
Have a look at the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception
The Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception was built in 1874 and is the largest church in Seychelles. Children born in wedlock are baptised in the cathedral on Sundays. Those born out of wedlock are christened on Fridays. As 75% of children in the Seychelles are born out of wedlock, Fridays are very busy!
The cathedral’s bells are featured in the novel ‘Where the Clock Chimes Twice’ by English writer Alec Waugh. He mentions the whimsical peculiarity of the bells chiming twice every hour – once at the right time, and then two minutes later for daydreamers and slowcoaches.
There is an imposing two-storey granite building next to the cathedral. It is known as La Domus and was built by Swiss missionaries in 1934. Today, it serves as a residence for Roman Catholic clerics and monks.
Watch this video for more things to do in Victoria, Seychelles
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