Life on Desroches Island, Seychelles: how to get there and what to expect

A few hundred kilometers off the Seychelles’ main island of Mahe lies a small islet called Desroches. It’s so narrow and elongated that it barely shows up on the map, and you can cross it on foot in less than a day. Yet despite its size, Desroches is more than a speck of land. A small community lives and works here, and each person’s routine is nothing like city life.

Where Desroches Is and How to Get There

Desroches sits about 230 kilometers from Mahe, the main island of the Seychelles archipelago. This coral island stretches roughly six kilometers in length and just over one in width. The only way in is by plane—a small aircraft that takes about 40 minutes. There’s a runway, but no buses or cars—just footpaths and bicycles.

Who Lives on the Island

According to 2014 official data, about 100 people lived on Desroches. There are no newer figures, and roughly the same number lives here today. Most work for the Four Seasons resort, which occupies much of the island. Others focus on conservation and keep the basic infrastructure running—electricity, water, communications.

People don’t move here to settle permanently; most work in shifts and then return to the larger islands. There are no families with children, no schools, and no familiar social fabric.

How Daily Life Is Organized

The island largely runs on its own. Electricity comes from solar panels—more than a thousand of them. Water is desalinated directly from the ocean because there are no freshwater sources. There are no shops; everything essential is flown in. Connectivity is limited, and cell phones often have no signal, which reinforces the feeling of being far from the rest of the world.

Getting around means walking or cycling. By evening, there’s no city noise—only the wind, the rustle of trees, and the ocean.

Work and Tourism

The main employer is the Four Seasons Resort Seychelles at Desroches Island, welcoming guests from around the world while staff keep every detail in order. Beyond hospitality, some residents focus on protecting nature: they monitor turtles, tend the forest, and track the health of the ecosystem.

Desroches is more than a pretty backdrop. Rare animals live here that don’t exist anywhere else. One example is a distinctive cockroach species with fewer than three hundred individuals worldwide. Sea turtles come ashore to lay eggs, and specialists watch over them closely.

Life in Isolation

Life on Desroches is unlike the familiar. There are no traffic jams, shops, cinemas, or large crowds. Everything moves more slowly and quietly. Still, isolation has its complications: when something breaks, you wait for parts to arrive; if a doctor is needed, one may not be on hand, which adds risk.

What Lies Ahead for the Island

Plans are in place to develop the island in measured ways: improving conditions for conservation, ensuring resources are used sustainably, and simplifying logistics. These goals are already laid out in government documents, with implementation scheduled for the coming years.

The central aim, however, is to keep the island as it is—calm, green, and full of life. So turtles keep reaching its shores, the surf remains a steady soundtrack, and, for a while, the world beyond this secluded place can fade from mind.