One of the best beaches in Mauritius - a sandy beach with clean water.

photo credit: Surreal 85
It is renowned as an upmarket winter sun destination, and any luxury holiday in Mauritius will inevitably focus on the beaches. They remain the island’s greatest attraction, seemingly endless stretches of white sand and turquoise sea that prompted Mark Twain to comment that “you gather the idea that Mauritius was made first, and then heaven; and that heaven was copied after Mauritius.”

If you are on holiday in Mauritius, the only challenge you’ll find is in choosing between the many beaches on offer! Whether you want the hustle and bustle of one of the island’s “party beaches” or a more secluded place to relax, you are sure to find a place to suit your needs – here are five of the finest beaches to visit whilst on holiday in Mauritius…

Ile aux Cerfs Beach

For a very different experience away from the crowds, catch a boat over to Cerfs, a small island just off the east coast of Mauritius. The Ile aux Cerfs beach runs almost around the entire coastline, and the quiet beaches provide the perfect place to relax on a luxury Mauritius holiday. You can catch a boat to the island from Pointe Maurice, and if you are on holiday in Mauritius the island is well worth paying a visit to.

Trou aux Birches Beach

Trou aux Birches, located on the island’s popular west coast, is the ideal beach for a family holiday in Mauritius. The gorgeous beach itself is complemented by the local attractions – the excellent aquarium and Hindu temple are great places to visit with your family, and the stunning sunset provides the perfect conclusion to a day spent lounging on the sands.

Pereybere Beach

The deep waters at Pereybere beach make it perhaps the best beach for swimming on the island, and the calm surf make it perfectly safe for families. It is popular with young people on holiday in Mauritius and is something of a party beach, so those looking for peace and quiet could struggle here. But for the best snorkelling swimming and a vibrant atmosphere, it has hard to better Pereybere.

Flic en Flac Beach

Visit the bizarrely named Flic en Flac (Dutch for flat and free land) on the west coast of Mauritius, and you’ll be treated to one of the best sunsets on the island. Flic en Flac is picture perfect, with powder white sand and a deep blue lagoon, but recent developments of apartments and condos mean that it is relatively well populated. Still, if you don’t mind the crowds, Flic en Flac remains one of the most beautiful beaches in Mauritius.

Paradis Beach

This beach remains fairly exclusive to the guests at the Paradis Hotel (it is hard to get to unless you are staying at the hotel) but if you choose to take a luxury holiday in Mauritius here, you’ll be in for a treat – this beach truly lives up to its name. With rocky mountains looming over the flawless beach and a golf course located a stones throw away, this is the beach of choice for those who like to relax in style.

Author: Claire Bryant is a Mauritius holiday expert for key2holidays, an online tour operator offering [http://www.key2holidays.co.uk/mauritius]Mauritius luxury holidays, as well as trips to Australia, Cuba, the Caribbean, Europe, Egypt, the Far East, the Maldives, the Seychelles, Dubai and the Arabian Gulf. Key2holidays has a dedicated team of experienced travel consultants to share their knowledge and help you to plan and book your ideal holiday.

Believe it or not Christmas Island, actually has nothing to do with the Holiday Season of Christmas. A small, non self-governing Territory of Australia, the Territory of Christmas Island is  located in the Indian Ocean, approximately 2360 km northwest of Perth Australia.  Only about 1500 residents live on Christmas Island.

Christmas Island is of immense interest to scientists and naturalists due to it’s unique natural topography and is it’s large number of species that have evolved in isolation. Not only isolation but also undisturbed by human activity. While some mining activity has gone on the island for the past many years. Over 60 percent of the island’s 135 square kilometres is now National Park. There is also several large areas of pristine and ancient rainforest.

No one is really sure who discovered Christmas Island. All we know is that it is first published on a map produced by Pieter Goos, in 1666. On the map the island was named Moni. The earliest recorded visit to the island is by William Dampier, in March of 1688. William Dampier found the island uninhabited.

William Dampier’s was traveling from New Holland trying to reach Cocos. Apparently his ship was pulled way off course to the east and after travelling for 28 days, he arrived at Christmas Island.

Author: Ryan Fyfe is the owner and operator of  Pixibot which is a great web directory and information center for information on all types of topics.  See more about Christmas Island here.

Christmas Island is a great place to visit when taking a holiday vacation. It is known as the Island of the Crab or Kiribati because there a lot of crabs patiently crawling on the seashore. Christmas Island is barely known as a holiday destination, but this is likely to change after the TV series Survivor shot a whole season here. With its sandy white beaches and its turquoise waters, Christmas Island is a jewel in the Pacific.

Video about the yearly mass migration of the red crabs to the sea where they will breed and spawn.

You should visit Christmas Island National Park first before touring around the island. From here you will get to know the island’s rich culture and natural resources. You will also get to enjoy and admire a variety of the island’s flora and fauna. You will also see a variety of endangered species that are treated well in the national park. The park is simply nature at its best. It is a miniature representation of the whole of Christmas Island.

Christmas Island is also a popular place for water activities such as snorkeling, scuba diving and fishing. Beneath these activities, however, lies the beauty of sea creature found in Christmas Island. There are evil-looking moray eels gaping from corral crevices, parrot fish and somewhere beyond the reef lurk an alarmingly healthy population of hammerheads and tiger sharks. There are many reefs here that are homes to a myriad of sea creatures. You will get to see dolphins and a variety of tropical fishes which are really colourful.

There are whale sharks to see in the depths of the island shore in their natural habitat. When you are done with the marine life, then you may experience bird watching. The island is home to a wide species of birds, any bird lover will surely appreciate Christmas Island. There are lots of colourful birds here, ranging from very small to larger birds like the eagle.

Another thing that makes Christmas Island a popular place to stay is the Red Crab festival, which is an event a lot of visitors await for. Christmas Island would not be the same without the yearly mass migration of the red crabs to the sea where they will breed and spawn. The best month to experience this is after the beginning of the wet season. This is truly a sight to behold as this island is invaded by these tiny red creatures. People will witness how the white sandy beach on the island becomes swarming with red crawling sea creatures.

The Flying Fish Cove is another attraction on the Island. You can reach this cove via yacht. Once there, there are a lot of things to keep you busy and a number of places to explore. Here, you might be lucky enough to see a giant manta ray. For starters, there are recreational activities such as swimming, snorkeling, scuba diving, canoing, and other water sports. If you are not into these activities, you can just romanticize the place by strolling along the cove by foot.

Author: Andrew Gibson is MD of Direct Holiday Bookings. It is one of the fastest growing online travel websites for booking holiday homes. To see an example of why Direct Holiday Bookings is growing so rapidly have a look at Holiday Villas.

Direct Holiday Bookings also has a great selection of Holiday Cottages and self catering holiday apartments that can be rented as holiday homes all over the world.

See more articles about Christmas Island CLICK HERE.

Out of a long list of its tourist attraction, mentioned below are some of the best places to visit when holidaying in the Maldives:

Male

Capital city of the Maldives, Male is a remarkable tourist attraction and is situated near to the airport. Often, tourists and visitors holidaying in the Maldives travel to Male to shop for local handicrafts or visit the magnificent national museum that holds a collection of beautiful artifacts, including Palanquins and Sultanese thrones and various mosques.

Grand Friday Mosque

Biggest mosque in the whole of the Maldives, Grand Friday Mosque is a major tourist attraction due to its architecture and design of bygone times. Constructed in the year 1656 by Sultan Ibrahim Iskandhar, the mosque is worth visiting on a holiday in the Maldives. With a popular Islamic centre and a capacity for 5000 people, the Grand Friday Mosque is a prideful attraction. Even if you are not very religious, you must visit this mosque for its unique coral engravings and tombs of national heroes.

Esjehi Art Gallery

This tourist attraction is an art gallery situated in the capital city, on the eastern side of Sultan Park. Located in one of the oldest buildings, the gallery is quite a treat for art lovers as it preserves, promotes and presents artwork (traditional and modern)of local people. In spite of being a small gallery, the place holds various workshops for Maldive artists and has a decent collection of art, which makes it worth visiting during your holiday in the Maldives.

Maldives Fish Market

Situated on the north side of the Male waterfront, The Fish Market of is a crowded tourist attraction. Tourist, visitors and locals are found shopping for vegetables, fresh fruits, dried fish, tuna and many other such fish variety. The uniqueness of the market is its cleanliness. When holidaying in the Maldives, do visit this market for its commercial activities.

Beaches in the Maldives

No holiday in the Maldives is complete without its beaches, which is why lots of tourist and visitors head first to its exotic and vivid beaches. The Maldives has numerous beaches with breathtaking beauty and lots of water activities. Most of the Maldives tourism depends on its beaches and resorts. Some of these beaches are the beaches of Sun Island, Paradise Island, Royal Island Resorts, Fuammulak and many more. When on a holiday in the Maldives, the best way to enjoy a vacation is to go for its beaches and activities such as parasailing, scuba diving, snorkeling, fishing and windsurfing.

Best time to holiday in Maldives

The Maldives is a year round holiday destination, but the ideal time for a holiday would be December to April.

Author: Simon Johnson

I hope you found this article of interest, if so, you can find out more at http://www.last-minute-holidays.me.uk . At this site you can watch a variety of holiday videos as well as learn more about holiday destinations and get a Last Minute Holiday. You are free to republish this article provided a working hyperlink remains to our site – .

Seychelles, located in the Indian Ocean, is an archipelago nation of 155 granite and coral islands
with their endless white sand beaches and clear warm blue seas. Seychelles is a charming travel destination and promises adventure and breathtaking natural beauty. Almost half of Seychelles limited land area have been proclaimed as nature reserves. Moreover, Seychelles boasts an amazing array of indigenous species waiting to be discovered.

Seychelles has no indigenous population and mainly is composed of people who have immigrated to the island. The islands have always attracted a broad diversity of people from all over the world. Seychelles climate is always warm and without extremes. As a travel destination, Seychelles offers a variety of excursions and sport activities, experience in natural surroundings and pure relaxation Here are some sights of Seychelles:

Victoria is the capital of Seychelles and located on Mahe, which is the largest and most populated island. Praslin has exquisite beaches such as Anse Boudin, Anse Georgette, Anse Possession, Anse Matelot, Grand Anse, Anse Volbert, Anse Kerlan, Anse Lazio, Anse La Farine. Anse Lazio is said to be the best beach on Praslin. Praslin plays an important role in Seychelles tourism industry with its hospitality and wide range of accommodation facilities. It also provides a base for excursions to neighbouring islands.

Bird Island is surrounded by white beaches and crystal blue waters. This coral island is home to kinds of birds. Cousin Island is home to Seychelles rarest birds. Denis Island offers facilities such as diving, windsurfing, canoeing. Aldabra is the original home of the giant land tortoise, tiger sharks and thousands of seabirds. Cerf Island offers swimming and snorkelling. Vallée de Mai is a unique place in the world in which you can see the wonderful coco de mer palm growing in their natural state. Also it is same for Curieuse Island.

Beaches of Seychelles are so impressive. Many of them are even untouched by man’s influence. They offer blue skies and a tranquility like nowhereelse. There are hundreds of snorkelling sights in the Seychelles that are regarded as the best in the world. In Desroches waterskiing, windsurfing, sailing, fishing and scuba-diving are available. There are sea cliffs, tunnels and caves and many different species of fishes. The best spots for salt-water fly fishing are Alphonse and Desroches islands. For snorkelling, St Anne National Marine Park is the most favorite sight. Motorised water sports are limited.

There are also bird watching tours especially in Cousin Island. Some of the other activites available on the Seychelles are golf, squash, badminton, horseback riding, tennis, biking and hiking. The annual SUBIOS underwater festival is held in the Seychelles and attracts underwater experts.

In order to discover these natural wonders, please watch the videos of Seychelles on the website at www.travelovideo.com

Author: Gokhan Ozbal

Gokhan is the content developer for Travelovideo.com – the place to watch travel videos online. Visit Travelovideo to view Seychelles beaches and read Seychelles travel reviews.