The sand is soft, the bottom of the bay is usually clearly visible through the calm blue water, and there are rarely any big waves or surf to challenge swimmers. Thousands of holidaymakers are taken there on day trips from Mahé, or from the dozens of small hotels dotted around the coast of Praslin. For 30 years tourists have regarded a visit to Anse Lazio as one of the highlights of their visit to the island – second only in popularity to a visit to the nearby Vallée de Mai – the World Heritage Site where the coco-de-mer nut is found.
For honeymooners Praslin is a delight, and swimming at Anse Lazio refreshed with cold drinks and seafood salads from the delightful Bonbon Plume restaurant tucked behind the tree line. I have made over 500 dives in the Seychelles, and have dived around Mahé, Praslin and La Digue many many times as well as around the further flung islands like Durocher, Denis, Frégate and even at the very remote Aldabra atoll.
I have seen sharks in Seychelles, but only at specific sites where commonly seen reef species like black-tips, white-tips or – occasionally, the slightly larger Grey-reef sharks are a bonus to the underwater naturalist. But divers often lament the relative scarcity of sharks around the islands.
Last month I snorkelled at Anse Lazio. I didn’t dive there, because it wouldn’t occur to me to use scuba equipment in the bay where there is generally very little marine life to see.
