Magazine · · 2 min read
Maldives, Seychelles, Mauritius, Réunion: the difference
Four island destinations in the Indian Ocean, often named in one breath — and fundamentally different: flat coral rings, ancient granite, a reef around a volcanic island and high mountains in the middle of the sea.
Maldives: atolls barely above the sea
The Maldives are made of atolls — ring-shaped coral reefs enclosing a lagoon, with many small, flat islands on them. There are no mountains; the land lies only a little above sea level. Many islands carry exactly one resort, and the journey from the airport continues by boat or seaplane.
Maldives: flat, water, reef — one island, one resort.
What sets the Maldives apart is therefore mostly under water. One example is Baa Atoll, a UNESCO biosphere reserve with Hanifaru Bay, which Indigo Atoll describes as the most reliable manta ray gathering in the world.
Seychelles: granite and coral
The best-known islands of the Seychelles — Mahé, Praslin and La Digue — are granite, which is unusual for islands in the open ocean. That is where the rounded grey boulders on the beaches come from, seen in so many pictures. Further out lie flat coral islands.
Seychelles: granite boulders inside, coral atolls outside.
The outer islands include Aldabra Atoll, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and, according to Indigo Atoll, home to 100,000 giant tortoises — more than on Galápagos.
Mauritius and Réunion: volcanic islands
Mauritius is volcanic in origin and almost entirely surrounded by a coral reef, which creates calm lagoons in front of the beaches. In the south-east lies Blue Bay, a protected marine park that Indigo Atoll describes as having intact coral and being just 15 minutes from the airport.
Mauritius: a lagoon in front of the beach. Réunion: mountains instead of beaches.
Réunion is volcanic too, but a very different destination: a French overseas department using the euro, with steep cirques and an active volcano, the Piton de la Fournaise. It is less about beaches than about hiking. One of the cirques, Mafate, is according to Indigo Atoll the only inhabited place in its collection that no road leads to — it is supplied by helicopter.
Not the best destination, but the right one
Which of these destinations is right depends less on the destination than on what you are looking for: diving and quiet, rocks and hiking, short distances, family. An atoll that is ideal for divers can be the wrong choice for someone who loves long beach walks.
There is no right island. Only the right one for whoever travels.
Indigo Atoll sorts the islands exactly that way: every destination in the Maldives, Seychelles, Mauritius and Réunion has its own page, plus a map and an advisor that answers questions in plain language. Nothing is booked there — it is a portal for choosing and comparing.
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