Acquario Villa is a small and cozy guesthouse placed in a comfortable environment with fresh air and peaceful sound of nature. Surrounded by a tropical garden the villa provides a private and tranquil stay for their guests. Acquario Villa has 3 room categories; 2 Superior Apartment, 4 Standard Apartment & 1 Two Bedroom Family Villa. The Superior Apartment & Two Bedroom Family Villa both has their own fully equipped kitchen for guests to prepare their own food of choice. We can provide dinner for guests upon request.
Anse Petite Cours, Anse Volbert, Praslin Island Seychelles
Acquario Villa
301 reviews
Getting there
Somewhat walkable
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travelers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
We loved to stay at acquario villa. Mrs Nora, the manager, gave us a warm welcome and the staff were very nice and polite.
Everything is very clean and you have everything you need for living. We had a fully equipped kitchen, a quiet balcony to sit in the evening and the bed is very comfortable. Of course it is not a luxury resort, so for example the furniture is not brand new.
The breakfast was very delicious and with more options and different food than other hotels.
Due to the current situation with Covid, we were the only guests at this time, so we had lots of space.
We felt very save. Everybody was wearing face mask and taking care for having a distance. There was a temperature check every morning like in every hotel at the moment.
The beach is only a 2 min walk from the guesthouse and the dive center "Whitetip divers" is only some meters away, too. We are divers, so it was a perfect combination.
Mrs Nora offered the option to bring homemade food to the guesthouse for dinner. It was very delicious- Especially the fish. And more food we could eat in one evening.
All in all the acquario is a nice guesthouse and we can totally recommend it. You may not expect a big Luxury Hotel, but a cozy, quiet guesthouse. For us this was perfect for relaxing, starting our vacation and for doing some scuba diving on seychelles.
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Date of stay: November 2020Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stayed here for 3 nights and really felt at home. Spotlessly clean and really well equipped apartments less than 2 minutes walk from the beach and within walking distance of many restaurants. Staff friendly and attentive. Excellent wifi and large TV. They arranged to have a rental car waiting for us at the ferry. On our last day, as we were booked on the evening ferry, Nora, the manager allowed us to keep the room till 5pm so we could freshen up after a day of exploring. Cannot recommend highly enough. Best value for money we found in 2 weeks in the Seychelles.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Imtiaz Umarji, Owner at Acquario Villa
Responded Mar 4, 2020
Dear Peter, Thank you for taking up your valuable time to share your experience of Acquario Villa, we really appreciate your feedback. It was indeed a pleasure to have hosted you and we are also glad to know that you appreciated all our services. We hope to host you again at Acquario Villa on your next visit to the Seychelles. All the best. Acquario Villa team
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
We booked this guest house for 5 nights especially because it is very close to one of the diving center. Surprisingly, we haven’t met any other guests and we were also alone during breakfasts… probably because it is very poor, I believe it is so easy to remediate ! We had one dinner prepared bu Nora and it was absolutely delicious. However overall, our villa was very warmly appreciated !
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Date of stay: December 2022
Value
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Service
Room Tip: If you have time in the morning, better to organize your breakfast by yourself !
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Large family room, 2 bedrooms with their own bathrooms, nice garden and balcony. Room are cleaned every day, towels for the bathrooms and beach are changed as well every day. The team is nice, friendly and helpful. Noah the manager will help you to organize a marvellous stay and if you feel like testing the local food, do not hesitate to ask her: she can cook excellent creole dishes!
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Date of stay: December 2022
Value
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Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The accommodation is located on a road with little traffic. The beach can be reached on foot in approx. 15 minutes. There is a diving center in the immediate vicinity. The very small "studio" at the back of the property is sufficient for a short stay. There is no view of the garden, but of a green rock face. The very small terrace facing the backyard is not very inviting. The staff are very friendly. The breakfast is extended to include fried or scrambled eggs on request. There are no restaurants nearby. There are a few restaurants, a store and takeaways on the beach.
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Date of stay: April 2024
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Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The cottage was very comfortable, close to the beach, and the staff was very welcoming. The manager Nora made us a wonderful grilled fish dinner. It was well worth it! The kitchen had everything you would need to self cater. Good value for money.
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Date of stay: April 2024
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Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My wife and I recently completed a four-night, five-day stay at Aquario (also spelled Acquario) and, like virtually all of the previous reviewers, found it to be superb. The location on Praslin is great: it is a two minute walk from the northwest corner of lovely Anse Volbert beach in one direction and a three minute walk from the bus stop near Le Reserve in the other direction. Also at the northwest corner of Anse Volbert is Whitetip Divers and the Paradise Sun hotel (which is a good place to visit for lunch, especially for inexpensive pizza at its beach-front restaurant, and for its unsecured wi-fi signal).
The apartments at Aquario are immaculate and well-apportioned. They include a refrigerator for each room, beach umbrellas for when it rains, a shared kitchen, and a veranda with chairs and a table. Beach towels are provided. Our room had a safe. It also was equipped with an AC adapter. The bed was comfortable and the linen and bedspread clean. The bathroom had a toilet and a bidet and a very nice double shower. Small hotel-style bars of soap were provided, but guests need to bring their own shampoo. Wi-fi was available for €5 per hour, on the honor system (for free wi-fi, consider wandering over near the Paradise Sun).
We paid €90 per night for our room, inclusive of breakfast. Breakfast included some breads, rolls, jam, a fairly sizable selection of fresh fruit, omelets, fruit juice, and coffee. You'll be on your own for lunch, although there are a handful of restaurants and a couple of mini-supermarkets in the nearby village. A three-course dinner is available at 7:30 p.m. every day of the week except Sundays for €20 per person per meal. Farida is an excellent cook and it is definitely worthwhile taking all your dinners at Aquario. All of our dinners there were delicious. Fish is featured heavily; however, if fish is not to your liking, Farida & Co. will be happy to substitute something else (I, for example, had a delicious steak in lieu of prawns one night). Drinks cost extra, although they are reasonably priced. You can bring your own wine, if you prefer.
We made a side trip to La Digue, which Aquario was able to arrange for us. The day-trips to La Digue apparently depart on Mondays at 9:30 a.m. from Le Reserve, returning by 4:00 p.m., and are run by Athena tours. For ScR 400 per person, you get round-trip boat transportation to La Digue. Best of all, you originate and terminate at nearby Le Reserve, rather than having to take a taxi or bus to and from the main ferry jetty on Praslin. For an extra ScR 150 per person, Athena will arrange for bike hire on La Digue. We greatly enjoyed our visit to La Digue and can highly recommend this day-trip including the bike rental, although we'd caution that the best beach on La Digue, in our opinion, is not the more famous Anse Source d'Argent, but rather the extraordinary Grand Anse.
As for the beaches on Praslin, the nearby Anse Volbert is good, but Anse Lazio puts it to shame. You must visit Anse Lazio while on Praslin. To get there, you can take a bus for Scr 5 per person each way. Be prepared for a relatively steep, albeit fairly brief, 10-15 minute hike from where the bus drops you off to the beach; the reward for the exercise is a truly picturesque, world-class beach that is uncrowded and offers plenty of shade under the trees.
As for getting to and from Aquario, we came off the Cat Cocos ferry from Mahe on the way in and flew back from the Praslin Airport directly to the Mahe Airport on Air Seychelles. The taxi from the Cat Cocos ferry to Aquario cost us Scr 250; the taxi back to the airport cost us ScR 350. Both the ferry and the flight were fine ways of getting between the islands; the ferry is less expensive, but if you want to go from airport-to-airport, especially to facilitate a direct connection, the flight is a good option.
As for the diving, it was just okay. Nothing wrong with Whitetip Divers: the folks who work there are friendly and helpful and their equipment and boat are fine. But if you are looking for challenging diving, amazing coral formations, big fish, and great visibility, it didn't seem like Praslin was the place for it.
As our trip was in January, it fell squarely in the middle of the rainy season. I wouldn't let the rainy season act as a deterrent to a trip to the Seychelles, but afternoon rain showers were the norm everyday and the days were mostly cloudy with the occasional burst of direct sunlight. At times the rains would be torrential, but light rains or drizzle were more common. The mornings, on the other hand, generally were dry.
Anyway, Aquario was great. Out of the many places we've been privileged to stay on are travels across the planet, it would have to be right near the top, especially when you consider the bang for the buck it provides. The hospitality of Farida and the staff are wonderful. We were even permitted to check out at 5 p.m. on our day of departure at no extra cost since the next guests weren't arriving until the following day, affording us a leisurely afternoon and the opportunity to shower before hearing to the airport. The facilities are great: clean, comfortable, well-apportioned, and well-located. Add to it a tasty and filling breakfast, which is included in the rate, and an on-site dinner of high quality which is optional, and you have a winner. I can't recommend this place highly enough.
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Date of stay: January 2011
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Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My friend and I visited Seychelles in Mid-June (I'm finally getting around to reviewing) and we had a wonderful time overall. Our 2 night stay in Aquario was a mixed bag. The apartment was lovely, spacious, and very comfortable. Definitely a pro.
The service, however, wasn't the best. When we checked in and showed Nora our reservation papers (we had booked online), she initially said she needed to charge us more, our rate apparently was simply not the rate for the superior room. After we pushed back a bit, she relented and agreed to the rate we had already booked.
We booked an excursion with through Nora to see the famous turtles. We specifically asked whether we would need our bathing suits and she said we would not. Turned out that in fact following the visit with the turtles, there was snorkeling! I just got in with my underwear, but my friend was not comfortable so she had to miss out.
Finally, Nora ended up charging us for one day's breakfast and said she had given us the second day for free. We thought she was being very nice, but when I got home and found my reservation papers, it turns out that breakfast was included our room rate. Wasn't happy about this, but what to do, too late and I wasn't going to fuss over 20 Euros. This could have been an honest mistake, but the fact that initially Nora had asked us to pay a higher rate for the room makes me think it wasn't an accident. But who knows.
I think if I am to return, I'd probably find another place in Praslin. A shame because Acquario is really lovely overall.
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Date of stay: June 2016
Value
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The pros: We were living in a Superior Apartment. Highly recommend to book it 'cause you'll have actually big apartment of your own with a big kitchen (which is absolutely finely equipped with all you may need at a vacation) and a big balcony which we used daily to supper with a wine bottle. The staff perfectly cleaned our roomed daily!
The cons: Safe box is VERY small. You can't leave even a tablet or a decent camera there (we have a small camera canon eos m3!!) - count for money and cell phones only. Breakfast is very late (starting at 8:00 while it gets dark at Seychelles at 18:15!) and is very poor: count for cheap Nestle coffee (which you have in your room anyway free of charge), bread, jam, a couple of tasteless fruits. Once there were boiled eggs (i.e. no eggs on the next day). NO MEAT/NO CHEESE that are shown on the hotel photos!! So we used only 2 of our breakfasts and decided not to lose the precious time. It is better (and cheaper if you don't book meal) to buy bread and cheese and meat and make toasts at your room kitchen at 6:00. The staff (only the hostess!) is a hard topic. It seemed like the hostess tried to be there for you, declared 24 hrs availability (and did helped us once greatly to be honest). But when actually you needed anything you got nothing. There were about 5-6 such episodes during our stay so our impression about the hostess is very bad. Also the hostess offers a meal for 20€ per person. We were counting for something like grilled fish. Instead we got curry with a simple rice for 40€!!! You may purchase the same takeaway for 6€ for 2 persons! And generally you can't preagree for a certain meal - she says 'I don't know, it may be grilled fish or something else.' In our case, we got something else. FYI: our reviews are generally always 8+ 'cause we are positive persons!
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Date of stay: May 2016
Location
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Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:Definitely take a Superior Apartment and you get a lot of space and a balcony and a toilet with 2...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Very nice, small, locally owned establishement just few meters from the west end of Anse Volbert (Cote d'Or) on Praslin.
We stayed on B&B basis, but you can also choose full board or self-catering options. The appartment was new, bright, spacious and very well appointed. Not to mention that it was kept absolutely spotless (towels and bedsheets changed all the time) during our entire stay. It also has aircon unit in the bedroom, which we appreciated very much and a pleasant terrace with deck chairs!
The owner - Farida - is a lovely lady, who not only gave us plenty of great tips on where to go and what to do, but also made us feel really welcome. She speaks English and French but also Italian. She also makes yummy jams, which we enjoyed for breakfast every morning...
We had absolutely great time, simply couldn't be better! Handy location, great hospitality and perfect services for very decent price.
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Date of stay: May 2008
Value
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Location
Cleanliness
Check in / front desk
Service
Trip type: Traveled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
There are more places to choose from in the Anse Volbert area.
PRICE RANGE
$118 - $172 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
aquario hotel praslin island
LOCATION
SeychellesPraslin IslandAnse Volbert
NUMBER OF ROOMS
7
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