Where to See Giant Tortoises in the Seychelles (and Where You Can't)

Go to Curieuse Island, off Praslin, if you want to see giant tortoises roaming free. La Digue and Mahé keep theirs in enclosures. Aldabra, where most of the wild ones live, is closed to ordinary visitors, and Jonathan, the famous one, is not in the Seychelles at all.

That last point trips people up, so it gets its own section below.

Where can you see giant tortoises in the Seychelles?

You can see them in three public places: Curieuse (roaming), the Botanical Garden on Mahé (enclosure) and L'Union Estate on La Digue (enclosure). Moyenne Island, off Mahé, is a fourth stop, but it is normally reached on a boat tour. Everything else is private or restricted.

Place	How you see them	Who can go	Fee (non-resident)	Source
Curieuse Island, off Praslin	Free-roaming in a marine national park	Anyone, by boat	Rs300 (over 12)	SPGA
National Botanical Garden, Victoria, Mahé	Enclosure; visitors can feed them	Anyone	Rs250	SPGA
L'Union Estate, La Digue	Enclosure	Anyone, on the estate ticket	Paid at the gate; no published price	SeyVillas (secondary)
Fregate Island	Free-roaming, more than 3,000	Hotel guests only	Not applicable	Fregate Island Private
Cousine Island	Private resort island; free-roaming, 78-79 tortoises	Resort guests; the official page does not mention day visits	Not applicable	Cousine Island
Moyenne Island, off Mahé	Roaming on a small island in a marine park	Usually on a boat tour from Mahé	No official fee found	none
Aldabra Atoll	Wild, about 180,000 (2026 study)	Authorised visitors with SIF staff	Not a day trip	Seychelles Islands Foundation
Vallée de Mai, Praslin	None	Not applicable	Not applicable	Seychelles Islands Foundation

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The boat to Curieuse, the L'Union ticket and the ferry to La Digue cost extra. Fees change, so confirm at the gate or on the authority's page.

Curieuse: the one that is worth the boat

Curieuse is about 2 km off Praslin's north-east coast. SPGA's Curieuse page says the boat ride takes about 20 minutes from Côte d'Or and that you arrange it through local operators or charters. Our Curieuse and St Pierre day trip guide covers the boats, the fees and what the day looks like.

The tortoises are not native here. SPGA says they were introduced between 1978 and 1982. A nursery raises the young until they are five, then releases them.

That history matters for how you see them. These are animals living on an island, not animals in a pen. They go where they like, which is sometimes the middle of the path. Bring patience, not a schedule. The tortoises have right of way and clearly know it.

The park also charges Rs150 for the nesting sea turtle trail, which runs from October to early March under controlled access, per SPGA. It is a separate ticket from the Rs300 entry.

Websites quote different Curieuse fees. SPGA's own page says Rs300 for non-residents over 12, so that is the figure used here.

La Digue: the enclosure at L'Union Estate

L'Union Estate has an Aldabra tortoise enclosure, and SeyVillas notes that the animals "are always kept inside this enclosure" unlike on Curieuse, where they roam free. The estate also holds the path to Anse Source d'Argent, so most visitors pass it anyway.

You pay the estate's entry fee at the gate. The estate publishes no price list and guides quote different amounts from different years, so no figure is given here. Check the current price at the gate.

My view: if you are already on La Digue, stop by for ten minutes. Do not plan a day around it. If tortoises are the point of your trip, Curieuse is better, and that may tip whether you base yourself on Praslin or La Digue.

Mahé: the Botanical Garden

The National Botanical Garden in Victoria is open daily from 8 am to 4:30 pm. SPGA lists Rs250 for non-citizens and says the giant tortoises are the most popular attraction, which visitors can feed.

It is the right choice if you are based on Mahé, have only a few hours, or the weather rules out a boat. It is the wrong choice if you want wild behaviour. Websites differ on the fee; SPGA's page says Rs250.

Do not confuse it with the National Biodiversity Centre in Barbarons. SPGA lists that one at Rs150, and its page does not mention tortoises.

Where you can't see them

Aldabra. About 180,000 tortoises live here, the largest population in the world. That comes from a 2026 study by the University of Exeter and the Seychelles Islands Foundation (SIF), published in Ecology and Evolution and based on counts from 2018 to 2022. The best estimate is almost 183,000 adults and sub-adults. The older figure of about 100,000, which SIF's own Aldabra page still quotes, comes from late-1990s surveys. The authors say those surveys missed hidden animals, so the older number was probably too low.

SIF says all visitors need prior authorisation and must be accompanied by SIF staff, and that it does not organise tourist trips. Its page tells would-be visitors to contact one of the operators that include Aldabra on their itinerary. SIF says the operators arrange the transport. That means a charter flight to Assumption Island and then a chartered boat, or a vessel directly from Mahé. The journey usually takes several days. SIF also lists an impact fee of $250 per person per day. That is an expedition, not an excursion.

Fregate. The island's own site says more than 3,000 Aldabra giant tortoises roam free, and that access is reserved exclusively for island guests.

Cousine. This private resort island has an official tortoise page. It says Cousine has been a refuge for giant tortoises since 1992, with 78 to 79 free-roaming individuals and an annual census. The page promotes staying on the island and does not mention day visits, so none is assumed here.

Moyenne. This small island in the Ste Anne Marine National Park, off Mahé, is a known tortoise stop. Tourists usually go on a boat tour from Mahé. Operator listings differ: many include the Moyenne landing fee in the tour price, and some charge it separately on the island. No official fee page was found, so no figure is given. Ask the operator what is included.

Bird Island, Desroches and North Island. Guides mention tortoises on these resort or private islands. How to get there and who can visit depends on the resort, and no official page was checked, so they are not recommended here.

Cousin Island. The reserve is a day-visit island, and the official visit page lists SCR 600 (SCR 300 for residents). That page talks about birds and does not mention tortoises. Without a source, Cousin is not a tortoise recommendation.

Vallée de Mai. SIF's page mentions giant tortoises only in the past tense, as extinct grazers. The reserve is excellent for coco de mer palms, not for tortoises.

Aldabra, hololissa and arnoldi: which tortoise is which?

The Aldabra giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea) is the one you will meet at all the public sites. It is one of the last two living giant tortoise species, along with the Galápagos tortoise, according to SIF. It survived on Aldabra when hunting wiped out giant tortoises elsewhere in the Indian Ocean.

The granite islands had their own tortoises. Island Biodiversity says giant tortoises across the region were removed or killed in large numbers once settlers arrived in the 1600s, and that the granite-island forms were once thought extinct. Two living forms, A. g. hololissa and A. g. arnoldi, are regarded as subspecies of the Aldabra tortoise. That is contested, with "conflicting interpretations of the morphology and genetic data".

In practice, you will not tell them apart at a visitor site, and no tour will ask you to.

Jonathan the tortoise: not in the Seychelles

Jonathan lives on Saint Helena, a remote South Atlantic island, in the grounds of Plantation House, the governor's residence. Guinness World Records lists him as the oldest living land animal, at least 194 years old in 2026. Guinness gives his age as an estimate (born about 1832), because he was "fully mature" when brought to Saint Helena in 1882.

Guinness lists him as a Seychelles giant tortoise (A. g. hololissa), which is where the mix-up starts. He left in the 1800s. He has not seen the Seychelles since the 1880s. No Seychelles visit will bring you to him. Guinness adds that some experts think he may belong to a separate species or subspecies, and this is unsettled.

Can giant tortoises live 500 years?

No. None of the sources used here supports 500. SIF says Aldabra tortoises can live more than 100 years in the wild and over 200 in captivity. Guinness's estimate for Jonathan, the oldest living land animal, is at least 194 years.

How many giant tortoises are left?

About 180,000 on Aldabra, per the 2026 Exeter and SIF study. Fregate says it has more than 3,000, and Cousine's official page says 78 to 79.

FAQ

Can you see giant tortoises for free in the Seychelles?

No free public site was found. The three public places above all charge entry, and Curieuse also needs a boat. The cheapest official ticket is the Botanical Garden at Rs250 (SPGA). L'Union Estate charges a fee at the gate but publishes no price. Moyenne is usually visited on a paid boat tour. Hotels with tortoises on site exist, but none was checked.

Where do most wild giant tortoises live?

On Aldabra, an atoll in the Seychelles. A 2026 study by the University of Exeter and SIF puts the number at about 180,000, up from the late-1990s figure of about 100,000 that earlier surveys likely undercounted. SIF says the species has been protected since the 1960s and under SIF management since 1979.

Is Jonathan the tortoise in the Seychelles?

No. Jonathan lives on St Helena in the South Atlantic. He is a Seychelles giant tortoise by origin, but he arrived on St Helena in 1882 and has stayed there.

Which is better: Curieuse or La Digue?

Curieuse, if you want tortoises that roam free. La Digue's enclosure is a short stop on a day built around beaches and bikes.

Can I visit Aldabra as a tourist?

Only with prior authorisation from SIF and with SIF staff. It does not organise tourist trips. SIF's page points visitors to operators that include Aldabra on their itinerary. The operators arrange transport by charter flight to Assumption Island plus a boat, or by vessel from Mahé.