Sainte Anne Marine National Park
Sainte Anne Marine National Park lies about 5 km from Victoria, the capital city of the Seychelles, and encompasses six small islands. The Marine Park was created in 1973 for the preservation of wildlife. Fishing and water-skiing are forbidden in the Marine Park.
The national park is made up of the following six islands, all of which are part of Mont Fleuri district, with areas in km²:
- Ste. Anne Island, 2.19 km², with large luxury resort Sainte Anne Island Resort
- Cerf Island, 1.27 km², with a population of about 100, with three hotel-resorts (Cerf Island Marine Park Resort, Fairy Tern Chalets und L'Habitation), and restaurant Kapok Tree
- Île Cachée, 0.021 km², close southeast of Cerf Island, a nesting site for seabirds
- Round Island, 0.018 km², a former leper colony, with an exclusive five-star resort called "Round Island Resort" with 10 villas.
- Long Island, 0.212 km², formerly a quarantine area, now site of the state prison with 170 inmates
- Moyenne Island, 0.089 km², currently with no steady population after the decease of the founders of the Moyenne Island National Park (Brendon Grimshaw and assistant), and restaurant Maison Moyenne
The aggregate land area of the six islands of the marine national park is 3.80 km². The total marine national park area is 14.43 km².[1]
Île Seche (Beacon Island) with a size of four hectares and Grand Rocher (Harrison Rock) close eastward are also part of Mont Fleuri district, but not of the Marine Park.
Today it is known as one of the prime tourist locations in the Indian Ocean for scuba-diving, glass-bottom boat excursions and snorkeling among the coral reefs. The main island of Ste Anne is an 87-villa resort while Cerf Island and Round Island have Creole-style restaurants.
It also has one of the largest areas of "seagrass meadows" in the Seychelles. It is very beautiful.
References
External links
- SCMRT-MPA Seychelles Centre for Marine Research & Technology - Marine Parks Authority.
- Sainte Anne Marine National Park Article and photos of the islands in the marine park.
Gallery
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Sainte Anne Island
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Moyenne Island
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Moyenne Island aerial view
Coordinates: 4°37′16″S 55°30′01″E / 4.62111°S 55.50028°E
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