Seychelles Travel Guide

Browse the Seychelles Photo Gallery

Shopping

Local handicrafts include work with textiles (such as batik), fibers (such as basketwares, tablemats and hats) and wood (such as traditional furniture, ornaments and model boats). Pottery and paintings may also be bought. Special souvenirs might include jewelry made from green snail shells. Tea-growing and manufacturing in the Seychelles is done on a small scale. Local tea can be bought in the shops or when visiting the tea factory on Mahé, where many blends of tea may be sampled at the Tea Tavern. Vanilla is cultivated as a climbing plant around the base of trees as it can be pollinated by hand. Pods can be bought in shops and used as flavoring. Cinnamon grows wild on all the islands. It can be bought as oil or in quills made from dried bark which can be freshly grated before use.

Shopping hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1700, Sat 0800-1200. Some shops close weekdays 1200-1300.

Currency

Seychelles Rupee (SCR; symbol ₨) = 100 cents. Notes are in denominations of Rp500, 100, 50, 25 and 10. Coins are in denominations of Rp5 and 1, and 25, 10, 5 and 1 cents.

Note: Tourists must pay hotel bills in foreign currency (in the form of cash, traveler's checks or credit or debit cards). Payment in local currency is only allowed if an exchange receipt can be shown as proof of the conversion from foreign currency into local currency. The duty-free shop at the airport only accepts credit cards or foreign cash.

Currency Exchange

Exchange facilities are available at the airport banks, which are open for all flight departures and arrivals. The following banks have branches in the Seychelles and will exchange traveler's checks and foreign currency: Barclays Bank, Bank of Baroda, Banque Française Commerciale, Central Bank of Seychelles, Development Bank of Seychelles, Habib Bank Ltd, Nouvo Banq, and Seychelles Savings Bank. Currency exchange receipts should be kept in order to facilitate re-exchange on departure.

Credit Cards, Debit Cards, and ATMs

American Express, MasterCard and Visa are widely accepted; Diners Club has more limited use. ATMs are available in Mahé and Praslin.

Travelers Checks

Accepted in most hotels, guest houses, restaurants and shops. To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travelers are advised to take traveler's checks in US Dollars or Pounds Sterling.

Currency Restrictions

The import and export of foreign currency is unrestricted. The import and export of local currency is limited to ₨2000.

Banking Hours

Mon-Fri 0830-1430, Sat 0830-1100.

Exchange Rate