On this island of 6000 people it never feels busy, but if anything feels like the the bright city lights of the island, it is this little village. The bay of Grande Anse is a beautiful, wide sweep of white sand and shallow waters that turn the most wonderful shade of blue, and behind it, hidden amongst the trees is the town of Grande Anse itself.

Here you will find a number of shops and banks, as well as a large local market should you want to buy fresh fish every day. There is a church, a school and playing fields, and a couple of takeaways and restaurants, as well as a supermarket. There are many self catering apartments and villas on this side of the island, making it a good budget location to stay, and a handful of hotels.

Continuing from Coco De Mer towards the town of Grande Anse, you pass a number of other small beaches. Anse Takamaka is long and narrow, with little sand at high tide. Anse St Saveur is a small cove before you reach Grosse Roche, a collection of large boulders forming a small headland. Past the boulders you reach Anse Bateau, a fairly rocky shoreline where the sea and sand come right up to the side of the concrete road, and Anse Citron, which also has lovely white sand but very shallow waters, and more boulders

Anse Cimitiere is only accessible through the gates of the Coco De Mer hotel, which has a lovely stretch of beach and great views across towards Mahe - and is a wonderful spot to watch the sunset. The hotel also has a pier extending out into the sea from which you can look down and watch the fish in the clear waters below.

Anse Bois De Rose only really has room for one car to stop - which means if you find this beach empty, it's yours for the day! Unlike many parts of this coast, there is still a decent amount of sand at high tide, but it is almost completely shaded by huge almond trees - ideal if you've already had enough sun, perhaps not so much if you're looking to tan. With the classic Seychelles boulders to the west side of the beach and a distant view of the pier at Coco De Mer / Black Parrot Suites it is a scenic spot.

Anse Consolation is at the foot of a large hill coming over the headland from Anse Marie Louis. It is a very rocky beach with just a small house looking out over the bay - snorkelling is possible here but it's not really ideal swimming conditions. The beach more or less disappears at high tide, when the sea almost reaches the road.

After a negotiating a steep hill from the jetty past Chateau Des Feuilles you reach Anse Marie Louis, which is almost totally unremarkable. Unusually for Seychelles - and indeed for Praslin - the sand here is not of the fine white variety but a grainy, yellow-brown collection of broken shells and sand. There's nothing really here, and given the beaches elsewhere on the island are so much better, the only real reason to come to this corner of the island is to visit Fond Ferdinand.

If you follow the road along from Baie St Anne past Anse Takamaka and over a steep hill, you descend to the beautiful and secluded Anse La Blague. Here lies a long sweep of deserted sand, divided into Grande Anse and Petite Anse La Blague. To reach Petite Anse La Blague you must follow a track over another very steep hill, and if you continue along this road you'll reach Anse La Farine, where you'll find the New Emerald Cove Hotel.

The most striking thing about Anse La Blague is just how seculded it is. Apart from Villa Anse La Blague, a small hotel with just 3 bedrooms, as well as a bar and restaurant for any hungry visitors, there is little here apart from the occasional house and one or two self catering lodges, hidden amongst the trees.

Baie St Anne is an attractive little town on a wide bay that faces out towards La Digue island. It is near here you'll find the jetty for boats between Praslin, Mahe and La Digue, but the town itself has a sleepy charm that makes it a pleasant place to stop for your shopping or to pick up a takeaway.

Spread along the picturesque waterfront there are two supermarkets, a petrol station and a couple of self catering apartments, as well as an excellent takeaway called Coco Rouge, which offers great Creole food at a fraction of the price (50SCR / portion) you'd pay for a resort meal - it's also possible to dine in their restaurant for a little more. There's also a basic electronics shop and a school.

Across the water you will see boats floating in the calm waters and in front of the town is a small beach, Anse Madge, which is best visited at low tide.