North Island

North Island was bought in 1997 with an aim that went beyond hospitality: to return a former plantation island to something close to its natural state. Building of the lodge began in 2002, and the restoration, known as the Noah's Ark programme, has run alongside it ever since, clearing invasive plants, replanting native forest and bringing back species including Aldabra giant tortoises and the Seychelles white-eye. There are just 11 villas: 10 on the beach and Villa North, set apart beside the granite slopes of Grand Paloss. Each is placed for privacy along the shore, and guests arrive by a 15-minute helicopter flight from Mahé. The resident conservation team works on turtles, tortoises, birds and reforestation, and guests can join the tree-planting themselves. Brutus, the island's most famous tortoise, is something of a local celebrity. The island's service follows one idea, Your Menu, Your Venue, Your Time: rather than asking guests to keep to a set schedule, North Island adapts to them. Breakfast can be served beside the ocean, lunch in the wilderness and dinner under the night sky or in the privacy of a villa, and walks, island exploration, time on the water and quiet solitude are arranged wherever and whenever guests choose, with a private villa host anticipating each detail. Menus follow whatever is being harvested, and a 45-metre infinity pool looks out over the Indian Ocean. The calmest seas come in the transition months, April to May and October to November, and December to March is the wetter monsoon.