About Pineapple Beach Villas
Pineapple Beach Villas may be "self-catering", but frankly the beachfront accommodation here is far nicer than you'll find at most resorts! The villas are spacious, very stylish and luxurious - and there's even an excellent on-site restaurant (meals at extra cost) if you don't fancy cooking yourself!
If you’ve given the Barefoot Breaks website more than a cursory glance, you may have noticed that there is pretty much no self-catering accommodation listed – the exception being Pineapple Beach Villas in the Seychelles which has cracked the nod to be included. So what’s so different about Pineapple Beach that we’ve deemed it worthy of being included amongst the various “conventional” hotels and lodges on the website?
The first factor simply comes down to quality. To be frank, the vast majority of island self-catering establishments (particularly in the Seychelles) are pretty grotty and unappealing, often resembling the tired old 1970’s cottages you still sometimes find for rent down the KZN south coast. The Pineapple Beach Villas though are in a completely different league, being attractively modern and contemporary in their styling, massively spacious and boasting luxurious finishes and furnishings. There’s one guest review on Tripadvisor which perhaps sums it up best, where they spoke of walking into their villa and coming to the conclusion that it was way nicer than their own home!
The second factor that elevates Pineapple Beach Villas way above typical self-catering accommodation comes down to their location. Now whilst the vast majority of the self-catering options in the Seychelles are located away from the beach, often perched in the hills quite a distance from the sea, the Pineapple Beach Villas occupy a prime beach front position at the quiet end of a sandy beach located on the highly desirable south-west coast of Mahe – in fact their adjacent neighbour is the upmarket 5 Star Mango House resort so clearly it’s a pretty decent neighbourhood!
The third major reason as to why Pineapple Beach Villas has gained the Barefoot Breaks stamp of approval comes down to the single biggest issue we usually have with self-catering – that being that you usually have little choice but to cook for yourself (which frankly is not the way we usually want to spend our holiday!) Pineapple Beach Villas has a trump card though – they have opened a restaurant (called Pineapple Cabana and very highly rated too!) at the entrance to the property where guests (and outside visitors) can enjoy anything from breakfast through to delicious dinners. Note that this isn’t included in the cost of the accommodation, but it does provide an easy and extremely convenient alternative to either cooking yourself or having to head off elsewhere to find a restaurant to eat.
The heart of the resort are the 3 double-story units arranged in an arc overlooking the gorgeous rim-flow swimming pool with the sandy beach just a few metres beyond. These units contain the 8 one-bedroom apartments boasting open-plan living areas and which are both hugely spacious (at 104sqm each!) and extremely attractively decorated – it’s all very light and airy in feel with light wood and white or sandy coloured walls and floors punctuated beautifully by dashes of colour in the form of scatter cushions and artworks in bright shades of blue and green! Finishes are of a very high standard and the units are fully equipped with air-con, flatscreen TVs and Wi-Fi - frankly they’re way more spacious, attractive and comfortable than any average hotel room at similar prices!
Then there are 2 two-bedroomed units, one upstairs and the other on the ground floor, located in a separate unit which lies about 40 metres further along the beach and which are perfectly suited to families travelling with slightly older kids (no kids under 10 are allowed at Pineapple Beach) The owner’s family house actually separates the 2 parts of the resort, which was less obtrusive then we might have thought before we stayed there.
The stunning pool deck is the focal point of the resort and where you’ll no doubt spend a great deal of your time when staying at Pineapple Beach Villas. Loungers around the pool invite you to soak up some rays and there are bench seating areas and BBQ’s alongside if you fancy a lunchtime braai or picnic. Obviously the main thing missing compared to a normal resort is any sort of bar area, but then again that also means you can buy drinks in from supermarkets at much lower prices to enjoy.
If you’re in the mood to keep yourself active, there are SUP boards and kayaks with which you can explore the bay, you can enjoy snorkelling or swimming and there’s also table tennis if you fancy a casual (or competitive) game. The beach here is lovely and sandy but quite shallow and so only really suitable for swimming when the tide is in. And there’s even the chance for a little retail therapy courtesy of the well-stocked on-site boutique which stocks really nice clothing, bags, artisanal soaps, jewelry and other quality island-style souvenirs.
To really get the most of staying at Pineapple Beach Villas, we strongly recommend hiring a car for the duration of your stay. The south-west corner of Mahe is the most beautiful on the island in our humble opinion and begs for further leisurely exploration. There are some stunning swimming beaches nearby like Anse Soleil and Anse Takamaka and you’ll encounter stunning scenery on your explorations. Pop in to visit some of the nearby art galleries (this corner of Mahe is home to many artists) and of course, there are also many local restaurants within an easy drive where you can enjoy some delicious meals. If you don’t fancy eating at the excellent on-site restaurant and instead want to do a lot of your own self-catering, do be aware that it’s not quite as simple here as popping down to your local Woolies – there are some small grocery stores close by, a small farm stall selling fruit and veggies in season as well as fish fresh vendors – and if all else fails you can always order in some take-ways from a local restaurant!
