Car hire at Seychelles Airport (SEZ) from $49/day

The international terminal and the small domestic terminal for flights to Praslin stand side by side, so everything happens within a few minutes' walk. Car-rental services operate at the airport.

Allow time for the hand-over and a walk-round check. Have these ready:

• your driving licence and passport;
• the booking confirmation on your phone;
• the card or cash for any balance due on collection, as stated in your offer.

Walk round the car with the representative, photograph every side and the fuel gauge, and check that the air conditioning works before you drive off. Give your flight number when you book and contact the supplier if your arrival changes; check how delays are handled in the offer. For a night arrival, check in the offer conditions whether an out-of-hours hand-over costs extra.

Right now 85 cars can be collected at the airport. The list includes local Seychellois companies and international brands; the offers compare them side by side on price, deposit and conditions.

If you are connecting straight to Praslin, decide whether you need a Mahé car at all on arrival. The nearby domestic terminal is a flight connection, not the place to collect a rental for another island. Arrange the Praslin car separately for that part of the stay. If you return to Mahé later, book the airport hand-over for that arrival rather than paying for a Mahé rental while you are away.

Save the meeting instructions before flying, including the supplier's telephone number. The confirmation should settle where to meet and what to do if the flight changes. When choosing an offer, check the payment and deposit terms as well as the car; an airport collection does not make every supplier's conditions identical. If a child seat is needed, request it in the booking and check it with the representative before leaving.

Approximate drive times from the airport in normal traffic:

• Eden Island: about 15 minutes;
• Victoria: about 20 minutes;
• Beau Vallon: about 30 minutes, through Victoria and over the hill;
• the south-west beaches: allow extra time for the winding cross-island roads.

To reach the west coast you cross the mountains on the Sans Souci or La Misère road: steep, narrow and full of hairpins, with buses coming the other way. If you land late in the afternoon, consider going to a hotel on the east side first and taking the mountain road the next morning. Keep left at roundabouts, watch the deep drains at the edge of the road, and let buses pass. For the rules and the licence you need, see the driving section on the Seychelles car hire page.

Before starting, look at the whole route to your accommodation rather than just the distance on the map. A destination across Mahé can involve narrow bends and steep sections. An automatic removes manual gear changes, but it does not make those roads wide or straight. Choose a car you can handle comfortably and check the luggage space too. An SUV's class name is not a reason to assume either four-wheel drive or permission for an unpaved route.

Rain can change the first drive quickly: heavy downpours reduce visibility and can affect the road surface. Leave room in the journey for conditions rather than trying to match a map estimate. If a late arrival makes the drive unsuitable for you, a confirmed transfer followed by delivery to your booked accommodation is another plan to compare. There is no need to change hotels solely because you have reserved a rental car.

Airport pick-up is the better choice when:

• you land in daylight and want to drive straight to a hotel on the west or south coast;
• you want the car from the first hour, for example to go shopping or reach a villa without transfers;
• you are staying for most of your trip on Mahé.

You can combine both: have the car delivered to your hotel and return it at the airport on your last day. The offer conditions show any fee when the return place differs from the delivery place.

For early-morning or late-night departures, check that the supplier can meet you at that hour, or arrange to leave the car the evening before. If you are flying on to Praslin from the domestic terminal, return the Mahé car here: do not assume your rental agreement permits inter-island travel; confirm written permission or rent again on arrival. How that works is explained on the Praslin car rental page. If you take the ferry to Praslin instead, return the car in Victoria near the Inter-Island Quay.

For a ferry departure, ask specifically whether collection near the Inter-Island Quay is available and what it costs. That is a different return arrangement from SEZ, and should be agreed before you rely on it. For a flight, follow the airline's current check-in guidance and leave separate time for the car return. A domestic connection and an international departure can need different plans even though the terminals are close together.