Arriving into Mahé at breakfast time, it’s off the plane and straight out into the hairdryer heat of an equatorial morning on this, the largest of the 115 islands that make up the Seychelles archipelago – beautiful islands that are scattered like jewels across the western Indian Ocean.  Mahé, however, is not my final destination, for I am headed for the tiny island of Cousine.

Now, when I told family and friends that I had been invited here – this was pre-Covid – as part of a small group on what was described as an “ecological” trip, well, they all roared with laughter. Why? Because my eco-credentials have not always been particularly exemplary – I certainly couldn’t tell the difference between a goldfinch and a gurnard. Three days on Cousine, however, and I find myself imbued with all the zeal of the convert

First off, let’s deal with the downside of this eco-trip — the very long flight, 12 hours from London, followed by a 20-minute helicopter ride from Mahé to Cousine. Not so good in environmental terms, I know, but when set against what I learned on Cousine itself, I can live with that, and visitors could offset their air miles (and conscience).

In fact, it’s while in that helicopter just after arrival that I feel my first road-to-Damascus eco warrior stirrings. Delighted to have bagged the seat upfront beside Todd, the pilot, there we are drifting above the Indian Ocean when, suddenly, he spots something in the water.

“Look,” he shouts, “it’s a whale shark. Let’s take a closer look.”

The helicopter lurches and then drops fast towards the turquoise sea below, and there it is — a dark blob that, from the air, looks exactly like a giant tadpole. A protected whale shark. How amazing, I think to myself. And so it begins.

A few minutes later we land on Cousine, to be welcomed by the young couple who manage the place for its owner. Yes, Cousine (not to be confused with Cousin, another Seychelles island) is a small, privately-owned island but how, exactly, to describe this extraordinary place? “Paradise Found” pretty well sums it up.

In a nutshell, when the island was bought by a South African businessman (who likes to maintain his anonymity) back in 1992, his sole objective was conservation. So Cousine was cleared of all species of predatory mammals plus any foreign flora and fauna threatening the ecosystem. Native species were reintroduced and habitats were restored.

The result is simply magical because all of the wildlife — from birds and insects to larger species — have no fear of being hunted (there are no rats or feral cats on Cousine, for example), making it an incredibly uplifting experience to spend a few days in. On this paradise island, no more than 12 visitors can stay at any one time and no day-trippers are allowed.

Initially, I have to confess, it was the Indian Ocean, the white sands, the beautiful private villa (there are only five) and the visiting somewhere entirely new that attracted me to the trip, but in the end, it’s the ethos of the place that reels me in.

The food on Cousine Island is superb

Just imagine, for a moment, that you are walking along a path and there, right in front of you, is the most beautiful bird you have ever seen: a snowy-white fairy tern. All you have to do is bend down and pick up this fearless beauty. Its habitat here means that it knows no fear.

I spend an hour or so on my first afternoon just wandering around the island, grinning from ear to ear as I encounter all kinds of bird and reptile life. I’m even happy to let a native giant millipede run up my arm.

The accommodation, food and quality of service on Cousine are all as fabulous as you would expect considering the mind-boggling price-tag of €3,500 for a villa for two for one night. There are four large, exquisitely furnished villas with small private pools, all secluded but fronting on to the beach, plus an even larger “presidential” villa that makes up the accommodation. In a central area, a few minutes’ stroll away, is a main swimming pool, open-air restaurant and bar, plus a library and spa.

Luxury island resort it undoubtedly is, but its raison d’être is its eco commitment.

Roslyn Dee gets up close and personal with the inhabitants of Cousine

It’s early on my very first morning, on pulling back the curtains, that I spot three giant tortoises munching the scrubby undergrowth outside the villa.

Quietly, I slide back the door and step outside. I kneel down beside one of the big fellas and reach out to stroke his neck. He eyeballs me, but doesn’t hiss or pull his head back into his shell. OK, so he trusts me, I decide, reaching out further until I can properly — softly and gently — stroke his neck.

He’s still looking at me, enjoying the contact, and I think how blessed he is, this creature who has marked more than 100 birthdays, to be able to roam free here as one of a protected colony that now numbers 78 giant tortoises. To be treated with the respect that he — and all the other Cousine creatures — deserve.

Meanwhile, it’s turtle-laying season when we visit, but our first few days deliver no sightings of eggs. Then, while breakfasting on our final morning, we get the call to say a Hawksbill turtle has come ashore.

We leg it down to the beach in time to see it lay more than 100 eggs and then bury them, with methodical determination, by kicking the sand to cover her brood.

Job done, and showing not the slightest interest in those of us gawping at her, back she toddles across the sand, into the sea to where the baby turtles will follow once they hatch in a few months’ time.

I find myself dumbstruck by this little creature. And privileged to witness this moment in this very special place.

One of the island’s 78 giant tortoises enjoys the sunshine

Cousine is small. At 62 acres, it’s just over three times the size of St Stephen’s Green. Planted with thousands of indigenous trees, it’s a wonderland worth exploring.

We walk on the white sands of the beach, swim and snorkel offshore, and barbecue at the North Rocks on our final night, just as the sun is setting and streaking the African sky with brushstrokes of scarlet-gold. During the day we explore, attend lectures, swim, and eat like kings in the restaurant.

When I think back to those magical days, I think of how much I learned about conservation, how I adored the proximity to the wildlife. But of all the species on Cousine, it’s the giant tortoises that really got to me.

On the morning we say goodbye, pushing our small boat out into the water and jumping onboard, ready to make the short sea hop to the island of Praslin, I keep looking back as paradise island slips from view.

And I know, in that moment, that I will never repeat this experience again. I also know that I will never forget this extraordinary place; that I will carry with me forever the memories — and a greater understanding — of this ecologically significant Seychelles island.