Seychelles travel safety advice

Seychelles now suffers from a crystal methamphetemine epidemic, leading to a high risk of robbery. All visitors should take extreme care. There is some corruption in the court system and the police. The country has many rapes. Try to avoid any dark lanes, and always be careful not to leave your bag unattended; most locals are poor and would love to get their hands on any money. Swimming alone on isolated beaches is not advisable. If you sail, avoid bringing valuables; if you have no choice, become adept at finding great hiding places. There is some sketchy activity along a shady secondary road behind Beau Vallon beach (left from the Boathouse restaurant), but locals mostly seem content to admire their flashy cars and mostly ignore passers-by. There are newly instituted tourist police stationed at every beach on Mahe and are easily recognizable by their blue or white golf shirts, with a tourist police badge sewn on. They are very friendly and more than willing to help keep a good eye, even though you may not see them. They are honest and freely offer advice. Potential thieves are obvious (mostly due to lurking and just stand out from the locals) and tend to hide just off the beach or across the narrow streets near more out of the way beaches. Jail terms are stiff and are strictly enforced since the island makes lots of money from tourism.