Kempinski Seychelles Resort — Hotel in Mahé

We stayed at this hotel to celebrate our wedding anniversary and the experience was truly memorable. The property is beautifully nestled in nature, with serene lake surroundings and stunning beach access. Our room was spacious and serviced daily, as expected from a hotel of this calibre.

A heartfelt thank you for the thoughtful welcome gift— a bottle of bubbly, a spa discount, fresh fruits and a complimentary dinner. These gestures were greatly appreciated and made our stay feel extra special!

Special recognition goes to the Housekeeping team for maintaining excellent cleanliness and for their warm, friendly approach - particularly Julia.

We highly recommend a visit to Planters Bar, where live music is featured each evening. The band we had the pleasure of listening to was fantastic! A big thank you to Jefri, the bartender, whose professionalism, engaging personality and outstanding cocktail skills made each evening delightful. Also, a shoutout to Jean-Paul, whose constant smile, positivity and helpfulness added so much to our stay—thank you for the rides to the viewing terrace and main entrance!

Another standout member of the team was Lea from the Concierge/"Lady in Red" department. She was just brilliant! Patient, accommodating and genuinely went above and beyond to assist us—an exceptional professional and a true asset to the team.

The only downside to our otherwise fantastic stay was the food quality at the buffet breakfast and dinner. As a hospitality professional and former chef, I felt the offerings fell short of the standard expected from a 5-star property. The buffet lacked consistency in quality, presentation and taste. The Asian breakfast section was repetitive over 6 days, pace of replenishment and serving ware could be improved and overall presentation was just not there. Also, once we asked for take away breakfast due to early excursion and sandwich I received was just shocking, but it was shared with a reception staff. That said, the daily special given by your table by one lady chef (whose name I regret not catching) was a great touch and showed promise.

In contrast, Café Lazare offered a far more refined dining experience. The octopus curry, chicken curry, red snapper and tuna steak were absolutely delicious. Even the sushi was enjoyable. Clearly, the kitchen has the talent to deliver at a higher level in main restaurant!

Overall, I highly recommend this hotel for its incredible setting and the outstanding team who went above and beyond to create a memorable stay. Just be mindful of your dining expectations—if you're a dedicated foodie, the half-board option may not offer the variety or quality you're hoping for.

Thank you to the entire Kempinski team for the unforgettable moments and warm...

I’m reviewing this stay after 6 months only because I couldn’t find where I’ve written down the names of the people from the staff who were unbelievably nice, kind and professional, so big apologies if some of them might not even work there anymore. Now, that I’ve found by accident that list, I want to do justice to them - Isha, Shafi, Christopher, Salim, Adel, Okta, one of the chefs (I don’t know his name😞), Mercha, the lady who served the pattiserie in the morning, who always said in the happiest voice tone “lovely to see you this morning!”, and I’m sure there are others I missed - THANK YOU! Big, big THANK YOU! Without you, our stay wouldn’t have been as awesome and relaxing.

Why? Because apart from the amazing facilities of the hotel, tasty food, dreamy beach, great rooms & view, cool vibe, we couldn’t have enjoyed our stay as much as we did without these people, who ‘bended themselves backwards’ to help us enjoy our meals, since we were travelling with a 9 months old baby and that can be very challenging.😄 Pretty much all the staff was great anyway, and is probably expected at a 5* hotel, but these persons in particular were so friendly with our baby, they played with her, they talked to her, always looked at her to keep her entertained (Eva, the happy baby, sends you all big hugs😍), so she was so delighted to go to the restaurant, and we always had time to enjoy our meals (which were terrific and food specific was different every night). These people didn’t have in their job description to entertain a guest’s baby, and while I am aware our daughter is adorable and smiling all the time, I truly appreciated their open heart and support.

So I’ll mostly focus on that in my review, cause everything else was also exceptional, I can’t wait to go back some day. One other important thing for families traveling with babies - the food for the baby is complimentary and they can cook for you whatever you want, which was sooo helpful. Of course, we didn’t ask for anything complicated, but it saved us a ton of time and stress with cooking.

The only con to mention for other families with small kids - the beach is absolutely beautiful, great sand, but the water is not ideal for kids to play in - rocky bottom and deep. For us it was perfect with a 9 months old, as she didn’t even walk back then. Also, the crabs on the beach are harmless, just don’t mind them, they run away.😊

Btw, we stayed for 2 weeks in...

Dear Kempinski Management,

As a travel agent, I have had the pleasure of staying at several Kempinski properties over the years, always with satisfaction. Unfortunately, our stay was a complete disappointment and fell far below the luxury standards we anticipated. In our opinion, there is a serious problem with management and infrastructure at this property. We paid €700 per night, but the experience we received was barely worth €150 - 200 (giving this for the nice beach).

Here are the major issues we encountered:

Infrastructure: The property feels outdated and worn. Plastic event chairs in the large buffet area, numerous empty spaces, and a neglected beach bar where towels are collected—all giving the impression of a storage area rather than a luxury hotel.

Atmosphere & Ambience: Corridors leading to rooms are empty, lifeless, and far from contemporary standards. In the evening, there is virtually no entertainment, except for one small live band tucked away in a dark corner, ignored by guests.

Room Conditions: While our room was spacious, the floor was constantly wet. If this is typical for the island, it was not an issue at our other accommodations.

Dining: Prices were excessive with poor value—€30 for a pizza with minimal toppings, leaving us feeling cheated. Attempts to leave the hotel were refused, and an offered dinner as compensation did nothing to address the real problem.

Representation: Online photos and marketing do not reflect the reality of the hotel, which feels sad and neglected. We were shocked to see the hotel rated so highly and quickly realized that fake reviews are being used to hide genuine negative experiences.

Confirmation from Other Guests: We found it particularly striking that the taxi driver who brought us to the airport mentioned that all the Kempinski guests he had picked up recently were dissatisfied. This confirms that the issues we experienced are not isolated. As a travel agent, I am well-positioned to evaluate price versus quality, and this property simply does not deliver.

It is scandalous that such fundamental issues are being ignored and masked rather than properly addressed. A hotel of this supposed caliber should not require misleading reviews to maintain a reputation.

We hope you take this feedback seriously and take immediate action to address the management and infrastructure problems at...