Let's take a closer look." The helicopter dips sharply towards the turquoise sea below us and, sure enough, there it is, a huge dark-coloured shape that looks, from the air anyway, exactly like a giant tadpole. We ooh and aah as the chopper hovers overhead for a few minutes before Todd heads off again, flying low out over the ocean, islands looming to the right of us, others far off to the left.

And islands are certainly plentiful in this part of the world for this is the Seychelles, made up, as it were, of 115 beautiful islands, scattered like jewels across this western part of the Indian Ocean. The one we're heading for is Cousine;

small, privately-owned and offering the best of both worlds . . . an extraordinarily successful conservation programme that takes pride in its ongoing wildlife commitment and luxury accommodation that comes in the form of just four detached villas, set back a few hundred feet from the most exquisite, silver-sanded, palmfringed beach that you can imagine. Cousine is looked after and managed by a young South African couple, Jock Henwood and Janine Samuel, and sharing this island paradise are resident ecologists, British husband-and-wife team Dylan Evans and Frankie Hobro. Add to that a small number of staff who take care of the cleaning and the cooking (take a bow, chef Adrian) and what you have is a tightly-knit group of people, totally committed to both conservation and excellence.

Guests come and go, of course, but there are never more than 10 at a time on Cousine . . . and, despite the fact that a few famous names have stayed, it's like getting blood out of a stone to convince Jock et al to fess up to who was here, when, and with whom. (Investigative journalism skills to the fore, however, and the visitors' book reveals Jude Law and Sienna Millar and, on another occasion, Ewan MacGregor).

Confession time: when I announced that I was going on what was deemed an 'ecological' trip with a strong emphasis on wildlife and conservation, my husband chortled with laughter as it's not an area in which I profess any particular interest or expertise. Just three days on Cousine and I'm a convert.

Okay, so it's a stunningly beautiful and peaceful place and the accommodation is unquestionably five-star, but in the end it's the ethos and the wildlife there that reels me in. Well, can you imagine being able to walk up to a fairy tern (that's a bird for the uninitiated . . . the most beautiful, winged, white creature I have ever seen) and literally pick it up? Or how about letting the largest millipede in the world run gently across your palm? Or (and this is my favourite memory) can you just picture pulling back the villa curtains in the morning to see if any of the island's giant tortoise population have come acalling overnight and then heading straight outside to stroke the necks of these stoic, dignified creatures?

Life on Cousine is a sacred thing . . . the island was cleared of all predators a decade ago and now only endemic plant species and animal life exist here. As a result, the wildlife are all free of fear and, from a human perspective, it is therefore an incredibly uplifting experience to spend some time among them.

The November days here are hot and humid with sprinklings of warm rain. We get our bearings, we walk the empty beach, we barbecue at the North Rocks just as the sun is setting and streaking the African sky with its brushstrokes of burnished gold. We listen to Dylan and Frankie as they explain the ethos of the place and talk about the whale sharks, the magpie robins, the turtlesf ah, the turtles. It's laying season at the moment and we are bursting to witness the great event. Nothing is guaranteed of course and, two days in, it's not looking good.

Then there we are, about to tuck into breakfast on our final day when Jock gets the call . . .

there's a turtle laying on the beach, just two minutes' walk away.

Down we go, into the hairdryer-hot heat of the early African morning, to stand with no shade whatsoever, and quietly watch this magnificent sea creature as, oblivious to her audience, she lays 100-plus eggs and buries them safely in the sand.

Then back she goes to her ocean habitat, leaving her offspring in the safe environment of Cousine where they will hatch and head for the ocean themselves in the early months of next year. It's one of those 'wow' moments on an island that's awash with them.

But the Seychelles is an archipelago of varied island experiences and so, after a few days, we tear ourselves away from Cousine and take the 15-minute sea crossing by motorboat to Praslin, second biggest of all the islands and renowned for its picture-postcard beaches, for its turtles, its black parrots and its coco de mer palm trees. And it's to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Vallee de Mai that we head in search of a tropical forest experience. With clear pathways and good signposting, it's an easy enough place to explore. It's hot though, the November humidity seemingly exacerbated by the forest setting and so from here we decide to hit the beach. And what a beach it is. Anse Lazio, lying like a sliver of silver along Praslin's north coast, is reputed to be one of the finest stretches of sand in the world. We walk, we wallow, we swim and we take it all in . . . the turquoise blue of the ocean, the green palm trees, the white-topped breakers, the silver sands . . . it is a kaleidoscope of perfection.

We are staying in the Lemuria Resort, a supermodel of the hotel-resort species that languishes on Praslin's east coast boasting luxury suites and villas and the only golf course on the island. Diving, snorkelling, swimming or just walking the beautiful beach are all options here while a 25-minute walk from the main complex will bring you to Anse Georgette, yet another white-sand heaven.

And so, chilled out and sad to leave our island idyll, our final day dawns and we reluctantly climb on board the 30-seater plane from Praslin to Mahe, the biggest island in the Seychelles, and for our final day in the Indian Ocean we have a look at Victoria, the island capital, with its colonial architecture, its bustling shops and its Caribbean vibe. Then, for our final hours, we take to the terrace of the Northolme, completely refurbished in the last two years but once the grande dame of the Seychelles and hang-out of the likes of Noel Coward, David Niven and Ian Fleming.

Back home, Daniel Craig has just had his first-night run-out as the new 007 and so, in the place favoured by Bond's creator (and where Fleming drew his inspiration for the plot of For Your Eyes Only) you slip into the mood of the moment, order a dry martini, and savour those last Seychelles views as the sun sinks slowly over the Indian Ocean.

THE FACTS Getting there We flew directly to Mahe from London Heathrow (10-hour flight) with Air Seychelles (www. airseychelles. com).

Staying there >> Cousine Island (www. cousineisland. com):

villas are 1,400 per night. Complete island rental of all four villas costs 4,800 per night.

Prices include five-star accommodation, all meals and drinks, including alcohol.

>> Hotels Constance Lemuria Resort of Praslin (www. constancehotels. com): this allsuite/villa resort has junior suites priced from 870 per night for two people sharing.

>> Elite Vacations (www. seychelleselite. co. uk, 0044 1707 371000) offer luxury packages with three nights full-board on Cousine and four nights B&B at Lemuria. With flights, helicopter and land transfers, prices are from 6,000 per person sharing in early 2007.

>> Northolme Resort & Spa (www. hiltonworldresorts. com): villas from 610 per night.

More info >>Seychelles Tourist Board:

www. seychelles. com, 0044 1293 596649.