“Good morning Seychelles! How are you today? People around the world, welcome to Seychelles and you must be wondering where we are going today.”
If you are on social media you have definitely guessed who our guest for today is. Of course he is no other than Michael Thomas, the owner of SeyDiscovery Tour.
Seychelles NATION: Tell us a bit about yourself, who is Michael Thomas?
Michael Thomas: My name is Michael Thomas and I am 44 years of age. I am foremost a patriot, I love my country. Born and raised in Seychelles, I attended my primary school at Plaisance and lived in Belvedere. I attended the National Youth Service at Port Launay and later studied at the Seychelles Tourism Academy. By profession I am an hotelier, I have 20 or so years experience in front office in the industry. I have worked at hotels such as Fisherman’s Cove, Fregate Island Resort, Coco de Mer on Praslin, though I feel that L’Archipel was where I developed more of my skills with the guidance of the late Mr Louis D’Offay. I left Seychelles in 2007 for Germany where I remained until 2014. From 2014 to 2015, I stayed a few months in Brussels and Switzerland. After that I came back and worked at Mason’s Travel as a German speaking representative as I speak German. I come from a family of seven – five boys and two girls. I am the fifth child. My father passed away with cancer. My mum is still here with us even though she had a stroke. I have a daughter and she is 21 years old.
Seychelles NATION: How did you venture into your business?
Michael Thomas: After a while I ventured into my own business when I realised that what I was doing for the agencies I could be doing for myself. That is in terms of excursion, sales etc… I told myself that I have so many ideas, I know marketing, and I know many things… so I started by thinking of a name. I knew I wanted something that has to do with Seychelles and the discovery of Seychelles. Then it came to me after two days, SeyDiscoveryTour. I felt that many excursion tours have blue logos or affiliations in them but I wanted something different like yellow and yellow represents hope, happiness and the sun. Combining blue and yellow inherently makes green. This in my opinion pairs well together. Then I created the uniforms and website. One of the first clients I received, we got on well together and he helped me to get a domain from Germany. Currently the website is under construction as I am working on certain updates.
When I started I had a Toyota Rav4 which I soon realised was becoming too small. So I sold the jeep and bought a H1, garnished it with stickers for better visibility. My aim is that when I park somewhere, I may not be there but it helps market my business. I got the picture of the tortoise that was already on my uniform and placed it on the van. This has all the colors of the Seychelles flag in it.
Seychelles NATION: Was it successful?
Michael Thomas: I noticed that as soon as I started back in 2016 or 2017, it kicked off relatively well. I had just left Mason’s Travel and was working with two clients. When the cruise ship Aida departed Seychelles in 2020, I had 64 clients in one day. I had to rent three buses and outsourced for drivers as well as extra guides and equipment. I attended to the food and drinks personally. The guests enjoyed themselves while I kept an eye out, taking pictures and filming. I use Facebook and Instagram a lot, these help with my marketing.
Seychelles NATION: How did you cope during Covid-19?
Michael Thomas: When Aida left which was just before the beginning of the pandemic, from March 2020, business dropped drastically. I worked solely by myself and my main market reach were Germany, Switzerland and Austria. I had to re-strategise and try to tap into some new target markets. I tried to tap into the Gulf region market when Seychelles opened to Israel but it was very hard. I was not used to working with them and they already had their usual drivers who were on standby at their hotels. I got maybe one client in between when the Russians came, so I had to find the group markets where they were communicating. An example is the group by Marie-Josette Webber on Facebook, the ‘Come and Visit’.
Seychelles NATION: What are some difficulties that you face in the business?
Michael Thomas: I wouldn’t say so much as difficulties but drawbacks. For example pollution is a major concern. Touring with the visitors, I can see on their faces when we pass by overfilled bins, trash littered on the beach. Sometimes we even find trash on the trails. And for me these things matter, in my line of work, these people are visiting for a great experience. Seeing these things gives Seychelles a bad image. They have chosen to visit Seychelles for its much talked about sustainable environment, especially in regards to the preservation of our water sources.
Seychelles NATION: As a tourism ambassador for Seychelles, what do you suggest should be done?
Michael Thomas: I would wish for example that each trail has an entrance with a gate and kiosk. All the entrances to the trails should have an information board detailing dos and don’ts. Only one bottle of water and no packets of food etc… The water bottle should be available at the kiosk, you shouldn’t bring anything with you, and when you climb down, you leave it back at the kiosk. These water bottles should have no label or extravagant markings on them. Empty water bottles should have a deposit on it and this would amount to your entrance fee. Upon return with your bottle of water, you will be reimbursed with the entrance fee. If you fail to provide the water bottle, you will lose your deposit. This would help keep the trails clean, if hikers or cleaners find the water bottles on the trail, they can pick them up and hand them over at the kiosk for the refund money.
Seychelles NATION: What is your personal principle?
Michael Thomas: I am a person who gives my all and extra. I don’t dwell on such things as timing in a sense that, if it is 3.30pm and my shift is finished, I need to go. No, if there is work, I stay and I always work like this. I feel I am regarded as someone who is positive and this is the attitude I bring to my business. This is what makes me stand out and prosper more than others in the same line of business. I don’t feel like I force anything, it is just me doing what I do. I keep my van clean; I offer different packages instead of the visitors going around trying to find food and drinks. It is the personal touch. I give them an experience, if they want to try something, I find a way to accommodate them. I enjoy doing this for my clients. I want them to say at the end of the day that it was worth it. I also advocate strongly for the protection of the environment. I don’t like seeing places filled with trash, which is why in my backpack I always carry a bin liner. I pick up the trash but sometimes there is just too much. The fact that we are not really protecting our environment is very saddening. This is like the ‘face’ of our tourism industry and this is what tourists see first. The authorities should urgently look into this situation and come up with a proper solution.
Seychelles NATION: What are your views on the future of tourism in Seychelles?
Michael Thomas: I firmly believe we need to update the school curriculum to educate pupils on hospitality. It is not only about them taking a job in the tourism sector but to help them understand the true meaning of hospitality and how it is essential in all aspects of our lives. This will encourage respect, cleanliness and so on. I believe this should be done from primary one until post secondary. The first period of class should be about hospitality, the value and importance of environment and so on. If we do this, in 20 years we will see a difference in ‘the fruits of our labour’.
Seychelles NATION: Do you work alone or do you have other employees?
Michael Thomas: I still work alone. Occasionally when there are too many clients, I outsource my service and pay the person soon after. I brief them first on how I operate and I ensure that I pay them well. I believe in paying people well to ensure that ‘things’ run smoothly.
Seychelles NATION: What is your vision/dream?
Michael Thomas: I wish to one day own a restaurant. A Creole restaurant where you can walk in barefoot, a very Seychelles style of décor and the employees will wear our cultural attire. Women will wear the long flowing colourful skirts, Seychelles jewelry while the men will wear colourful shirts and straw hats. The food will be served decorated in banana leaves, breadfruit leaves etc… Everything will be Creole, the traditional Creole.
Source: Seychelles Nation