How to go and how to help

The permit

Every non-Mauritian citizen visiting Saint Brandon must hold a permit issued by the Outer Island Development Corporation, the parastatal body that administers the outer islands of the Republic of Mauritius on behalf of the government. The permit is non-negotiable. Only two hundred permits are issued each year. The cap is one of the principal mechanisms by which the atoll’s ecological integrity is protected.You do not apply for the permit yourself. The application is handled, on your behalf, by the licensed operator who is taking you to the islands — usually the Raphael Fishing Company or one of the small number of expedition partners they work with. The process is straightforward, but it is not instant. You must send a photocopy of your passport to the operator at least one month before your scheduled departure from Mauritius. The operator submits the paperwork to the Outer Island Development Corporation, the application is processed, and your name is added to that year’s permitted-visitors register.Without a permit, you cannot land. The Mauritian Coast Guard, who maintain a permanent rotational presence on Île Raphael, enforce the system. Any vessel arriving at the archipelago must notify the Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16 on approach. Vessels carrying unpermitted passengers will be turned away.

To go

There is no airfield at Saint Brandon or scheduled passenger services. The atoll is reachable only by sea, and the crossing — aboard the dedicated transporter vessels and live-aboard catamarans that operate the route — takes approximately twenty-four hours from Port Louis. The journey itself is part of the experience. The atoll’s remoteness is part of why it has survived.
The fishing and visitor season is split into two weather windows: early October to mid-December, and early April to early June. Outside these windows, the south-east trade winds and seasonal cyclones make the passage unreliable and the lagoons less accessible. Almost all permitted visitors travel within one of these two seasons.

Raphael Fishing Company

raphaelfishing.com
The lease-holder of the thirteen permanent-grant islands and the principal operator at Saint Brandon. Raphael Fishing handles the Outer Island Development Corporation permit for all its guests, organises transport from Port Louis to the atoll, and operates accommodation on Île Raphael as well as live-aboard expeditions aboard its dedicated company vessels and catamarans. Direct enquiries to the company are the appropriate first step for any non-Mauritian considering a visit. The company is, as of writing, ninety-three years old. They have been doing this longer than anyone else.

Saint Brandon Sanctuary (operated by Raphael Fishing Company)

stbrandon.com
The public-facing booking and information portal for Raphael Fishing’s expedition operation. Lists current trip dates, operator partners, conservation rules for visitors, and seasonal availability. A useful starting point for understanding the practical detail of a trip.

Fly Castaway

flycastaway.com
The principal international fly-fishing operator at Saint Brandon, running catch-and-release weeks aboard expedition catamarans moored at Île Raphael during the season. A typical eight-day live-aboard trip is in the order of €19,500 per person, exclusive of international flights to Mauritius. Fly Castaway is a founding partner of the Saint Brandon Conservation Trust. Their commercial model — high-cost, low-impact, catch-and-release — has become the template for sustainable visitor access to the atoll. Their guides are experienced, careful, and have years of cumulative knowledge of the place. If you can afford the trip, this is the operation to choose.

Private yacht

For experienced bluewater sailors with their own vessel, Saint Brandon is reachable directly from Mauritius — but only with a permit obtained in advance through coordination with the Outer Island Development Corporation, full Coast Guard notification on arrival, and complete self-sufficiency aboard. The passage from Port Louis takes around sixty hours under sail in a small monohull, depending on conditions. There is no port, no marina, no fuel, no repair facility, and no medical evacuation infrastructure on the islands. Skippers should consult both Raphael Fishing Company and the Mauritian Coast Guard well in advance, and arrive with current charts, a working desalinator, and provisions for the full length of the intended stay. The atoll does not forgive arrogance.

Scientific or conservation expedition

For researchers, conservationists, or institutions wishing to undertake scientific work at Saint Brandon, the route runs through the Saint Brandon Conservation Trust, the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation, the University of Mauritius, or — for marine biological work specifically — Odysseo Foundation. Each has its own protocols. Most require advance proposals, the formal endorsement of the Mauritian government, and the same Outer Island Development Corporation permit as any other visitor.

What to expect when you go

If you do travel, you should know that Saint Brandon imposes a strict code of conduct on its visitors, published in detail at stbrandon.com. The rules are not bureaucratic flourish. They are the rules by which the atoll has been kept intact. The essentials are these.

All waste must return to Mauritius with you. There is no rubbish disposal infrastructure on the islands.

Whatever you bring you take home — including cigarette butts, plastic packaging, and any food waste.

Crayfish hunted on the reef for daily meals are permitted, but only the males may be kept.

Females in berry must be returned to the sea. No artificial lights for fishing. No damage to coral.

Marine turtles are protected.

Visitors must keep as far away as possible from turtles on land and in the water.

Sharks are also protected under Mauritian law as of 2021.

Any accidentally caught shark must be released with care.

Bird colonies on certain islands

— notably the Roseate Tern colonies on Petit IDS, Veronge, and Zozo Posé — are entirely off-limits for landing. The chicks are easily disturbed and may run into the sea and drown.

If you witness anyone violating these rules — dumping at sea, disturbing wildlife, illegal fishing — the immediate contact is the National Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16, or eco-protection@stbrandon.com.

To help, even from far away

The most meaningful thing a reader can do, if they cannot go, is to support the organisations doing the work. The list below is short, and it is honest. These are the bodies whose work is verifiable, ongoing, and directly tied to the protection of the atoll.

Saint Brandon Conservation Trust

saintbrandonconservation.org
info@saintbrandonconservation.org
The principal non-governmental body coordinating the conservation effort at Saint Brandon. Donations support the Trust’s published five-year plan for 2025–2030: biosecurity, invasive species removal, marine debris management, scientific research, and the long-running campaign for UNESCO World Heritage status. This is the body to support first. If you can give to only one organisation, give to this one.

Mauritian Wildlife Foundation

mauritian-wildlife.org
Mauritius’s principal terrestrial and marine conservation NGO, founded in 1984. The Foundation has driven the species-level science at Saint Brandon through Dr Nik Cole’s surveys of Île Coco and remains the primary institutional partner of the Conservation Trust. Donations support both Saint Brandon and the wider conservation work across the Republic of Mauritius — including the rat-eradication programmes that demonstrate what is possible at scale.

Odysseo Foundation

odysseomauritius.com/foundation
The conservation arm of the Mascarene region’s largest oceanarium. The Foundation operates the Coral Project — pioneering coral restoration by sexual reproduction in the western Indian Ocean — and the Saint Brandon Project, in partnership with the Conservation Trust. Donations support the coral restoration laboratory, the volunteer programme, and the joint expeditions to Saint Brandon. Odysseo is also worth visiting in person if you are ever in Mauritius — the oceanarium itself is the public face of the conservation effort, and a visit is one of the easiest practical ways to engage with the work.

Mauritius Marine Conservation Society

mmcs-ngo.org
A long-established Mauritian marine conservation NGO with active programmes across the archipelago, including marine debris collection and educational outreach.
A note on volunteering
The Odysseo Foundation accepts volunteers for habitat restoration, debris removal, coral restoration work, and biodiversity monitoring at its facility on the main island of Mauritius. Volunteer placements at Saint Brandon itself are extremely limited and run only through the Conservation Trust, on specific scientific or restoration expeditions, by application. If volunteering on the atoll is your goal, the realistic path is to build a relationship with the Trust over time — beginning, usually, with donations, attendance at events, or volunteer work at Odysseo on the main island.

To share

If you cannot go and cannot give, the third useful thing is to share — to tell other people that the atoll exists, that it is one of the last largely intact coral systems in the Indian Ocean, that it has been waiting for UNESCO World Heritage status since 2004, and that a small alliance of Mauritian and international organisations is quietly working to keep it safe. Conservation runs on attention. Attention runs on people choosing to spread it.
The atoll has been kept intact, so far, by remoteness and good luck. Remoteness is finite. Good luck runs out. The third thing — sustained, distributed, patient attention by enough people — is the only protection that will last.
If you have come this far, you are already part of that.