Scattered delicately across the azure blue of the Indian Ocean, the heavenly islands of the Maldives, Mauritius and Seychelles are home to some of the most spellbinding sights of natural beauty. Glass bottomed boats provide windows to kaleidoscopic underwater worlds, over water villas hover serenely over tranquil waters, verdant jungles conceal undiscovered waterfalls, giant tortoises nest on unspoilt beaches and secluded, salt-white coves leave you feeling as though you are thousands of miles away from the rest of the world. It is hard to think of any other part of the world that epitomises paradise more so than the islands of the Indian Ocean.