Delicious Mauritius

Kathy O`Sullivan 23 September 2006
My trip to Mauritius was our family holiday as it was a destination that I always wanted to see however with a three year child in tow I booked it with trepidation as I wasn't quite sure how family orientated the island was as in my experience it mostly attracted couples. I needn't have worried as they couldn't have been more accommodating. One of the reasons we choose Mauritius was the beautiful resorts on white sandy beaches - for me... and for himself the big game fishing and safe haven with our child and we were not disappointed.

On arrival after a long flight we were greeted by hotel staff as we walked in the door who seated us and provided us with a cold flannel and a cool glass of champagne and checked us in there and then, if only every check in was so relaxing. Onto the beach and for those who are beach lovers then this is paradise, the beaches are the white sandy beaches you see in the brochure and the waters are wonderfully warm. Going out a few metres you get to experience some great snorkelling. The hotel provided plenty of water based activities to while away the day from dive trips, glass bottom boats or just the plain old pedal boats that my daughter loved. Whilst on the beach the hotel staff were there on hand with a cool drink or a light lunch if you didn't fancy walking the 50 feet to the restaurant.

When we got bored on the beach we walked into Grand Baie which had lovely selection of shops, cafes, Jewellers and the shops here are a lot more upmarket compared to other resorts I have been to. We did venture down a couple of nights to sample the local restaurants and there was a good choice ranging from Italian to fish restaurants. Nightlife here is extremely quiet; the bars were virtually empty with the exception of a few locals as tourists tend to stay in their hotel and avail of the entertainment provided. The entertainment in the hotel was top class and the entertainers themselves encouraged everyone to join in. The honeymooners were seated in a particular section of the restaurant with a little bit more fuss made over them, which I thought was a lovely touch.

For two days we hired out a taxi to see the island, I found this was excellent as we had a local gentleman who has lived on the island all his life and shared with us the history and culture of his country. As the island has only gained its independence in 1968 it has plenty of history. Our driver took us inland where we visited the Black River Gorges which is Mauritius' largest national park and if you like hiking there are great trails here but beware of the hungry monkeys. Onward to Chamarel Coloured Earth and waterfalls the earth here was made up of seven different colours due to the weathering of the volcanic rock and this was really cool to see, the waterfalls are a really popular beauty spot for wedding photos and finishing off at Trou Aux Cerf which is a volcanic crater but has been extinct for a long time. The taxi driver was only able to bring us up a bit of a way and we walked the rest but once on top we got these amazing views of the whole island.

Another day we headed into Port Louis the capital city where the main area is located at the waterfront with a decent amount of outdoor cafes and shops. Away from the main thoroughfare we headed over to Port Louis's outdoor market which was massive but had a real vibrancy to it however we didn't stay too long here as the smell was sometimes a little over powering.

The highlight of the trip for my daughter was the La Vanille Crocodile and Tortoise Park, the crocodile park was more of a breeding farm but the tortoises were giant tortoises and they just potter around this huge area. The highlight for my partner was chartering out a boat from Grand Baie and going deep sea fishing and catching a Shark. For me the highlight was what Mauritius is famous for and that was the white sandy beaches, luxurious hotel and great service but it also had plenty of interesting places to see which I enjoyed immensely.