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Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius

After my two visits to Mauritius, I maintain, Mauritius is one of those few places in the world you can fall in love with immediately… even before landing. Mark Twain called it “paradise”, and Joseph Conrad “a pearl”. It is a beautiful island country, known for its white beaches and pristine waters. Each side of the island has a different landscape.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
Mauritius, it’s a pleasure!

What makes it a pleasure is something that you will need to discover by experiencing yourself. These are a few reasons to ensure you an amazing yet offbeat holiday in island Paradise.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius

1. Pristine Beaches. Turquoise blue water and endless white sandy beaches with coconut & palm trees along the 330 KM long coastline make Mauritius an ideal tropical beach holiday destination.
This paradise is for those who want to enjoy the sea and the sun. Mauritius is surrounded by coral reefs which have created big lagoons all around. These lagoons are not only with crystal clear water, but also provide ideal water conditions for swimming, bathing and snorkeling.
On my both the visits, I stayed near Trou aux Biches beach, one of the best beaches in Mauritius. Mont Choisy, Grand Baie and St Felix are some other beaches that are popular. You’ll also find some easily accessible street food stands, and a string of cafes and restaurants along the coast road.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
2. World Heritage sites. The first UNESCO heritage site that I am going to talk about is, Apravasi Ghat where Indians & Africans came via sea to work, mostly as plantation workers in sugarcane fields and set their first step on Mauritian soil at this historic place in Port Louis harbor, in the capital of Mauritius. Rest is history.
In contrast, Chateau Labourdonnais, another beautiful heritage site, tells us about the other side of plantation history. Inspired by Italian neo-classical architecture, the residence was built mainly from teak wood and has a double colonnaded gallery. More details on this beautiful chateau later.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
Exotic Wildlife

3. Wildlife. I can visit Mauritius just for this reason! For those who are interested in wildlife, Mauritius has plenty to offer. Though it has a relatively low diversity of wildlife compared to other African countries, you can still enjoy Lions, Caracals, Tigers, Zebras, Ostriches, Deer, African Antelopes, White Rhinoceros, Impalas, Kudus, Camels, Mauritius Kestrel and many more. A high proportion of the animals are endemic species occurring nowhere else in the world. Many of these are now extinct, for example the ever famous Dodo.

4. Mountains, waterfalls & nature. – When volcanic eruptions made Mauritius, they also made sure to give it enough mountains, waterfalls and greenery. You can go for hiking to mountains, most of them have interesting stories about them. One of them has a head like shape at the top which is said to be of Pieter Both. Another one is Le Morne Brabant. Waterfalls such as Sept cascade a.k.a. Seven waterfalls (remember this video?), Chamarel waterfall are the popular ones. Don’t forget to swim under Sept Cascades if you love adventure.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
Botanic Garden

5. Mauritius National Botanical Garden– I loved it! Can you imagine 85 different varieties of palm trees are brought here from different corners of the world? Formally known as Sir Seewoosagur Botanic Garden, The Botanic Garden is one of the most visited attractions in Mauritius. Located in the vicinity of Port-Louis, this garden was initially opened as a private garden nearly 300 years ago, later to become the national botanical garden of Mauritius. It has more than 650 varieties of plants. Baobabs, the Palmier Bouteille, Giant Water Lilies, variety of medicinal plants, a large spice garden are more famous.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
6. Geological wonders. Chamarel & 23 colored earth is one of the more touristy spots in Mauritius. They look like colored sand dunes. The dunes are protected by a wooden fence and visitors are not allowed to climb on them. Chamarel, the seven colored earth is a geological phenomenon and the colors have evolved through conversion of basaltic lava to clay minerals. The origin of the fascinating 23 Coloured Earth La Vallée des Couleurs dates back to millions of years after the volcanic eruption of the Bassin Blanc. Its ashes which bear witness to that episode, are unique in the world.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
7. Adventure activities. Are you a person who doesn’t like to relax on the beach, instead want to test some adrenalin rush? Worry not. Go for sea karting, zip lining, snorkeling, go for underwater activities, horse riding, and many more. I promise, you won’t complain.

curious corner
Curious Corner

8. Entertainment Galore. If ever, you are bored by over indulging in above activities, which is nearly impossible, Curious Corner is definitely the place to go to. You become a kid and take your kids as well. As the name suggests, Curious Corner is for those like me who have a probing mind. Stimulate your brain cells and rejuvenate yourself for some more tonic called Mauritius. It is a house filled with a variety of amazing delusional fantasies. As soon as you walk in, some tricks and puzzles challenge you and your brain.
Play golf in the sprawling golf course in Le Telfair Horse racing, soccer are some other outdoor sports that you can indulge in.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
9. Sugars and Rum. I haven’t seen sugarcane fields and factories in such numbers in any country. Probably I haven’t travelled much. Rum is widely popular in Mauritius. There are several Rhumeries where you can see the entire process of rum making, visit the factories and buy rum as well. The Rum is available in flavors like ginger, passion fruit, vanilla, coffee, coconut, chili. Which one would you like to have?

top 15 things must mauritius

mauritian food

10. Food. Speaking of Mauritian food, there’s plenty of local cuisine … a blend of Creole, Chinese, Indian and European. Don’t forget to try a dholl puri (pea flour pancake), and a farata (wheat flour pancake) and alouda (milk-based drink with tapioca). My personal recommendation is Palm Heart Salad, made from the core of a certain type of Palm tree. If you are a non-vegetarian, do try crocodile meat.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
11. Shopping. Shopping is an integral part of visiting a place and Mauritius won’t disappoint you. Be it a local market like Grand Baie or central market of Port Luis, or modern malls, there are plenty of them. Locally made clothes, souvenirs and cane artefacts (table mats, hats, bags etc.) which was my favourite.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
12. Le Caudan Waterfront. Being the main city in Mauritius, Port Louis is the home of the largest market, where you can find fresh food items, local dishes, and variety of handcrafted goods which tourists buy as souvenirs. There are cinema theatres playing Indian movies as well. Le Caudan Waterfront is always crowded, even during weekdays.

Top Indian Couple Blog by Nisha Jha and Vasudevan R - Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius
Creole Festival

13. Festivals. The best way to learn about the culture of a place is to attend local festivities. Mauritius has large number of residents of Hindu religion, and hence they celebrate almost all the Hindu festivals. Diwali, Holi, Ganapati, Sankranti, Teej, Thai Pusam are a few of them. Vasu has attended Thai Pusam on one of his visits and twice I attended the Creole festival which has come from African cultures.

14. A mix of languages & cultures. When I first came here, I didn’t know much about Mauritius and was quite surprised. It is a land with mainly four languages. Creole or Kreol as it is known locally is widely spoken at home, with family and friends and in local markets. French takes the 2nd place, mostly spoken in work places. Generally people are more comfortable speaking in French than English. Besides English, children learn one more language in schools.
You’ll better understand the reason behind it if you know a bit of Mauritian history. First occupied by the Dutch, then French & British. The sugar plantations & factories were operated by slaves brought from India & Africa which gave rise to another language called Creole which has influence of African, French, Bhojpuri. If you need a taste of all these, Mauritius is the place.

15. Ganga Talao. I was fortunate enough to visit Mauritius’ most sacred Hindu Site called ganga Talao. To me, it was no different from a place in Haridwar or Varanasi where pilgrims sing bhajans, worship their Gods and offer coconuts, flowers and other related stuff.

If you don’t like beaches, you can even go for things beyond beaches.
If you wish, there are more things to see in Mauritius.

If you want to travel places with us, I suggest you to join us on my Facebook travel page.
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50 thoughts on “Top 15 Things You Must Do in Mauritius”

  1. Mauritius sounds wonderful! Thanks for naming the top beaches, as they would be the first thing I would want to visit! I also found it interesting Creol is the most widely-spoken language there. A friend’s dad is originally from Mauritius and he’s French. Passion fruit or vanilla rum sounds yummy!

  2. My neighbours are building a new home in Mauritius and move there by the end of the year. We will go and visit the following year. I never did any research on it, as they will live there. I had no idea there was that kind of wildlife. Equally interesting is the botanic gardens and the Curios Corner. Thanks for whetting my appetite.

  3. Mauritius sounds beautiful and diverse. We are always looking for unique places to visit and this might fit the bill. We are particularly interested in the animals and outdoor adventures. It sounds like there are plenty of all of those to go around.

  4. I really did not know much about Mauritius before reading this article. I am amazed by the many options a visitor to Mauritius has. The abundant exotic wildlife, pristine beaches, botanical gardens and the food are enough reasons for me to put Mauritius on my list. A great find indeed!

  5. Where to start – so much great stuff in this article. Loved the natural wonders, the markets, the food. The umbrellas remind me of Hoi An, which I just love. Great article.

  6. Gosh, Nisha, there’s so much to Mauritius that I have yet to experience! We visited for our honeymoon, several years ago and stayed at a gorgeous resort on the west coast. But when I visited the East coast (near Ile aux Cerfs) I was blown by how much softer the sand was there. And then there’s the 7 coloured earth that I must see on our next visit! We did visit the glass factory (Phoenix) though, and that was a pretty amazing experience too!

  7. Now you have given way too many reasons to visit Mauritius Nisha, and each one of them looks more enticing than the other 🙂

    Btw I had no clue the country had so much wildlife…certainly something new I learnt today!

  8. You got me wetting my lips to go to another paradise island (done the Maldives many years ago and suffered with open wallet surgery). Great post and loving the photos. Safe travels 🙂

  9. The sunset in Mauritius has always mesmerized me. The captivating beaches, blue waters and the riot of colours in the sky, what can be more beautiful than this? But, here in this article you have given us a bucket of things that are worth visiting Mauritius for.

  10. I love visiting places where I can see some wildlife. Sounds like Mauritius still has lots of beautiful wildlife. O! And the food. The mix of creole, Chinese, Indian and European sounds like a dream. I am a fan of all of those cuisines 🙂 Crocodile sounds so interesting!

  11. I never really think of myself as someone who’s interested in geology until I end up looking at something like the 7 colored earth. It’s so cool! I’m going to have to add this to my nerd bucket list.

  12. Hi Nisha, Mauritius sounds like a fun place to be! Did you manage to practise your French here? 🙂 I just learnt that Air Asia would not be flying from KL to Mauritius anymore – what a shame – oh well, that doesn’t stop me. I will make my way to Mauritius soon, cheers!

    P.S. Am very keen to try that rum 🙂

  13. You have just brought me with you while reading this. I didn’t know that Mauritius is really this beautiful. Everything that I might need to experience is in Mauritius. The Chamarel & 23 colored earth is really stunning and would really love to see it with my naked eyes. This is truly a great list on how to experience Mauritius in a way that you’ll be amazed. Thank you for sharing this with us.

  14. What a fantastic list of things to do. I think I would enjoy the Curious Corner. Seems like such a fun place. I also really like all the different outdoor activities that you can do. I love to be outside. The Chamarel looks so amazing. I know you said it is touristy but I have never seen anything like it and would love to see for myself one day.

  15. I liked the concept of Apravasi Ghat. The Chamarel or 23 coloured Earth seems to be intriguing. The picture of all the food just made me yearn to go and eat out! Absolutely loved your post.

  16. My kind of destination! Hoping to go this year, I dont need 15 things to do, as long as there are sandy beaches, good food and good shopping I am happy! From the pictures I can see myself already shopping for the colofrul baskets!

  17. I would love to visit Mauritius! I am fluent in French so I think it would be easy. And the botanical gardens and geological wonders look spectacular. I also like that amazing display of umbrellas!

  18. Oh Mauritius just looks amazing and is somewhere I haven’t been just yet. For some reason I never thought of wildlife when thinking of Mauritius – usually just beautiful beaches, but the wildlife sounds incredible. That food sounds pretty great too. I love that it’s such a mix of cuisines. I would definitely have to pack my stretchy pants. Thanks for the comprehensive guide.

  19. I have had Mauritius on my radar for awhile. So just had to look at your post on the top things to do. I can see why people call it “paradise”. I would definitely be drawn to the beaches and the chance for scuba diving. On the flip side, mountains and waterfalls are also a great attraction. The amazing colours of the Chamarel dunes would be awesome to visit. Now I just need to get it on the travel plan!

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