the Perfect Itinerary Around the Island

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Planning your journey to Mauritius and undecided the place to begin? In this itinerary for 7 days in Mauritius by automobile, I’ll share with you a few of the greatest issues to do in Mauritius. One week in Mauritius is sufficient to see many of the island, because it’s very small – you may drive throughout Mauritius in lower than 6 hours. This itinerary will function essentially the most lovely seashores in Mauritius, a pleasant hike with a surprising panoramic view and a little bit of sightseeing and a few culinary highlights.

We visited Mauritius in October and despite the fact that it wasn’t very popular, we nonetheless loved it lots. In reality, cooler climate was significantly better for sightseeing and it was completely potential to swim throughout the day on most seashores! We did a full circle round Mauritius and managed to search out one of the best seashores on the island.

Here’s a brief overview of the 7-day itinerary for Mauritius by automobile:

Day 1: Arrival, rental automobile choose up and keep at Anantara Iko Blue Bay

Day 2: Bois Cheri Tea Factory, Black River Gorges Hike, dinner at Château de Bel Ombre and evening at Dinarobin Beachcomber

Day 3: Morning on the seaside, Flic-en-Flac, Port Louis (lunch) and evening at Veranda Pointe Aux Biches or Beachcomber Trou Aux Biches

Day 4: Exploring Trou Aux Biches, lunch at La Plage Beach Club, dinner within the Gran Baie space

Day 5: Exploring Gran Baie, Le Château de Labourdonnais, Pereybere Beach, evening at Constance Prince Maurice 

Day 6: Shopping for souvenirs in a grocery store, drive and keep at C Mauritius (All-inclusive)

Day 7: Morning on the seaside, try, drive again to the airport and flight again 

Useful hyperlinks to your journey to Mauritius:

Flights: Check costs and availability

Car rental: verify availability right here

Hotels: Anantara Iko, Dinarobin Beachcomber, C Mauritius

Before we begin, I simply needed to reply some steadily requested questions on Mauritius: 

Mauritius FAQs:

What time of the 12 months did you go to Mauritius? What’s one of the best month to go to Mauritius?

If you’re questioning what time of the 12 months we visited Mauritius and what’s typically one of the best month to go to Mauritius, preserve studying this part. We went to Mauritius at the beginning of October, and we felt prefer it was a bit too chilly for our liking. If we had arrived 2-3 weeks later, it will have been good! 

However, everybody has totally different temperature preferences for his or her good vacation. Some individuals want actually sizzling climate (if it’s not 33C exterior, is it even a seaside vacation?) – on this case, it’s higher to go to Mauritius in December, January and February – it’s the most popular season, and it’s going to be very popular and humid in Mauritius. It can also be the rain season, so that you might need a variety of rainfall, particularly in February. 

If you are feeling unwell when it’s sizzling exterior and customarily dislike excessive temperatures, then you may go to Mauritius between April and October, because it’s a lot colder there throughout these months(between May and September, it will get fairly chilly in Mauritius, temperatures may be as little as 18-20C). 

Quite a lot of locals informed us that their favorite month in Mauritius is October – it’s not too sizzling but, but it surely’s very sunny and really nice. However, when you like swimming in very heat water (25-27C), then you must wait till the tip of October – the start of November.

Is Mauritius secure?

We discovered Mauritius very secure. The solely space that appeared a bit disagreeable was the capital, Port Louis, and naturally, not the whole capital, however just a few areas of it. However, when you’re solely staying in Mauritius for 7 days, it’s unlikely that you’ll keep in Port Louis in any respect. 

Which seaside in Mauritius is one of the best one?

If you’re questioning what’s one of the best seaside in Mauritius, it’s very onerous to say, as it would rely in your preferences. I’ve seen a variety of lists of one of the best seashores in Mauritius and having visited most of them, I can say that I in all probability disagree with half of them. 

Our favorite seashores have been Le Morne Beach (the seaside of Paradisus Beachcomber and Dinarobin Beachcomber) and the Belle Mare seaside – e.g. the seaside of C Mauritius. 

We discovered Grand Baie a bit disappointing, despite the fact that lots of people beneficial it. However, Pereybere seaside was pretty. I’ll speak about seashores in a separate article and as soon as it’s prepared, I’ll hyperlink it right here. 

How to get to Mauritius?

Most individuals purchase flights to go to Mauritius and fly both from London, Vienna or Paris straight (when you’re in Europe) or have an interchange in Dubai or Istanbul. You may fly to Mauritius from Reunion, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, India and South Africa. There may be extra constitution flights arriving from varied locations. You can verify the costs and availability of flights to Mauritius right here > 

It’s additionally potential to go to Mauritius by boat. There are cruises that depart in Cape Town and head to Europe by way of Mauritius however all of them take 20+ days. 

Renting a automobile in Mauritius

Mauritius has loads of automobile rental companies and also you simply want to select the one which fits your funds and has the automobile that you just’d wish to lease. We normally lease vehicles via Rentalcars.com they usually have fairly just a few choices in Mauritius & you may verify the costs and availability right here >

Without additional ado, let’s get began with the itinerary for every week in Mauritius in October! 

7-day itinerary for Mauritius by automobile (every week in Mauritius: greatest issues to do)

Day 1: Arrival, rental automobile choose up and keep at Anantara Iko Blue Bay

Pros and cons of Anantara Iko

We landed round 2pm on our first day in Mauritius. Immigration and customs took a really brief time because the airport workers within the airport was very environment friendly, nevertheless, our rental automobile pick-up took some time. We rented a automobile via an area firm referred to as Ola and the gross sales affiliate was not there once we arrived. He finally arrived after quarter-hour and we may proceed with checking in and checking the automobile. 

The drive from Mauritius airport to Anantara solely look 5 minutes. Anantara Iko is the closest resort to the airport, that’s why a variety of crew members keep there (we’ve seen crew members and pilots from Emirates there). Anantara Iko is a really new lodge, and the rooms have been very trendy and good. In my opinion, it’s a bit costly for what you get, however when you guide prematurely, the value may be superb. You can verify the costs and availability of Anantara Iko right here > I additionally filmed a tour round Anantara Iko, and I’ll hyperlink the YouTube video beneath. 

Anantara Iko has a stunning seaside, some of the virgin and picturesque seashores on the whole island. However, it had a black flag on the seaside, so swimming wasn’t allowed. However, all of the lodge workers informed us that it was okay to swim there. We managed to dip very quick close to the doorway, the place the water was very shallow, but it surely was fairly chilly to swim there due to the wind! 

The foremost draw back of Anantara Iko was the truth that it was very windy there, and it felt fairly chilly within the evenings (we regretted not bringing a puffer jacket with us). 

Dinner in Mahebourg

For dinner, we determined to drive to a close-by city, Mahebourg, situated round quarter-hour away by automobile. Mahebourg shouldn’t be very touristy, and there isn’t a lot to see, nevertheless, we discovered a few eating places with very down-to-earth native home made dishes and it was a stunning expertise. 

Alternatively, when you don’t really feel like driving, you may dine at Anantara, because it has 3 choices for eating, from a really inexpensive pool restaurant to a high-end a-la-cart restaurant (which, sadly, wasn’t nice). 

Day 2: Bois Cheri Tea Factory, Black River Gorges Hike, dinner at Château de Bel Ombre and evening at Dinarobin Beachcomber

Visiting Bois Cheri Tea Factory

Our second day in Mauritius was in all probability essentially the most eventful and essentially the most tiring day of the journey. We began our day early, and round 10:30 within the morning, we had already completed breakfast and checked out.

Bois Cheri Tea manufacturing unit was our first vacation spot of the day. It took us simply half-hour to succeed in it. The manufacturing unit was established within the nineteenth century, nevertheless, it nonetheless produces good black tea utilizing conventional strategies. It has turn into a well-liked vacationer vacation spot for these within the tea-making course of. Visitors can take a tour of the manufacturing unit, pattern varied blends of tea, and buy souvenirs from the on-site store.

The territory of the manufacturing unit may be very spectacular – to succeed in the restaurant and the store, it is advisable to drive via an enormous a part of the territory and, truthfully, it’s gorgeous. You may see a variety of totally different animals there, from monkeys to deer that eat the tea leaves. 

Black River Gorges Hike

After driving for 15 extra minutes, we reached Black River Gorges, National Park. 

Black River Gorges National Park is a protected space situated within the southwestern a part of Mauritius. It covers an space of over 67 sq. kilometres and is understood for its lush tropical forest, which is dwelling to an array of endemic plant and animal species, together with the Mauritian flying fox, pink pigeon, and kestrel. The park additionally affords climbing trails that wind via the forest, providing breathtaking views of the gorges and waterfalls that give the park its identify.

There are a number of entrances with parking and bathroom amenities, nevertheless, as we had time restrictions and will solely spend 2-2.5 hours climbing, we determined to make use of the Le Petrin entrance and hike part of the Macchabée path all the best way to the Macchabée viewpoint. The view from there was gorgeous! The hike was fairly straightforward; it took us round 55 minutes to go up, 20 minutes to take pictures and one other 45 minutes to go all the best way again. 

Before heading to our lodge, Dinarobin, we determined to cease at a grocery store and purchase some meals for a fast lunch and a few snacks for the experience. Just circa 10 minutes driving away, in Chamouny, you could find a big grocery store referred to as Winner’s. 

Dinarobin Beachcomber and dinner at Château de Bel Ombre

It took us round 1.5 hours (or virtually 2 hours, together with the grocery store break) to succeed in the Le Morne peninsula. On the best way, we drove by way of the Southern coastal highway of the island. The Southern a part of Mauritius seems very laid-back and relaxed. It’s definitely not as busy or as developed because the Northern a part of the island. 

Our lodge, Dinarobin Beachcomber and its sister lodge Paradis Beachcomber, the place our associates stayed, is without doubt one of the most lovely resorts that we’ve ever visited! It’s situated on a ravishing seaside with views of the Le Morne Brabant. The rooms are a bit dated, however the whole lot else was unbelievable! Dinarobin is a bit bit extra upscale in comparison with Paradisus, because it has 6 heated swimming pools. However, the seaside is healthier at Dinarobin as there are fewer rocks and the doorway to the ocean is far simpler. Dinarobin is without doubt one of the hottest resorts in Mauritius and will get booked out fairly early (truly, the one cause why our associates picked Paradisus is that Dinarobin was totally booked). You can verify the provision right here >

For dinner, we drove to Bel Ombre (circa half-hour) to some of the iconic eating places in Mauritius situated in a historic Château – Château de Bel Ombre. While it was very pricy and the meals wasn’t extraordinary, the place itself was gorgeous, and it was positively definitely worth the drive, in my view!

Day 3: Morning on the seaside, Flic-en-Flac, Port Louis (lunch) and evening at Veranda Pointe Aux Biches

As we liked the seaside at Paradis & Dinarobin, we determined to remain there till 1pm. When you try, you may nonetheless use the amenities of the lodge for a few hours, in order that wasn’t an issue.

Around 1:30pm, we left the lodge and headed to the North of Mauritius, the place our subsequent resort was situated. Since the journey was over 1.5 hours, we determined to cease at Flic-en-Flac after which at Port Louis for late lunch.

Flic-en-Flac is a big seaside, which I discovered in a few lists telling about essentially the most lovely seashores in Mauritius. However, in my view, Flic-en-Flac wasn’t spectacular in any respect – almost each seaside we noticed in Mauritius was higher than Flic-en-Flac, so I’d advocate simply skipping it and persevering with straight to Port Louis for lunch.

Lunch in Port Louis

Port Louis is the capital of Mauritius; nevertheless, it’s not a really spectacular metropolis. There are just a few eating places which can be value stopping by and certainly one of them is Wapalam La Place. We had a really good meal there, and the costs have been rather more inexpensive than within the extra touristy areas of the island. 

Heading to the North of the island. Pointe Aux Biches

Our ultimate cease for the third day in Mauritius was within the North of the island, in a spot referred to as Pointe Aux Biches. Initially, we have been hoping to remain nearer to a a lot nicer seaside, Trou Aux Biches, however resorts promote out fairly shortly there, so there was nothing out there inside our value vary. We booked Veranda Pointe Aux Biches for 2 nights and it had good parking and good rooms. Veranda Pointe Aux Biches is a a lot easier resort in comparison with Dinarobin; nevertheless, when you’re on a tighter funds, it’s nonetheless a pleasant possibility. If you’re reserving your vacation early sufficient, there may nonetheless be resorts nearer to Trou Aux Biches that I’d advocate over Veranda, e.g. Trou Aux Biches Beachcomber or Royal Palm Beachcomber in Gran Baie! 

Day 4: Exploring Trou Aux Biches, lunch at La Plage Beach Club, dinner within the Gran Baie space

Exploring Trou Aux Biches

Our fourth day in Mauritius was fairly laid again. We determined to take a break from driving within the first half of the day and simply walked all the best way to Trou Aux Biches from our lodge, Veranda. It was a pleasant 30-minute stroll and many of the stroll was on the coast. However, the seaside between Veranda resort and Trou Aux Biches shouldn’t be developed – it’s not potential to swim there, as the doorway to the ocean may be very rocky. Nonetheless, the views are very good there!

Once we reached Trou Aux Biches, we went for a stroll on the seaside – it’s truly very lengthy and clear, nevertheless, it’s not as spectacular as another seashores in Mauritius! The sand shouldn’t be as white and the water shouldn’t be as turquoise as in Blue Bay, Belle Mare and even Pereybere seaside.

For lunch, we met with our good friend, who was initially from Mauritius and was coincidentally visiting her household across the identical dates once we have been in Mauritius, so we had a stunning lunch at La Plage Beach Club. La Plage had a few of the greatest meals we’ve tried in Mauritius and the place was attractive! Since it’s a well-liked seaside restaurant, I like to recommend reserving it prematurely. 

We spent the remainder of the daylight on the Trou Aux Biches seaside. While it’s not potential to lease umbrellas and sunbeds, there, you may truly carry your individual. For instance, we purchased this inflatable solar lounger from Amazon and it was very comfortable. 

Dinner within the Gran Baie space

For dinner, we drove to the Gran Baie space. We discovered a pleasant seafood restaurant that had a very good ranking on Google referred to as La Kaza. It wasn’t too tough to search out parking close by, nevertheless, remember that the restaurant doesn’t have its personal parking, it is advisable to park within the streets close by. The meals was good and never too pricy, so total, it was a stunning place I’d advocate. 

Day 5: Le Château de Labourdonnais, Pereybere Beach, evening at Constance Prince Maurice

Château de Labourdonnais

On our fifth day, we had our breakfast comparatively early, round 8:30am, checked out and drove to Château de Labourdonnais. It took us round half-hour to get there. Château de Labourdonnais is a museum situated in a surprising colonial-style château constructed over 150 years in the past. You want to purchase a ticket to go to Château de Labourdonnais, nevertheless, the tickets are fairly inexpensive (below $8) they usually additionally embrace a rum tasting! We couldn’t style a lot, as Jose was driving, however they offer you very beneficiant parts of rum! 

There can also be a pleasant restaurant situated proper subsequent to the Château, nevertheless, we didn’t have an opportunity to go to it; therefore, I can’t say whether or not we’d advocate it or not. 

Pereybere seaside

After visiting the Château, we headed again to the Gran Baie space, this time throughout the daylight. We had a fast lunch in a small spot serving contemporary falafel after which drove for five extra minutes to the Pereybere seaside. Pereybere seaside is a really picturesque public seaside that may be very in style amongst locals. Actually, it was our good friend who beneficial Pereybere seaside to us – she stated that it’s certainly one of her favourites. We appreciated it lots – it was very fairly, and because it was a weekday, it wasn’t too crowded! Pereybere might be in my prime 3 seashores in Mauritius! 

Moving to the following location in Mauritius

In the afternoon, we determined that it was time to move to our subsequent resort. We truly booked Zilwa Attitude situated only a brief 20-minute drive away from Pereybere seaside, however having stayed at Zilwa, I can’t carry myself to advocate this resort to anybody. Both our associates and we had points there which have been utterly ignored by the workers, they tried to overcharge us on the checkout, and total, the perspective of the workers was very unhealthy (therefore the identify Zilwa Attitude, maybe? You’ll be getting fairly an perspective) – so in contrast to different resorts in Mauritius the place everybody was very pleasant and useful! 

Since we had such a nasty time at Zilwa, I like to recommend reserving Constance Prince Maurice as an alternative – it’s situated a bit additional away, but it surely’s a a lot nicer lodge with a nicer seaside (the seaside at Zilwa was very unhealthy).

Day 6: Shopping for souvenirs & staying at C Mauritius (All-inclusive)

On our 6th day in Mauritius, we awakened fairly early (as we needed to depart Zilwa as early as potential) and began driving in the direction of our final vacation spot, Belle Mare. 

On the best way, we truly discovered a fairly large grocery store, Super U, the place we purchased some souvenirs for family and friends. If you’re questioning what you should purchase there that may be thought-about a memento, properly, these are principally edible issues corresponding to dried fruits, tea, rum, and jams. We actually appreciated black tea in Mauritius and rum was nice as properly, so we purchased just a few small bottles of rum and a variety of tea.

Staying at C Mauritius 

We arrived in C Mauritius simply in time for lunch and a bit sooner than the check-in time. C Mauritius is a compact, all-inclusive resort situated on a surprising seaside (which was a bit windy however a lot hotter than Blue Bay seaside at Anantara). The rooms have been very trendy and appeared fairly new, and the lodge amenities have been nice. There was a small spa that the visitors may use freed from cost (the hammam was damaged, although) and a health club with the most recent tools. 

The seaside space had a variety of bean baggage and even a pleasant swing and appeared fairly boho. The seaside of C Mauritius was my second favorite seaside on the island after Le Morne! The solely draw back was the wind – it was fairly windy there, however the water temperature was optimum for swimming in the course of October.

What impressed us essentially the most, nevertheless, was the meals. The number of the dishes wasn’t big, however the high quality and uniqueness have been unmatchable. From the superb salad bar to the mains and sweets space, the meals choices in C Mauritius have been very spectacular! 

Day 7: Morning on the seaside, checkout & driving again to the airport  

On our final day in Mauritius, we spent the morning on the seaside and simply after the checkout, we headed in the direction of the airport, as our associates had an earlier flight than we did. It took us simply over an hour to succeed in the airport from C Mauritius. However, even throughout this final experience in Mauritius (which meant we did a full circle across the island), Mauritius managed to impress us because the vegetation on this a part of the island was once more totally different to what we had seen earlier than, and the landscapes have been very distinctive. Overall, the route was very scenic, and we seen that there’s development occurring alongside the route, and the federal government is constructing a biking monitor, which is fairly superb!

When we dropped out associates on the airport, we nonetheless had a few hours to kill, so we determined to spend these hours on the Blue Bay seaside – not the seaside of Anantara, however the public one. Since it was Sunday, it was completely packed, nevertheless, we nonetheless discovered a sport for our inflatable mattress and spent a few hours there. Surprisingly, the seaside wasn’t as windy because the seaside of Anantara, in reality, it wasn’t windy in any respect! 

At round 5pm, we drove again to the airport, dropped the automobile, and it was time for us to fly again to London. 

Summary of 7-day itinerary for Mauritius – highway journey

Overall, I believe that 7 days in Mauritius are sufficient to see the island. Mauritius is fairly small, so you are able to do a full circle across the island in lower than 6 hours. Nonetheless, varied components of the island have their distinctive vegetation and landscapes and even inhabitants and tradition. The South of Mauritius is fairly laid-back, rural and has a low-density of inhabitants. However, it has essentially the most lovely seashores in my view (Le Morne peninsula). Gran Baie may be very busy and dense. Belle Mare doesn’t have a dense inhabitants, but it surely’s an space with a variety of upscale resorts and a few of the most lovely seashores. 

If you assume that this itinerary is a bit too intense and also you would favor to drive much less and chill out a bit extra, I like to recommend staying 2-3 nights at Le Morne, 2 nights across the Gran Baie and a couple of nights in Belle Mare! 

Should you’ve gotten any questions, be happy to drop me a message on Instagram, you could find me as @lizatripsget

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