Join Sassy Nation and over 200,000 Authors, Bloggers and other Solopreneurs Worldwide!

You’ll also get SassyZenGirl’s popular CHEATSHEET of 11 ROOKIE MISTAKES that CRUSH 99% of Newbie Entrepreneurs – so YOU can avoid them & START with a BANG!

Why I did not like MAURITIUS….

Well…. there it is……

I said it.

I did not like Mauritius.

Not at all!

Surprising, yes….. but that was my experience.

Somehow I had envisioned white sandy beaches, palm trees, quiet lagoons and anything else you might expect in a tropical paradise, but there was none of that.

The typical Mauritius photos must be either photoshopped or come from 5 star resorts with manicured artificial beaches and imported palm trees – because they certainly aren’t native to Mauritius!

Beaches were tiny, 2 maybe 3 meters in latitude for the most part. Often black and rocky, and instead of palm trees, featuring regular trees and green grass which just doesn’t look that attractive.

Mauritius

The color of the water is beautiful though – and very distinct for Mauritius. Very different from the turquoise all around the Cape Peninsula for example.

As for the island itself, many parts are pretty run down, especially the smaller towns – and the weather……oh the weather……

The Worst Weather Ever (for a whole Week…)

I probably had the worst weather ever – and for an entire week! Dark clouds, heavy rain and thunderstorms all day long – and – hot and super humid. The worst climate I’ve ever experienced!

Obviously, in sunny weather my experience would have been better though probably not that much.

I’ve since heard similar experiences from other travelers, and my South African friends were also not head over heels. They were recommending the Seychelles instead.

I was definitely not the only one who felt Mauritius was a bit overrated….

In case you are wondering – I had great local guides, Mauritian friends who had invited me to stay with them, so didn’t miss the “great secret spots” that only a local would know.

My friends were of Indian descent, as are more than half(!) the population.

There are three major influences in Mauritius making for an interesting cultural blend – Indian, French and Creole. Yep, that’s right!

Very unusual and giving Mauritius her very own distinct flair – and that’s a compliment….;-)

Food is amazing, people are friendly, life is laid back.

However, not at immigration….

I almost Got Quarantined

When I arrived at the airport from South Africa, I didn’t have my friends’ address because she was picking me up.

The immigration officer insisted on calling her and asking for the address. Turns out he actually lived in the same neighborhood and suggested we should have a beer sometime…..;-)

After that – I was finally admitted in.

The best part was still to come though!

The next morning, my friend (who is again, Mauritian) received a phone call from the health branch of immigration demanding to take my blood at 11am that morning – to test it for God knows what.

They felt that having been in Botswana posed a health risk that needed to be investigated.

I’m not making this up!

My friend, a government employee herself, firmly told them that wasn’t going to happen and that it made no sense since I was leaving in a few days and showed no symptoms.

Keep in mind that test samples would actually have to be shipped to the UK for testing – seriously!

Obviously, they had a lot of time on their hands if they could make house calls – and fortunately, my friend put an end to this.

The most complex immigration process ever!

Coming back to the weather…..

As I mentioned I had the good fortune of having local guides. People who loved their island and had lived there all their lives – ideal to show me the beautiul spots – and there certainly are quite a few!

My friend had been out sick for a few days, prompting the co-workers and superiors of her husband – an IT engineer also working for the government – to insist that he stay home as well and be with his wife.

Again, I’m not kidding…

For those in good positions, life is good in Mauritius and very comfortable and relaxed.

A Mauritian Road Trip

This allowed us all to go on a little road trip together, exploring some of the most beautiful parts of Southern Mauritius, and this was the itinerary:

Mauritius road trip map

Day 1 was the loop on the left, starting from Rose Belle. On Day 2, we went to Mahebourg and Blue Bay (see below).

A Tea Plantation and a Rhumerie

Our first stop was a tea plantation along the way – Bois Cherie. Nice scenery, but a typical tourist attraction and quite crowded, so we continued on.

We also passed a famous rum distillery – Rhumerie de Chamarel – and passed on that, too….;-)

The weather had just cleared a little and we wanted to enjoy that, rather than trying this wide selection of rums:

rhumerie, mauritius

A Luscious Rainforest of a National Park

Instead we headed into Black River Gorge National Park and were treated to this scenery:

Mauritius

Mauritius

Thick, heavy rain clouds everywhere (this is what it looked like the whole week I was there….)

Mauritius

“Paper Trees” as the locals call them…

Mauritius

Along the way, many waterfalls, including Chamarel Waterfall on our way to the ocean.

Mauritius

With sunny blue skies these views would have been stunning no doubt, and Mauritius certainly has her wonders…..

For lunch, my friends took me to one of their favorite creole restaurants near Chamarel, and the food was amazing! Then we continued to another Mauritian landmark:

The Le Morne Peninsula

Located on the far South West corner on the island, Le Morne is easily recognizable by this big rock/monolith:

Mauritius

even the clouds gave way for a short moment.

Le Morne is a popular water sports area, especially among kite surfers.

Mauritius

Mauritius

The mountain is beautiful, the beach, again, not so much….

A Beautiful Coastal Line

From here, we continued along the coastal road, dotted with a few more famous spots:

Choisy

Mauritius

Mauritius

Baie Du Cap

Mauritius

Mauritius

Riviere Des Galets

Mauritius

Mauritius

Gris Gris Beach at Souillac

Mauritius

Mauritius

green grass never far from the beach…. – but otherwise, a beautiful spot.

That was it for the first day!

The Laid Back Fishing Village of Mahebourg

Day 2 took us to the fishing town of Mahebourg. My friends love to go there and just relax, eat good food, sit by the water front and enjoy life.

And it is a nice spot!

Mauritius

Mauritius

The food was amazing! – first, they bought local fish, fresh from the boat, for a delicious dinner…

Mauritius

and then we headed to the market for some amazing Indian street food!

Mauritius

Mauritius

Mauritius

Doesn’t look like much, but soooooo yummy!

Lovely Blue Bay

From here we headed down the Eastern Coast to Blue Bay, another lovely spot – though once again, quite rainy.


Mauritius

Mauritius

On my remaining days, I returned to some of these spots and also drove up to the North Coast via the capital Port Louis (not much to see there….).

The Charme of Grand Baie

The North of Mauritius is drier and less humid, so normally much more predictable weather, but even up here in lovely Grand Baie, it was raining most of the time – though I did manage to sneak in this sunnier shot:

grand baie, mauritius

Overall, Mauritius is definitely a nice island, but compared to the many other options – and my favorite islands of Hawaii and Bali – it doesn’t quite live up to the hype.

And it wasn’t just the rain. Mauritius didn’t touch me or move me – and that’s ok, certainly for Mauritius…..;-)

Maybe you’ll have a different experience and if so, I’d love to know! (in the comments below).

If you like islands you might also enjoy:

Bali Travel Guide - SassyZenGirl Gundi Gabrielle

Related Posts:

BALI – The Menjangan, one of my favorite spots on Earth

ZIMBABWE – The Magnificent Victoria Falls Hotel

THAILAND – Koh Samui and Phuket

NAMIBIA – Swakopmund, Belle by the Sea

SOUTH AFRICA – The Amazing Cape Pensinsula

One Man’s Mission to Erase Poverty for Botwana’s Poorest Children

11 thoughts on “Why I did not like MAURITIUS….”

  1. You should have done some more research before going there. Especially, when to go and where to go.
    Because the photos that you see online, they are real…. that much i can assure you. I have taken lots of them.
    Better luck next time.

  2. I was in Mauritius March 1 and 2, 2020. It’s a pretty island and I like Black River Gorges National Park. The scenery is beautiful and I particularly loved the monkeys – a mother was grooming a baby and none of the monkeys seemed to be bothered by all the people watching them. The only thing that was truly unique was the 7 colored earth. And, I was really surprised to see tortoises, since I didn’t know they could be found anywhere other than the Galapagos. I had no particular expectations and am not a beach person, so it was just another island for me. I’m glad that I’ve seen it, but wouldn’t go back.

  3. It’s good and it’s bad. Good points: the food even from street vendors is usually OK and the local beer goes down well. Organized sightseeing is also pretty good, and the beaches are by and large uncrowded on week-days.
    Bad points: driving (horrendous), crime rate (quite high) avoid going out late by night if possible, and cost of living (high, and going higher by the week, so it seems). Otherwise, bring sufficient funds to cover your stay, and all should be OK.

  4. *Mauritian* street food. Not Indian. Obviously influenced from various parts of the world, however our food is a concoction of different cuisines, with our own twist, which make it distinctively Mauritian. Certainly not Indian – Indian food is very different. You also missed out China in the list of influences… anyway, you should’ve had some mine frites. Mauritian food is !

    I have gorgeous pictures from Mauritius! Complete opposite to yours haha, you just got really unlucky with the weather sadly!

    • thanks for the feedback….:) – it is my Mauritian friends who called it “Indian” food and as someone who knows Indian very well, it certainly tasted like it. There were other places with more of a mix/blend, but this particular place was Indian (or Indian descent) and that population also seems to very strongly identify as Mauritian Indians… – oh well… 🙂

  5. I SO agree! – I also expected the world and it was sort of ok. We had better weather, but it just isn’t as great as you think it is – thanks for posting this!

    • odd, isn’t it? – usually places with a great reputation, are also really great….oh well, Mauritius is nice, I’m not denying that, just not as nice as the hype….

  6. I like your candor! – that’s really good to know, and certainly not what the photos usually present…. – and the quarantine, really….?

Comments are closed.

READY for the full picture?

Top 15 Marketing STrategies right now & Much more!

Malcare WordPress Security