Don't like the sand in your toes - take to the Jungle !

I see part of my role as a travel professional is to promote travel to places that take responsibility for their footprint and actively encourage eco-tourism. You may have read in the press that The Beach is Thailand made famous by Leonardo di Caprio and the Island of Boracay in the Philippines have been temporarily closed in a bid to save the corals and give the eco systems time to regenerate. In truth it runs much deeper than that. Boracay has recently been described as a cess pit. Humans did that.

In Mauritius the eco-tourism industry is expanding; with swathes of little unknown and vast areas of natural parks, wild flowers, kestrels and parakeets which are often forgotten as visitors rush to its white sands and pretty beaches. Tourists have habitually chosen beach resort hotels and go for the all-inclusive experience with the excitement of flopping on a sunbed drinking in the crystal Mauritian waters with a cocktail in hand, but things are starting to change.

Eco-tourism is strongly backed by the Mauritian government, it generates significant revenue and fuels the promotion of intense conservation of the island’s ecology and investment to fund forest regeneration projects and wildlife protection schemes. This is the new buzz word in Mauritius; over 1m tourists are expected to take the eco-tourism option by 2020.

When I was in Mauritius in the 1980's I stayed in a traditional Creole cottage; it was painted bright yellow with green shutters, and white picket fencing. I slept on a simple mattress on the floor, which often got bumped out onto the veranda (that's an Indo-Portuguese word by the way) at night. I remember eating rice and bread for breakfast with curry, rice and curry for lunch and curry and rice for dinner. The curries were all very different and it was baptism by fire with the Mauritian Chillies. My favourite food was the dholl poori, a soft pancake made with grounded yellow split pea flour filled with bean curry, wild herbs, sweet tomatoes and chilli.

Today you can stay in deluxe waterfront properties, and enjoy the revival of real Mauritian cuisine, merged with the French influence from their late 18th century occupation, Dutch Colonial influence from their tenure in the 17th century and of course from the Brits who got their hands on this wonderful island from 1810 - 1968. Chips are still popular here, but Creole cuisine remains supreme. Thankfully.

To experience the real Mauritius head to the south coast and Bell Ombre. If only for the day see a Mauritius without the development, go off the beaten track and explore the wild and authentic. If you want to find your own Jurassic Park head southwest to the Chamarel Valley and the Black River Gorges National Park, teaming with waterfalls, jungle trails and wildlife; stay a few nights in an eco-lodge - glamping personified but with care and respect for the environment.

So for your next safari, or maybe your first...why not go off-piste and try Mauritius!