Mauritius
Mauritius is pretty much how I remember it; lush countryside, mountain peaks, hillside tea plantations and fields of sugar cane (although sugar production has now been replaced by tourism as the number one industry in Mauritius). The island is little more than 38 miles by 29 miles but getting anywhere still takes time as the road networks are not brilliant.
Since our last visit the island has seen much development with many new top notch hotel chains claiming a small slice of this island paradise. The island appeals to honeymooners, guests celebrating a special occasion or couples travelling to get married here. However I believe it offers something for everybody and most hotels cater for families and have fantastic facilities and clubs for children.
On this trip we stayed in the South West of the Island on the Le Morne Peninsula, a beautiful location with the Le Morne Brabant Mountain as the back drop to the hotels. Our first hotel was the Paradis Hotel, a super 5* beachside property with its own golf course. The rooms at this hotel were extremely spacious and featured huge bathrooms and a large outdoor terrace with comfy settees and daybeds. Just a few steps from our room and we were on the gorgeous beach with safe shallow water for swimming.
The Paradis is the sister hotel to the Dinarobin and it is possible to use the facilities and restaurants of both. We were lucky enough to enjoy some delicious dinners in the hotels restaurants and an exceptional beach BBQ, the fresh fish and seafood were superb!
After our conference we moved to a second property along the beach The Lux Le Morne (formerly Les Pavillions) and this hotel was stunning too! The rooms are smaller but extremely well appointed and featured a large terrace with double sunbeds and daybeds, and large bathrooms with outdoor showers. The rooms were exceptional and again just steps from the lovely beach. The hotel featured some private upper floor honeymoon suites which were perfect for a romantic holiday and included a Jacuzzi bath which overlooked the sea and beach, perfect at sunset!
The Lux Le Morne again had a choice of 3 restaurants all fantastic and offering buffet dining, Thai Cuisine and beach side dining. Bonfire dinners can be arranged on the beach, excellent for a special occasion or just a treat. The other special touch that impressed me about this hotel was that in the lobby area, they had a traditional old fashioned telephone box, and from here you were able to calls free of charge to almost anywhere in the world, this was a refreshing change in a modern era where most hotels want to charge extortionate amounts for phoning from your room.
The main highlight of our trip was hiring a boat for 2 hours to be taken out to sea to swim with wild dolphins, this is an amazing experience. We also enjoyed a trip to the tea plantations and tea tasting, lunch at an old plantation house and a tour of the rum distillery and vanilla growing gardens.
Mauritius is a beautiful island paradise and I hope to return again in the not so distant future. The main thing for me that has not altered and still stands out is the people - they are the most friendly, genuine people I have experienced abroad, always smiling and willing to help .
