POP 1.34 MILLION / %230

Best Places to Eat

¨ Eureka Table d’Hôte (p60)

¨ Le Château Restaurant (p119)

¨Chez Tante Athalie (p83)

¨Palais de Barbizon (p98)

¨ Cabanne du Pêcheur (p69)

¨ Lambic (p54)

Best Places to Sleep

¨ Le Saint Géran (p128)

¨ Le Prince Maurice (p128)

¨ Lux Le Morne (p104)

¨ La Maison d’Été (p129)

¨ Le Preskîl (p114)

MauritiusWhy Go?Mark Twain once wrote that ‘Mauritius was made first and then heaven, heaven being copied after Mauritius’. For the most part, it’s true: Mauritius is rightly famed for its sap-phire waters, powder-white beaches and luxury resorts. But there’s so much more to Mauritius than the beach when it comes to attractions. There’s bird watching and hiking in the forested and mountainous interior or world-class diving and snorkelling. Or there are boat trips to near-perfect islets and excursions to fabulous botanical gardens and colonial plantation houses. Either way, the possibilities can seem endless. And the real Mauritius – a hot curry of different cultures, traffic and quiet fishing villages – is never far away.

Ultimately, Mauritius is the kind of place that rewards even the smallest attempts at exploration. So, if your big-gest discovery is the beach butler service at your hotel, then you’ll need to plan a second visit!

When to Go ¨Mauritius enjoys a typically tropical climate with year-round

heat. The summer months are December to April, when it can be extremely humid, and the cooler winter, such as it is, runs from May to November. Coastal temperatures range between 25°C and 33°C in summer and between 18°C and 24°C in winter. On the plateau it will be some 5°C cooler.

¨ Peak cyclone months are January and February, with cyclones possible until April.

¨High season roughly runs from November to April, with a Christmas–New Year peak, although other factors (French school holidays; for example) can also cause spikes in prices and visitor numbers.

Includes ¨Port Louis . . . . . . . . . . .48Central Plateau . . . . . . . 57Grand Baie . . . . . . . . . . .69Flic en Flac . . . . . . . . . .83Tamarin & Rivière Noire . . . . . . . . . 91Chamarel . . . . . . . . . . . .96Le Morne Peninsula . .103Mahébourg . . . . . . . . .105Trou d’Eau Douce . . . . 123

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Blue BayMarine Park

MOKA

RIVIÈRE DU

REMPART

GRAND PORT

FLACQ

PORT LOUIS

SAVANNE

PAMPLEMOUSSES

RIVIÈRENOIRE

I N D I A N

O C E A N

Île auxCerfs

Coin de MireNature Reserve

Île auxBénitiers

Îlot Gabriel

Île PlateNature Reserve

Île RondeNature Reserve

Île aux SerpentsNature Reserve

La FermeReservoir

GrandBassin

Mare LongueReservoir

Tamarin FallsReservoir

BlueBay

Mare auxVacoas

Reservoir

Grande Rivière Sud-Est

Rivière des Créo le s

Pointe auxPiments

Le MornePeninsula

CapMalheureux

Pointe auxCanonniers

Pointe d'EsnySSR International

Airport

Mt Bambous(626m)

Pieter Both(823m)

Le Pouce(812m)

Mt Cocotte(771m)

Piton de la PetiteRivière Noire

(828m)

Mt du Rempart(545m)

Corps deGarde (719m)

Lion Mountain(480m)

Le MorneBrabant(556m)

Tourelle duTamarin (548m)

RochesNoires

Poudred'Or

Poste deFlacq

Pereybère

QuartierMilitaire

Balaclava

Mont Choisy

PORTLOUIS

Centre deFlacq

BelleMare

PalmarTrou d'EauDouce

Grand Gaube

Triolet

Trou auxBiches Goodlands

AlbionMoka

Rose HillQuatreBornes

PhoenixFloréalVacoas

Curepipe

NouvelleFrance

Plaisance

VieuxGrand Port

Mahébourg

Rivière desAnguilles

Surinam

SouillacBel Ombre

Baie du Cap

La Gaulette

GrandeRivière Noire

GrandBaie

Blue Bay

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Flic en Flac

Tamarin

Black RiverGorges

NationalPark

Chamarel

Eureka

Pamplemousses

Île aux Aigrettes

East-CoastBeaches

#8 Northern Islands

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1 Flic en Flac (p83) Diving and snorkelling the best underwater sites of Mauritius.

2 Black River Gorges National Park (p99) Hiking through forested gorges, past waterfalls and looking for endangered birds.

3 Chamarel (p96) Pausing for lunch in this emerging foodie and mountain village.

4 Île aux Aigrettes (p112) Discovering how Mauritius once looked with a boat trip t o this beautiful island.

5 Pamplemousses (p81) Exploring a botanical garden, a sugar museum and a fine architectural relic.

6 Tamarin (p91) searching for whales and dolphins off the west coast.

7 Eureka (p59) Enjoying the best in colonial plantation architecture.

8 Northern Islands (p74) Cruising in a catamaran to beautiful offshore peaks.

9 East-Coast Beaches (p121) Finding your perfect patch of sand along the east coast.

Mauritius Highlights