Recently, I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to travel to Mauritius for work. Mauritius is an island located off the east coast of Africa and is a “short” 12-hour flight from London. A visit to this beautiful island was a first for me, a new country to visit, so I made sure to schedule a few extra days before in order to explore a bit of the island.
There are plenty of things to see on the island, and most people that come will stay for several days, so I won’t go into everything that’s possible but instead narrow it down to what I decided to do given that I only had 2.5 days to explore.
After some research, I decided that visiting the south of the island was where I would spend my time. I will preface that this was solely because seeing the Underwater Waterfall in Le Morne was my priority..
Getting around
Itinerary – my recommendations
- Trou aux Cerfs – this is a large crater from a dormant volcano. You can’t see the crater for all the trees and vegetation around it. I would skip this as it’s not visible unless your 6.5ft or taller, and even then, it’s literally just a large crater with trees surrounding it.
- Mare Aux Vacoas – this large reservoir is literally just that and isn’t worth a stop as it’s nothing to see.
- Alexandra Falls Viewpoint – these are quite hard to see from the viewpoint and you have to strain to see them through the trees. Unless you are going to hike down to these falls, I would not make a specific stop to get out and see them as you can’t even get a decent picture of them from your camera.
Flic en Flac
The beaches found in Flic-en-Flac are beautiful, as are the many hotels and resorts located along the beach. I ended up choosing to stay in this location for a few days as it was a good starting point for the tour of the south of the island. I really enjoyed the small boutique hotel I stayed in, which included an incredible infinity pool looking out on the ocean and was a perfect spot to watch the sunset. I can’t rave enough about the food at the hotel. Literally some of the best tuna I’ve ever had and wonderful service!!
The walk from this hotel along Flic-en-Flac beach was lovely. It was about a 45 min walk enjoying the waves, searching for shells and interesting coral washed up on shore and just relishing the sand beneath my feet. I ended up walking all the way to Sugar Beach Resort as at thisend of the beach you can see great views of Le Morne Brabant.
Grand Bassin
Also known as Gango Talao, this is a crater lake located in the southwest of the Island. Along the shoreline of this lake is a temple as well as several statues dedicated to Lord Shiva and other gods. The location is of significant importance to the Hindu population on the Island, as each year the island’s most important Hindu festival, Maha Shivaratri, attracts thousands of Hindus who make a pilgrimage to Grand Basin. The festival celebrates the god Shiva, one of the three major deities in Hinduism, and the pilgrims carry shrines dedicated to Shiva, and come to pray with offerings.
As you approach the Grand Bassin it’s hard not to miss two incredibly massive statutes of Lord Shiva and Durga Maa. As part of your tour, whether self-driving or organised, you will certainly want to stop here for some photos of not only these amazing statues, but to have some time to walk around the lake, perhaps see some of the local monkeys that call this lake area home.
Chamarel Waterfall
This is the tallest single drop waterfall on the island at 273 ft (82m) and can be found in the Seven Coloured Earth Park. The falls are formed by three distinct streams of water sourcing from the River Saint Denis and is surrounded by lush vegetation of Black River Gorges. You can visit the falls for free, once you pass the ticket booth at the entrance to the Seven Coloured Earth Reserve. There are two observation areas, one right at the back of the parking lot and the other up a series of stairs to the upper deck. Both areas are small and can get crowded so if you want to take in the falls and get the best people free photos, I advise making a stop here early. If you have time and want to enjoy the small pool of water at the bottom of the falls, there is a trail you can follow down to the
bottom.
Seven Coloured Earth Reserve
This geopark is famous for viewing the beautiful multicoloured dunes where you can literally see seven different colours of sand that have spontaneously settled in patterns that look as if these dunes are striped. This popular tourist attraction is a result of volcanic activity occurring between 3.5 million and 1.9 million years ago, and subsequently due to the climate found here. An erosion of basaltic rock occurred, leaving behind porous rock, and deposits of iron and aluminium oxide. Iron and aluminium repel each other, and this causes the phenomenon that causes each metal to spontaneously gather in colourful stripes.
These dunes are enclosed by a wooden fence, which allows tourists to wander around and enjoy the views of this geological wonder. There is a viewing platform at the top of the dunes and across from that on the opposite of the park is an outdoor dining area where you can enjoy a cup of the only locally grown and roasted coffee in Mauritius, grab a snack and relax in the shade.
The park is also home to several giant tortoises that will often be sunbathing in the mud. These tortoises are quite old and the park had one that lived up to 250 years of age.
Maconde View Lookout
This lookout is found near the village Baie du Cap on the south of the island. The viewpoint is located at the top of a hairpin turn along the coastal road and could be easily missed if you don’t slow down as you drive up. There is only a small area to pull up and park right before and after the look out.
The lookout is large rock formation that has a narrow and steep set of stairs affixed to it that bring you to the top of rock. The short climb up here provides you with stunning views of turquoise waters the of the Bay and Le Morne Brabant. Be prepared for a windy visit due to it’s location, but the quick stop here is well worth the views.
Seaplane Tour of the Underwater Waterfall
Booking an excursion to see this incredible illusion that is only visible from a bird’s eye view from the air was an absolute must when I realised, I’d be heading to Mauritius. There is nothing else like this anywhere else in the world and all I can say is do not miss an opportunity to see this and be sure to book a spot early!
There really are only two options to see this phenomenon, either by seaplane or by helicopter. Every helicopter tour company I looked up that offered this tour was incredibly expensive, circa £325+ for a 15 min ride, while the seaplane tour is much more reasonable and being in a seaplane was an adventure in itself. I booked my tour through Lagoonflight.com, who have a few different options for their flights with the shortest being 15 mins and the longest one at 80 mins. A 15-minute flight on the seaplane will cost you about £130/€149/$170, so still quite expensive for 15 minutes, but it was totally worth it. You only live once and how often do these type of opportunities come up?
The flight takes off from La Prairie beach, and it will be just you and the pilot in the plane as they plane is quite small. The adventure starts by walking out in the warm beautiful water and climbing into the plane (barefoot). The plane starts and skims across the water
before taking off and circling towards the waterfall. I was worried that the views from the plane would pale in comparison to the videos/pictures I had seen online…but let me confirm the view did not disappoint. The view of this underwater waterfall illusion was truly amazing and took my breath away! It was not just the waterfall but the up-close view of Brabant Mountain and the clear turquoise waters below that were truly majestic.
I brought my big SLR camera with zoom lens with me as I wasn’t sure if my iPhone would be able to capture the views below. I realised as soon as I was up in the air that this was not necessary and actually the zoom lens was just too close. Capturing all videos and pictures from my phone was perfect.
While it looks as if the water is falling further down into the ocean, it’s actual the sand and silt sediments that are in perpetual movement under the influence of strong underwater currents. There’s a horseshoe shaped crevasses at the very end of the underwater plateau. You can see a gradual slope abruptly ending in a 4000 m (13,000 ft) abyssal drop, and it’s the sand sinking through this deep water down to the bottom of the ocean.
Additional Day Trip Ideas
I was very fortunate enough to make a return trip to Mauritius this past July 2024. This time I decided to explore the north of the island and booked two different day trips.
Full Day Catamaran Cruise to the Northern Isles
This was an 8 hour trip leaving from Grand Baie and going to both Gabriel Island and Flat Island.
I had never been on a catamaran before so I was pretty excited for the adventure. The first 45 mins of the ride was really cool, with the beautiful crystal clear water, the surrounding beauty of Grand Baie, a lovely breeze and we passed by the striking Coin de Mire.
Unfortunately as the day was quite windy, the sea was super choppy and the constant bobbing up and down motion on the boat caused a wave of sea sickness that I could not get past. One thing to be mindful of before you decide taking an 1.5hr long catamaran ride on the open seas!
The boat finally arrived to our destination, and was anchored between the two islands. I couldn’t be more thrilled to get out and be on land. The white sand and turquoise waters were paradise!! I instantly forgot about the rough ride and nausea.
The first top was Flat Island, where the tour provided lunch for the group (Fish, sausages, chicken, salads) which seemed plentiful for all (I had to opt out given my recent condition). I used the time to walk around and just marvel at how truly breathtaking the scenery around me was.
Post lunch a small boat took the group across the water to Gabriel Island. Here we had about 1.5 hours to relax, snorkel or swim. The water temperature was perfect and I enjoyed every minute of swimming and sunbathing on the sandy beach.
There was a bit of dread knowing that the time on these beautiful islands had come to an end, along with the impending dread of another rough ride back. However, somehow the boat ride back to Grand Baie was a bit more tolerable. All in all, it was a great time – note to self don’t forget Dramamine before any future boat trips!
Ile aux Aigrettes Nature Reserve, Blue Bay Beach, La Vanille Park & Gris Gris
This is another full day tour that included pick up at our hotel. The destinations were in the southeast of the island and was about an hour drive to reach Blue Bay.
The tour we booked indicated it included a few hours of relaxation on Blue Bay Beach, however that was not the case. We stopped for 20 mins at Blue Bay, enough to have a brief view of the Bay, stretch your legs and use the facilities. Then it was back in the car to head to the small bay of Pointe Jérome for the boat that would take the group across to the small limestone island of ile aux Aigrettes.
It’s hard not to be mesmerized by the surrounding turquoise waters on the boat ride to the island! Upon pulling up to the small dock, you are greeted by a park ranger who takes the group on a 1.5 hr hike around the island.
This island was declared a nature reserve in 1965, and everything on this island is a protected species. Make sure to come with insect repellent otherwise you will be eaten alive by mosquitos!
It was so interesting to learn about the conservation efforts here and seeing some of the unique species like the Pink Pidgeon, the giant Aldabra Tortoises and the Ornate Day Gecko. Also learning about the sad demise and extinction of the Dodo bird that was from Mauritius was very fascinating!
After our very educational and informative excursion on ile aux Aigrettes our tour took us to Gris Gris Beach, which has been dubbed one of the most beautiful and most dangerous beaches in the south of the island. The stop here was to walk around the view point to see the small beach down below, and admire the crashing waves against the dramatic rocky cliffs. We spent around half an hour here before heading to our final destination which was La Vanille Nature Park.
The park was kind of like a zoo, where we saw nile crocodiles, ring tail lemurs, fruit bats and my favorite part was the giant tortoise enclosure. Not only can you see these giant tortoises, but you are able to walk among them and inteact with them (the park did warn not to put your hand near their face as they can and will bite). For a small fee (MUR 75 – cash only you can buy food and feed it to them.
These tortoises are quite used to people and will walk right up to you as they are all hoping for some food!
This was hands down one of the coolest experiences and was the highlight of this day trip! The park also have one of the best collections of insects in the world with 23,000 species found in their insectarium.
