Itinerary · 8 days · 36 places
8 Days in Mauritius
Eight days in Mauritius from north to south: first the lagoons and colonial gardens of the north, then Chamarel, Le Morne and the west coast, and finally the bay of Mahébourg. You get around by hire car and eat Creole.
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Photo: Dominik Ruhl · Pexels
The route on the map
The plan, day by day
Day 1Arrival in the north
Arrival in Mauritius
Hotel check-in
Trou aux Biches lies on a shallow, palm-fringed lagoon in the north-west, with shops and food stalls along its single coast road.
Evening stroll on Trou aux Biches beach
After dinner a few barefoot steps over the gently shelving sand; out on the reef the waves break, and the fishermen's pirogues are already pulled up on the beach for the night.
Day 2Port Louis: market, harbour, citadel
Port Louis Central Market
In the halls on Farquhar Street lychees, chilli pastes and vanilla are piled high, and the stalls selling dholl puri and alouda are upstairs.
Aapravasi Ghat
The excavated steps and barracks of the immigration depot through which almost half a million Indian indentured labourers passed from 1834.
Jummah Mosque
The white-and-green courtyard with its old badamier tree sits in the middle of the bazaar quarter and is open to visitors outside prayer times.
Le Caudan Waterfront
Converted harbour quay with handicrafts, rum shops and views of the bay's cargo cranes.
Blue Penny Museum
Home to the red and blue Mauritius stamps of 1847 — lit for only ten minutes an hour to protect them.
Fort Adelaide
The British citadel of basalt blocks above the city, whose ramparts take in the harbour, the Champ de Mars and the Moka mountains all at once.
Evening: Grand Baie La Croisette
The lit shopping complex at the entrance to Grand Baie is open in the evening and a good way to wind down after the drive back from the capital.
Day 3Sugar barons and the far north
Pamplemousses Botanical Garden
The oldest botanical garden in the southern hemisphere, with its pond full of giant water lilies, talipot palms and Pierre Poivre's spice avenue.
L'Aventure du Sucre
In the disused Beau Plan sugar factory, mills and centrifuges still stand where they stopped in 1999; at the end you can taste fifteen kinds of sugar.
Château de Labourdonnais
A manor house from 1859 built entirely of teak, with an orchard of old mango varieties and a small rum distillery behind it.
Notre Dame Auxiliatrice Church in Cap Malheureux
The small red-roofed church stands at the northern tip, with the islands of Coin de Mire and Île Plate out in the water.
Pereybère Beach
Small, sheltered bay with calm water far out — the locals' swimming beach between Grand Baie and Cap Malheureux.
Evening: Sunset Boulevard in Grand Baie
The row of shops on the bay stays open late, with the lit-up excursion catamarans anchored in front.
Day 4Highlands: Moka and Curepipe
Eureka House in Moka
Creole manor house from 1830 with 109 doors, its original kitchen in an outbuilding and a path down to the waterfalls of the Moka gorge.
Trou aux Cerfs
The wooded crater of an extinct volcano in the middle of Curepipe; on a clear day the circular path around the rim gives views as far as Rempart mountain.
Curepipe Botanical Garden
Small highland garden around a pond, where the last known living Hyophorbe amaricaulis palm stands behind bars.
Voiliers de l'Océan
Scale model ships are made from teak in this workshop — you can watch the hulls being built and the sails sewn up close.
Evening: Mont Choisy shore path
The long arc of the bay with filao trees right down to the water, quiet in the evening and popular with Mauritian families.
Day 5Moving to the west coast
Onward to Flic en Flac
Hotel check-in
Casela Nature Parks
Sprawling park on the slopes of the Rempart with lions, zebras and an aviary; from the top you can see the whole west coast as far as Le Morne.
Flic en Flac Beach
Kilometres-long strip of sand under filao trees with shallow lagoon water — the best-known swimming beach on the west coast.
Tamarin Salt Pans
The island's last working salt pans: shallow basins on basalt slabs where seawater evaporates and the salt is raked by hand.
Evening: Flic en Flac beach promenade
The path between road and beach where food trucks serve mine frite and grilled fish in the evening.
Day 6Chamarel and Le Morne
Gorges Viewpoint in Black River Gorges National Park
From the platform on the Plaine Champagne the view sweeps over the untouched rainforest of the gorges down to the sea.
Chamarel Waterfall
The Saint-Denis River plunges in a single jet some 90 metres into a basalt cauldron; the viewing platform is a few steps from the car park.
Chamarel Seven Coloured Earth
Bare dunes of weathered basalt whose reds, purples and ochres never mix — with a giant tortoise enclosure alongside.
Rhumerie de Chamarel
One of the few distilleries on the island making rhum agricole straight from fresh sugar cane juice; the tour ends at the tasting bar.
Le Morne Public Beach
Fine sand beneath the 556-metre basalt monolith where escaped slaves once hid; in the afternoon kitesurfers glide past offshore.
Evening: Royal Road in Flic en Flac
The village's main street with bars, rum shops and small restaurants that stay open late into the night.
Day 7The bay of Mahébourg
Onward to Mahébourg
Hotel check-in
Île aux Aigrettes
This coral islet holds the last remnant of Mauritius's dry coastal forest; the guided tour shows pink pigeons, ornate day geckos and giant tortoises.
Mahébourg Waterfront
The shore path along the old harbour, looking over the bay where the naval Battle of Grand Port was fought in 1810.
Blue Bay Marine Park
Protected reef with clear turquoise water; glass-bottom boats leave from Blue Bay beach to glide over coral banks and parrotfish.
Pointe d'Esny Beach
Quiet strip of sand between Blue Bay and Mahébourg, where the casuarinas reach almost to the water.
Evening: Mahébourg waterfront by night
A last stroll along the bay, where stalls selling gâteaux piments and fried fish open in the evening.
Day 8Vieux Grand Port and farewell
Frederik Hendrik Museum in Vieux Grand Port
On the site of the first Dutch settlement of 1638, the excavated foundations of the fort and church lie next to the small museum.
Mahébourg Market
The market on Rue de Labourdonnais with basketwork, vanilla and dholl puri stalls — on Mondays it spreads along the entire waterfront.
Departure from Mauritius
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