Mauritius is not just a destination for newlyweds, sea and beaches. It is much more than that. It's vegetation, flora, fauna, water, traditions, and rites. There is a games of lights and colors. There are flavors, curves, peace, tranquility, while that adrenaline and emotion flows. It's everything you want it to be.
Mauritius for many is a perfect honeymoon destination. I do not say anything strange if I tell you that you will never forget this romantic date. It will be more special, if possible, lived on one of the beaches of this island. See a sunset or, better yet, welcome a new day lying on the beach of fine sand, without better company than the person with whom you will spend the rest of your life. Yes, indeed, Mauritius is a destination for lovers.
Day 1
We got up and headed towards the breakfast buffet. They pick us up after breakfast and we go to the airport. We arrive on time and we only have one hour to change planes. So we hurry to find the boarding gate and then we head towards Mauritius. We spend 5 eternal hours brushing the knees in all the places and without knowing how to put on. I cannot, at best I slept one hour. I open my eyes, I'm flying, am I perhaps a bird? I am inside an airplane. What do my eyes see? Turquoise waters, an island! I pinch myself. Will I be dreaming? I have not bought any plane ticket. I do not know how, or where, or why I'm here. I ask the stewardess what the destination is and she with a smile from ear to ear answers me, you are traveling to Mauritius, welcome.
Will it be nerves, how can you not be nervous after arriving in paradise? Or playing with the monitors of the plane, watching series or movies, reading, what else can be done? Today I bring you a dream in the form of a trip, of course! My dreams lately revolve around the search for new impressions, emotions and sensations that produce the best state of mind that exists, and that is none other than that of happiness. I get traveling, there is nothing that makes me happier than traveling.
We arrive at the Port Louis airport before dusk. Even so we can see with the last lights of the day with the silhouette of Le Morne and the endless beaches that await us.
We got off at 6:30 pm from the flight, took suitcases and board a minivan to reach our accommodation in Mauritius, one hour away from the airport. As soon as I left the airport, my five senses were ready and prepared to work at supersonic speeds. Mauritian island is sweet. Its people are sweet, and the island itself is sweet. The first thing you find, as soon as you enter is its beautiful meandering roads, and endless sugarcane plantations.
We arrived at the hotel and as soon as we got out of the car we get a warm welcome from women who look more beautiful with the mehndi in their hands and feet.
After the reception they take us to our room, and in spite of being at night, what we see we still like more with the hotel decorated in dazzling lights for Diwali with traditional lamps and the creation of a giant mandala in rice and colored rangoli. Indeed, we were there on the day of Dhanteras during the festivities of Diwali, the festival of lights, which is a major celebration here.
It is easy to understand the atmosphere that reign throughout the island on the same day but also during preparations. There are immense gardens, open restaurants, bars by the beach and there seems to be a lot of guests. And this is because the extension of the hotel is immense and the guests are spread out over a long stretch of beach.
We enter the room and see that it is not out of place with the rest of the hotel. It is on the ground floor, it is large and cozy at the same time. One step away is the pool and two steps away is an amazing beach. In addition, we have a welcome gift from the hotel with a bottle of champagne (which by the way was over that same night), a box with sweets, snacks and something else. Enchanted with what we see, we unload the junk and go out.
We left for Triolet. There is incredible traffic jam in the only big street, with people everywhere, and bollywood music. Tradition and modernity rub shoulders between traditional music and young people who scream the last tubes in their car. Traditional illuminations still exist in the courtyards, and the alleys. On the main roads, electric garlands are the queens.
Aster coming back to the hotel we go to the buffet for dinner. We took all-inclusive, and we could choose to eat at the buffet, or at the theme restaurants of our hotel and the neighboring hotel. In the buffet the food is included, with few drinks. In the thematic restaurants both food and drink have things included. That night we had dinner at the Indian buffet. The food was quite good and they had a lot of variety.
It seems that they organize the buffet thematically with one day Indian food, another day Italian, another Mauritian, French. After dinner we go to the cocktail bar which is located next to the seashore. We enjoy a relaxed atmosphere with live music performance and many cocktails to try. We really like the bar.
We also realize that at night it cools down a lot as mauritians shoot fireworks in the skies. We miss some more clothes for the cool nights of Mauritius at that time of year. After having a drink more than we needed, we go to sleep with joy.
Day 2
We cannot resist so we pick up a couple of little gifts from the hotel. We have breakfast and we go to the hammocks on the beach. It is necessary to say that the beach is full of coral. So to bathe they advise us to do it with booties on the feet to avoid possible cuts. It is for this reason that we would not bathe for many days on the beach. We prefer the pool to the beach.
Those who know me already know my weakness for exotic destinations. Few things I like more than the sun and the beach and, although confessed urbanite, I find my own state of well-being surrounded by coconut trees, sun and a cocktail in hand. Today will be a relaxing day, touring the hotel, hammocks on the beach, pool. And of course: stop at the bar! With good views of the sea we end the day, with a beautiful sunset.
As we go on an all-inclusive basis, we have dinner at the hotel. In fact we take all the meals there except for a lunch that we did outside on the day we went on a full day excursion. The truth is that it was not monotonous to eat at the hotel as there is quite a variety. There are 5 different restaurants. It was appreciated to be able to vary. I think we tried them all.
Day 3
We are already very relaxed. So today we need to know a little about this great island (and I do not say precisely because of the size). We will make an excursion of the whole day traveling through Mauritius. But before we have a fabulous breakfast in front of the sea.
Between some couples we rented the service of a minibus and we decided the route. Some years ago there were factories of the famous brand Ralph Lauren on the island. So visitors could buy some pieces at factory price in the factory itself. Today there is no factory but the reputation of being able to get pieces of this brand at a good price. So we ask the taxi driver to bring us to the area of purchase of this type of clothing.
I have to say that we were quite disappointed. There are several stores with products of different brands (Tommy Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, Burberry). But they are copies and quite expensive. Bargaining decreases the price a bit. After the disappointment of shopping we decided to start to really know the island.
We head to the great sacred lake Grand Basin and its Indian temple. On the way we observe the landscape. It is very green and with great contrasts. At the entrance to the lake we are surprised by the Shiva statue, the highest in all of Mauritius (33m).
We enter the Grand Basin and observe the offerings made to the lake. They leave candles, food, and flowers. We continue! Now we go through a viewpoint to discover the Black River Gorges, a natural park with waterfall included. We are a few meters high and a little cold.
Touring the island has made us hungry. To eat we go to a beautiful typical Mauritian restaurant, without tourists. We wait, although the feast does not take long to come to the table. We really enjoyed the lobster and rice. I think we all ask for the same thing! They were not expensive either. It's been 4 years and I do not remember exactly what it cost us but we all agree that apart from being delicious, these lobsters were very well priced.
Once we have eaten (and how well we have eaten) we head to La Vainille. It is a natural park with lots of giant tortoises and crocodiles! After a couple of hours visiting the park we get back to the hotel. We were exhausted and fall asleep early.
Day 4
Today we will enjoy a catamaran excursion to Ile aux Benitiers in the southwest of the island. Here we will have one of the best moments of the trip. We start with a dolphin sighting. We were looking for different boats and catamarans. I would almost say "chasing", the dolphins made it difficult to see them. Even I think it made it difficult for the animals to pass, since all the boats were behind.
We cut the crossing and the catamaran skipper is encouraged to catch a tuna! We eat on the catamaran. In a moment they have kept several trays of rice, pasta, and meat. So we have an impromptu buffet. We drink and eat what we feel like and we continue sailing with a view to Le Morne.
After a while the catamaran stops. We can choose to take the boat to the ile aux benitiers (white sand). Or we can snorkel in the turquoise lagoon located next to the rock called "diamond". I do not think twice about snorkeling in the lagoon. It is very interesting. We did a kayak trip first. Then we are in the middle of the sea and our feet touch the white sand floor.
There is also a great variety of small fish that can even be seen without the glasses thanks to the turquoise color and transparent water. In addition to colorful fish I discover the sea cucumber, this Japanese delicacy that I have never seen before. No pictures of this moment, as I jumped into the sea to enjoy. And it was really worth it!
we make an excursion with the boat with the glass bottom to observe the coral. The hotel offers several water activities such as: water skiing, and ride on giant tires. On the way back we can observe the hotel from another point of view, from the sea.
We take a taxi and visit Port Louis and take the opportunity to do some shopping. In the evening we played a game of tennis and relaxed again in the pool.
To top off the day today we have a special dinner. The hotel invites us to a romantic dinner near the beach. They had set up a lovely table with candles in the middle of the beach and they served us a lovely meal. It was one of the most romantic nights of our stay there. We arrived at the table and we taste an entree consisting of a lobster soup. And it is followed by salads and the main course of pasta and then the dessert! Really we enjoy the dinner, for everything else it was fabulous!
DAY 5
Everything is over anyway! Before leaving we have some massages with oils in the spa of the hotel so that the return is a little more bearable. But we have already enjoyed it and we have a great memory of this small country.
