This was our first trip to Mauritius. We landed, picked up our hire car and headed to Auberge Miko in Grand Baie. As you know, we don't do package holidays in resorts which is probably why we haven't been here before. The owners at Miko were very friendly and helpful and the simple guesthouse was well located to walk to central Gran Baie. Gran Baie is very beautiful and many European expats and retirees live here. It's supposed to have a great nightlife scene but doesn't have more than a mere handful of bars and restaurants. We found one bar, Cokoloco, with live music and we enjoyed sundowners at The Beach House. Food and especially wines are pretty expensive in Mauritius. We enjoyed walks around town and discovered a few small beaches like Pereybere.
We drove to Port Loius one day and explored the market and Chinatown. Parking and traffic were really painful and the Waterfront was rather uninspirirng. We did really enjoy the street food though. Another day we went to the Botanic Garden in Pamplemousses and enjoyed driving through sugarcane country nearby.
On the weekend we drove down to the Black River and Tamarin area to stay with Sandi and Derrick. They have a lovely cottage right on the beach. A lot of South African expats live in this area. One day we took an inland trip into the Black River Gorge National Park and enjoy a wonderful lunch at the Chamarel Rhumerie. On another day we took a private boat trip from Le Morne. We saw many dolphins and enjoyed snorkelling and a visit to Benitiers Island. We spent a night in Flic-en-Flac and a night in Belle Mare. Belle Mare is the vicinity of some very fancy resorts like St. Geran but it's no fun for independant travellers. We found a great restaurant calle Falaise Rouge north of the fishing town of Mahebourg. We returned to Le Morne for a night because it was our favourite area of Mauritius and spent our last night in Blue Bay because its's close to the airport. We enjoyed our stay and we saw every corner of the island but we wouldn't recommend it unless perhaps you are looking for a resort honeymoon.
We drove to Port Loius one day and explored the market and Chinatown. Parking and traffic were really painful and the Waterfront was rather uninspirirng. We did really enjoy the street food though. Another day we went to the Botanic Garden in Pamplemousses and enjoyed driving through sugarcane country nearby.
On the weekend we drove down to the Black River and Tamarin area to stay with Sandi and Derrick. They have a lovely cottage right on the beach. A lot of South African expats live in this area. One day we took an inland trip into the Black River Gorge National Park and enjoy a wonderful lunch at the Chamarel Rhumerie. On another day we took a private boat trip from Le Morne. We saw many dolphins and enjoyed snorkelling and a visit to Benitiers Island. We spent a night in Flic-en-Flac and a night in Belle Mare. Belle Mare is the vicinity of some very fancy resorts like St. Geran but it's no fun for independant travellers. We found a great restaurant calle Falaise Rouge north of the fishing town of Mahebourg. We returned to Le Morne for a night because it was our favourite area of Mauritius and spent our last night in Blue Bay because its's close to the airport. We enjoyed our stay and we saw every corner of the island but we wouldn't recommend it unless perhaps you are looking for a resort honeymoon.
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