Mauritius tips (second honeymoon)

[Messier87]

I realize you are from the Northern Cape so not sure if under the water is your scene, but others will read this as well...

If you scuba the north western side is lovely. Even for snorkeling and you are a good swimmer and can venture a little deeper. And if you don't scuba they have these glass underwater boaty/bike thingies (expensive) , but really nice way of seeing that underwater world. I reckon the underwater scenery is a big part of the tropical island experience.

To get around by bus is fairly easy there so you do not have to be in the middle of everything, but you don't want to spend your holiday on the bus either. Trou aux Biches Beach and higher up is nice. We were just south, but that is just a tad too far from Grand Baie to quickly pop over.

As mentioned the eastern side is also beautiful, but i think weather considerations are more on that side depending on time of year. Blue Bay is great, but underwater has taken a hammering from the bit I've seen.

Oh - and if it is a shorter 4 day stay I'd stay closer to the airport to cut travel time.

[AMeightysix]

I consider myself to be very stingy... I always look for a bargain as well as best value for money.
With that said. If you want to impress the Mrs, then go to Mauritius. Its simply an amazing experience.
Talk to a Travel Expert, besides being able to answer all your questions with regard to seasons etc. They will advise you on the best family resorts and if you plan to take the kids, I do recommend going for a family resort as they have a bunch of activities to keep the kids entertained.

We booked our honeymoon through Holiday Factory https://www.holidayfactory.co.za/ and all our future bookings will be via them as in my opinion their service and prices were unbeatable.
Also do take the All Inclusive, its worth every penny.
Lastly, do not book excursions through the big agencies. Get in touch with your locals. They offer far better packages & prices. Some of the couples we met ended up 2 to 3 times more for the exact same excursions.

We stayed at Veranda Paul et Virginie on the North East Coast. https://www.veranda-resorts.com/en

[0012]

Went to Shandrani, very comfortable etc but as stated above it is right by the airport and for that reason would not go there again.

Fully inclusive def the way to go, even if you're not big drinkers because it adds an extra chill element to the holiday not worrying about how the bill is adding up etc.

Would recommend 6 or 7 nights min if possible.

Quad biking through the cane and on the mountains with spectacular sea views is a nice excursion.

Enjoy

[m0lt3n]

I consider myself to be very stingy... I always look for a bargain as well as best value for money.
With that said. If you want to impress the Mrs, then go to Mauritius. Its simply an amazing experience.
Talk to a Travel Expert, besides being able to answer all your questions with regard to seasons etc. They will advise you on the best family resorts and if you plan to take the kids, I do recommend going for a family resort as they have a bunch of activities to keep the kids entertained.

We booked our honeymoon through Holiday Factory https://www.holidayfactory.co.za/ and all our future bookings will be via them as in my opinion their service and prices were unbeatable.
Also do take the All Inclusive, its worth every penny.
Lastly, do not book excursions through the big agencies. Get in touch with your locals. They offer far better packages & prices. Some of the couples we met ended up 2 to 3 times more for the exact same excursions.

We stayed at Veranda Paul et Virginie on the North East Coast. https://www.veranda-resorts.com/en

They seem to be cheaper than Beachcomber, I will have a look. Will also have to figure out whats the differences between the hotels they offer.


Thanks for all the inputs everyone, I will do minimum of 7 days, leave children at home and take something all inclusive and aiming for around July 2021. Hopefully all masks are burned by then.

[Blikkies1]

For those interested,  Pentravel is running a Beachcomber special for Cannonier and Mauricia for June next year, haven't looked into the deets but the ad says 30-40% discount.

[Anthony]

So maybe I was too stingy with our honeymoon 9 years ago, but its not generally mentioned with praise  . Anyhow, there needs to be a take two (or so I have been informed)

Next year we are married for 10 years, wifey wants to go to Mauritius, ouma is on board to look after the children...I need advice from all the romatic dogs, where do I start?

or when do I start? I don't know what is the best time to go?
We are not big drinkers, do I take all inclusive or fall into the stingy trap again?

Tips?

We go most years, the last 4 years we've been to the Shandrani resort which is close to the airport, very good all-inclusive package there, even if you're not big drinkers I'd take the package as all the resorts and restaurant's are expensive, it is far from Grand bai but I prefer the beaches and resort activities than traffic.
But hey that's just me, there's plenty to enjoy all over the island.

[Rustyb]

I was lucky enough to go there for 28 for "work". if you are going for longer than 4 days and you want to explore the island yourself, car hire can be arranged beforehand. Much cheaper than using taxi's. I used an international licence that I got from the AA

[Chukudeer]

Have a look at Seychelles........Mauritius is like Margate.....

[africanSky]

some great tips.

Wedding anniversary is in October so to get that discount with Beachcomber outside of cyclone season aligns nicely.

I see it will be roughly R40k for 4 nights, then wifey gets her all important bath included, but she will have to miss out on any toe-sucking though.

4 nights enough? We would probably spend half the time lazing around and other half exploring, so the scooters and paddling sounds great.


Airfare is a big chunk of your package cost, so extending is worthwhile, as mentioned you only actually get into relaxed mode after day 3, 10 days is ideal.  Beachcomber are good products, but come at a premium for the brand, they are not the only good hotels on the island

[m0lt3n]

Have a look at Seychelles........Mauritius is like Margate.....

Next time
Taking the safe bet now. (same reason for trying Beachcomber, but booking 7 nights)

I need to get this all arranged and sorted and browney points banked, if I do it all just right I may manage a Namib bike trip as well next year!
holding thumbs!