Mauritius Travel Guide

A Complete Guide to the Pearl of the Indian Ocean

Introduction

Rising from the turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean like a jeweled crown, Mauritius is one of the most extraordinary island destinations on earth. Located roughly 2,000 kilometers off the southeastern coast of Africa and about 800 kilometers east of Madagascar, this volcanic island of roughly 2,040 square kilometers has earned a global reputation for its impossibly beautiful beaches, its extraordinary cultural diversity, its remarkable history, and its ability to offer travelers something genuinely rare in the modern world: a place where every element seems to have been thoughtfully assembled for maximum wonder.

Mauritius is not simply a beach destination, though its beaches — powder-white, fringed with casuarina pines, lapped by waters that shift from pale aquamarine in the shallows to deep cobalt in the lagoon — are among the finest on the planet. The island is a layered marvel. It is home to two UNESCO World Heritage Sites that commemorate two of the darkest episodes in human history: the forced migration of enslaved Africans and Malagasy people to work the island's sugar plantations, and the subsequent arrival of hundreds of thousands of indentured laborers from India after abolition. It is home to the haunting story of the dodo, the flightless bird whose extinction at human hands within a century of European settlement became one of the defining cautionary tales of environmental destruction. And it is home to one of the most extraordinary multicultural societies in the world, a place where Hindus, Muslims, Christians, and Buddhists celebrate their festivals side by side, where Tamil temples stand near French colonial churches, where the scent of biryani mingles with that of Creole rougaille in the market streets.

The island was uninhabited for most of its history. No indigenous human population lived on Mauritius when European sailors first arrived. This fact shapes everything about the place: every person on the island today is descended from someone who came from elsewhere — from Africa, India, China, France, or Britain — and the result is a society of extraordinary richness and complexity, a living testament to the human capacity to build something beautiful even out of the most difficult of circumstances. Mauritius has been called the rainbow nation of the Indian Ocean, and it is a title well earned.

The economy of Mauritius transformed almost miraculously in the decades after independence in 1968. From a monoculture economy based almost entirely on sugar, the island diversified into textiles, then financial services, then tourism, then information technology and cyber services, until today it ranks among the most prosperous nations in Africa by per capita income, with a functioning democracy, a robust legal system inherited from British and French traditions, and a standard of living that surprises most first-time visitors who expect a developing nation and find instead excellent roads, reliable infrastructure, world-class hotels, and a cosmopolitan capital city.

Tourism is one of the pillars of the Mauritian economy, and the country takes it seriously. The island has invested heavily in positioning itself as a luxury destination, and the concentration of five-star resorts along its northern and western coasts is remarkable. But Mauritius is not only for luxury travelers. Backpackers, budget travelers, surfers, nature lovers, divers, birders, historians, and food enthusiasts all find something deeply rewarding here. The island rewards curiosity and exploration far beyond the poolside lounger, and the traveler who ventures into the interior, up the hiking trails, into the market streets of Port Louis, across to Rodrigues Island, or into the forests of the Black River Gorges will discover that the real Mauritius is even more extraordinary than its postcard reputation suggests.