MINI GUIDE
Budget Mauritius
COMPILED BY LORNA PARKES, WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM ANTHONY HAM. PHOTOGRAPHS: MARK CARWARDINE/GETTY IMAGES, PASCAL LAGESSE/SHUTTERSTOCK, BENNY MARTY/GETTY IMAGES, MARK READMauritius essentials The know-how
FURTHER READING
Pick up Lonely
Planet’s
Mauritius,
Réunion &
Seychelles guide
(US$27.99), chapters of
which can be downloaded
individually at lonely
planet.com (US$4.95). If
you plan to head off into
the wilds on hikes, fitsy.
com is your new best
friend: it’s a handy website
featuring detailed trail
information using GPS and
satellite coordinates.
Joseph Conrad’s oblique
love story A Smile of
Fortune, collected in ’Twixt
Land and Sea (available
secondhand), gives a
taste of 19th-century
island life.KEEPING COSTS DOWN
O The most expensive time to
travel is high season (Nov–Apr),
however this is also the most
humid time on the island and
cyclones can hit Jan–Apr: low
season is cheaper and cooler.
O If your accommodation is
based on a half-board regime,
eat lunch outside the hotel.
O Rent a car from a local (rather
than international) company –
their rates are usually cheaper.
O For upmarket hotels, try to
book through a travel agency, or
else you’ll pay full rack rates.
O Hiking in Black River Gorges
National Park is tricky without a
private vehicle. To keep costs
down, your best option is to get
a taxi to drop you off at a
trailhead and then pick up a bus
at the lower end of the park; the
coast road is well served by
local buses.
O For excursions, try to organise a
group – quoted costs are usually
for the vehicle or boat.wonderful guesthouse and
a real find near Grand Baie. Rooms
are painted in soothing tones and
there’s a warm minimalism that
feels stylish yet homely (sousle
badamier.com; Route Cotière,
Pointe Aux Canonniers; from
US$69).
The charming Les Lataniers
Bleus is spread over three
guesthouses by the beach. Dinner
on the veranda is a great way to
learn about island life from the
hostess (les-lataniers-bleus-mu.
book.direct; off the A3 towards
Lamivoie Riviere Noir; from
US$137).WHERE TO STAY
Staying at Chez Henri feels like
a trip to the country to visit your
long-lost aunt and uncle. The
pretty rooms each have a small
kitchen. Don’t miss the dinners
served on the patio (henri-
vacances.com; Rue de la Chaux,
Pointe d’Esny; from US$50).
Sous le Badamier is aTRANSPORT
Emirates has the most direct route
from Singapore or Kuala Lumpur
with one stop in Dubai to Mauritius
(from US$1,317; emirates.com).
There are no special airport buses,
but regular buses between Port
Louis (the capital) and Mahébourg
call at the airport; the stop is
roughly 300m from the terminal
buildings, near the large
roundabout. Anyone on a budget
will fare well using the island’s
network of bus routes. Stick to
express buses wherever possible, as
standard buses seem to stop every
few metres and can take twice as
long. Fares range from US$0.40.Botanical-inspired interiors are
found at Les Lataniers BleusBeaches Activities Sights Eating Sleeping