Mauritius

Mauritius was another short escape from Dubai for Pragati and me. As with many of our trips from Dubai, the ease of entry was part of the attraction — Mauritius did not require a visa. We travelled from 12 to 14 July 2019, with only a couple of days to experience the island.

A first taste of business class

The journey itself had a small milestone for us. These were our first business-class tickets, both on the onward and return Emirates flights. Even though the flight was only around six hours, the Emirates hospitality and the experience of flying business class made us enjoy every bit of the journey.

On arrival at Mauritius airport, collecting the rental car was remarkably simple. There was nobody to hand over the car to us — the keys were available, the car was already fuelled, and the expectation was simply that we would return it with fuel filled. Having our own car made much more sense than trying to depend on taxis or ride-hailing in an island destination. It gave us the freedom to explore at our own pace.

A resort worth staying in

We had chosen the Outrigger Beach Resort & Spa Mauritius in Bel Ombre after reading reviews on Booking.com. It turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip.

The resort had spacious cottages arranged along the beachfront, with each cottage having its own beach space. We could enjoy the sea and the sunsets almost from the back door of our cottage. The resort was large, yet it never felt crowded, which gave it a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere.

There were several restaurants catering to different tastes, and the food was excellent. Among the many choices, we found exactly what we had been longing for — familiar Indian food, including South Indian favourites such as idli and dosa. Finding those familiar flavours in such a setting was an unexpected pleasure.

Unlike Seychelles, where we had spent most of our short visit driving around Mahé, Mauritius was deliberately more relaxed. We spent a good part of our time enjoying the resort and its surroundings rather than trying to see everything.

A little exploring

We did venture out to some of the island’s better-known sights, including the Chamarel Seven Colored Earth Geopark, Chamarel Waterfall and Black River Gorges National Park. We also visited local markets and came across Indian temples, another reminder of the familiar connections that we had unexpectedly found in Seychelles as well.

We took a half-day boat trip on what I remember as a sailing boat or catamaran. It had a comfortable area to sit and enjoy the journey, and took us to an offshore island before returning us to Mauritius. I don’t remember the name of the boat or island, so there is no reason to invent one now.

There was a useful contrast between these outings and the resort itself. The island invited us to explore, but the short length of the trip meant that we were constantly choosing between seeing something new and simply enjoying where we were staying. We chose a little of both.

The waterfall we almost didn’t find

One of the most memorable outings came from something much less touristy. While looking at nearby attractions on Google, we found a Rochester waterfall that appeared to be close by. We followed the directions and eventually found ourselves driving through sugarcane plantations.

At that point I was a little concerned — not just about whether we were going in the right direction, but also about the safety of ourselves and the rental car. We decided to take a leap of faith and continued.

It was worth it. The waterfall was neat and clean, and there was hardly anyone around. Apart from a local selling tender coconuts, we were the only people there. We could actually swim in the pool below the waterfall and enjoy what felt like a tourist attraction entirely to ourselves.

That experience stayed with me partly because of the contrast with India, where popular tourist places can be crowded almost everywhere. Here we had found a beautiful spot, almost by accident, and for a while it felt as though it belonged only to us.

Mauritius in hindsight

Mauritius reminded me in some ways of Seychelles — both are small island destinations where having a car gives you considerable freedom to explore. But Mauritius felt better developed in terms of infrastructure without losing the scenic beauty that makes these islands special.

There was also a nice balance to the trip. The car gave us independence, the resort gave us a place to slow down, and the unplanned waterfall gave us the kind of story that no itinerary could have produced. Even with only a couple of days, the trip never felt like we were simply moving from one attraction to another.

If I had to choose one thing that represents this trip, though, it would not be one of the tourist attractions. It would be the Outrigger itself: the spacious cottage, the beach just outside, the sunsets, the excellent food and the feeling of being in a large resort that somehow never felt crowded.

It was only a short trip, and that was intentional. But looking back, I think we could have stayed a little longer — and simply enjoyed the resort and the beach a little more.