Mauritius is not a large island so you'll definitely be able to see a lot of the sights whilst you're there, if you can tear yourself away from the pool. We booked a driver to take us around the island - and here's what we did:
Our first stop on was to Trou aux Cerfs, a dormant volcano that formed around 2 million years ago. I'll be honest though, it is just a giant crater which you see from the top... The next stop was far more interesting, thank goodness, however there was the inevitable stop-off first at a gift shop. I can't moan though, that gave me the chance to purchase a thimble which is something I do everywhere I go (India has been the only place I've never found one).
And that's because we headed to see some Hindu statues and temples in Ganga Talao, also known as the Grand Bassin Sacred Lake. The usual cover your shoulders and knees if you're a woman, do what you want if you're a man hypocrisy applies.
Our first little temple underneath the Durga Maa statue, which is the tallest Durga Maa statue in the world, saw us be blessed before we headed across the road to Mangal Mahadev (who you'll know as Shiva). After which we explored the other temples and statues around the lake. If you're a cat fan as well, there are plenty who have made the colourful lake their home.
The Black River Gorges National Park was our next stop where we saw macaques aplenty! Though do keep your distance as we were told tales of them snatching phones and what not out of people's hands. (But also keep your distance because they are wild animals who deserve respect.) We saw plenty, alongside an awesome view which was simply stunning. If you have more time, the national park is full of trials full of flora and fauna so I imagine it would be well worth a hike or two.
We had far more indulgent plans. At
Rhumerie de Chamarel, in fact, for a tour of the rum distillery. Which naturally included a tasting. And lunch. Which included more rum. I've done a rum tour before - in the Dominican Republic, at the Brugal factory - and Rhumerie de Chamarel was a complete change to this because whilst that was a factory, this place had such lush grounds.
Surrounded by beautiful greenery, it's a nice place to spend some time, even if you're not the biggest fan of the taste of rum. We did seven shots as part of the tasting - the vanilla rum was my favourite - and had a three-course meal at the restaurant, which was yum. Dessert, naturally as I mentioned, included another shot of rum. Worth a visit, for sure!
As we'd been there a few hours, there were only one more place left to see before our driver had to take us back to our resort.
Chamarel 7 Coloured Earth Geopark was our final destination for the Chamarel waterfall, which is Mauritius's longest waterfall, and for 7 Coloured Earth. The name is pretty self explanatory.
Dunes made up of seven colours which represent the different geological phenomenon that have occurred in Mauritius over millions of years - it's the iron and aluminium particles that repel each other and create the sandy layers. There are also giant tortoises there, though this was less exciting for us as our resort had some, too!
And that was where we headed after our day exploring Mauritius's most visited tourist sites. x
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