Mauritius: Tourist & Vacation Guide

Country's codes

International phone code for Mauritius: +230

Standard ISO 3166-1:

3 letters: MUS

2 letters (internet domain): .MU

Digital country code: 480

Standard EAN-13 (country barcode): 609

Olympic country code: MRI

FIFA code: MRI

🇲🇺 Mauritius Travel Guide

🇲🇺 Mauritius is a jewel of the Indian Ocean — a volcanic island wrapped in turquoise lagoons, white coral beaches, lush sugar cane hills, and a vibrant multicultural society that blends African, Asian, European, and Creole traditions into something wonderfully unique.

🌍 RegionIndian Ocean, East Africa

⭐ Famous forBeaches, lagoons, luxury resorts & multicultural cuisine

📅 Best time to visitMay – December (dry & warm season)

💰 CurrencyMauritian Rupee (MUR)

  ✨ Why visit Mauritius?

  Mauritius punches far above its size. Within a single island you find world-class diving on pristine coral reefs, dramatic volcanic peaks draped in cloud forest, colonial sugar estate history, and a cuisine that reflects centuries of cultural fusion. Whether you come for a honeymoon on a powder-white beach, a hiking adventure through Black River Gorges, or a food journey through the markets of Port Louis, Mauritius delivers an experience as rich as it is beautiful.

Top Attractions in Mauritius

🏖️ Le Morne Brabant

A UNESCO World Heritage basalt peninsula rising 556 metres from turquoise water, symbolic of the island's slave history and offering outstanding kite-surfing, diving, and hiking.

🌊 Blue Bay Marine Park

Mauritius's finest protected coral reef lagoon, with glass-bottom boat tours, snorkelling among sea turtles, and some of the most colourful reef fish in the Indian Ocean.

🌿 Black River Gorges National Park

The island's largest nature reserve covering 6,500 hectares of native forest, home to the endangered pink pigeon, Mauritius kestrel, and spectacular gorge viewpoints.

🏛️ Port Louis Waterfront & Central Market

The vibrant capital's historic harbour district, colonial Champ de Mars racecourse, and the bustling Central Market — the beating heart of Mauritian street food and daily life.

Best Places to Visit

🏙️ Port Louis – The cosmopolitan capital with the Aapravasi Ghat UNESCO site, the Blue Penny Museum, colourful bazaars, and a thriving waterfront dining scene.
🏖️ Grand Baie – The island's most lively beach resort town on the north coast, with watersports, shopping, nightlife, and easy access to offshore islands.
🌸 Chamarel – Home to the famous Seven Coloured Earths volcanic phenomenon, the Chamarel Waterfall, and artisan rum distilleries in the rural southwest.
🐬 Tamarin & Black River – A laid-back surf town on the west coast, famous for spinner dolphin encounters at dawn and some of the island's best surf breaks.
🌴 Rodrigues Island – Mauritius's autonomous outer island — wilder, quieter, and surrounded by one of the largest lagoons in the world, ideal for diving and cycling.

  💡 Travel Tip: Mauritius is compact but traffic can be slow — rent a car to explore freely. The north-south coastal road is scenic but busy; the inland mountain route through Curepipe and Quatre Bornes offers a completely different perspective of the island.

Things to Do in Mauritius

Kite-surf or windsurf at Le Morne — the consistent trade winds make it one of the world's top kite-surfing destinations.
Hike to the summit of Le Pouce or Pieter Both mountain for panoramic views over the entire island.
Swim with wild spinner dolphins at dawn off Tamarin Bay on a guided boat excursion.
Explore the Aapravasi Ghat UNESCO site in Port Louis — the arrival point of indentured labourers who shaped modern Mauritius.
Visit the Pamplemousses Botanical Garden, one of the oldest in the Southern Hemisphere, and spot the giant Victoria amazonica water lilies.

🍽️ Local Experience: Mauritian cuisine is a glorious fusion. Try dholl puri (flatbread with split pea curry) from a roadside vendor, octopus salad with chilli and lime, rougaille (Creole tomato sauce with fish or sausage), and wash it all down with local Phoenix beer or a glass of artisan sugarcane rum from Chamarel distillery.

Travel Tips for Visitors

☀️ Mauritius is warm year-round (20–30°C); the dry season (May–December) is ideal for outdoor activities and diving visibility is at its best.
🚗 Renting a car is the most practical way to explore — driving is on the left, roads are well maintained, and distances are short.
💳 Cards accepted at hotels, restaurants, and supermarkets; carry Mauritian Rupees for markets, street food, and rural areas.
🐠 Respect marine protected areas — do not touch or stand on coral reefs, and avoid purchasing products made from protected marine species.

📌 Useful Country Information

Quick Facts

Total area: 788 sq mi (2,040 sq km)

Population (2023 est.): ~1.3 million

Capital: Port Louis (~150,000)

🇲🇺 Port Louis: Capital City Profile

Other major cities: Beau Bassin-Rose Hill, Vacoas-Phoenix, Curepipe, Quatre Bornes

Currency: Mauritian Rupee (MUR)

CurrencyRate

National name: Republic of Mauritius

Language: English (official); French and Mauritian Creole widely spoken; also Bhojpuri, Hindi, Tamil, Urdu, Mandarin

Ethnicity/race: Indo-Mauritian 67%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%, other 1%

Religions: Hindu 48.5%, Christian 32.7% (Roman Catholic 26.3%, other Christian 6.4%), Muslim 17.3%, other/none 1.5%

National Holiday: March 12, Independence and Republic Day.

Background

🇲🇺 Mauritius was uninhabited when Arab and Malay sailors first charted it in the early Middle Ages. Portuguese navigators landed in 1507, and the Dutch established the first permanent settlement in 1638, naming the island after Prince Maurice of Nassau. It was the Dutch who introduced sugar cane — a crop that would define the island's economy and demography for centuries — and who inadvertently drove the dodo to extinction through hunting and habitat destruction.

🇫🇷 France took control in 1715, renaming the island Île de France and developing it into a prosperous sugar colony using enslaved African and Malagasy labour. Port Louis grew into one of the Indian Ocean's most important strategic ports. Britain seized Mauritius in 1810 during the Napoleonic Wars and, following the abolition of slavery in 1835, brought hundreds of thousands of indentured labourers from India to work the sugar estates — fundamentally shaping the island's ethnic and cultural character.

🕊️ Mauritius gained independence from Britain on March 12, 1968, and became a republic in 1992. Under visionary leadership, it rapidly transformed from a sugar-dependent mono-economy into one of Africa's most prosperous and stable nations, diversifying into textiles, financial services, and tourism.

🌿 Today Mauritius is ranked among Africa's top destinations for ease of doing business and quality of life. It faces environmental challenges including coral bleaching, invasive species management, and the balancing of resort development with conservation of its extraordinary native biodiversity.