The Best Resorts to Book in Mauritius for Every Traveller

The 4km of beachfront on Trou d’Eau Douce Bay on the island’s east coast is one of the biggest in Mauritius, giving all 200 rooms and three luxury villas access to the sea. Activities range from beach volleyball, archery and yoga to boxing training and boot camps, and there are four floodlit tennis courts, two golf courses and e-bikes to explore your surrounds, too. Four restaurants showcase island fare, or you can book a dinner for two under the stars on the resort’s private island, Ilot Mangénie, with a personal butler serving fresh seafood to sounds from your personal playlist.

As the cheerful staff say, life’s a beach at LUX Le Morne, set on the sandy tip of the island’s west coast, under Le Morne mountain – a Unesco-listed humpback landmark. This chic hotel is all neutral shades and organic textures, set on a beach lined with coconut palms. Mix cocktails from your personal tropical bar, or retreat to a treehouse up an Indian almond tree and ring down for a spritz. If you feel energetic, hike to the Black River Gorges National Park. Later, sample the island’s cuisine in one of three restaurants.

Named after the 19th-century naturalist Charles Telfair, this small luxury hotel nods to its sugar-plantation history with suites containing four-poster beds, wooden floors and freestanding baths. You can hear and smell the sea. For other sensory experiences, visit the hotel’s herb garden with the chef before dining at one of 12 cosmopolitan gourmet restaurants. A highlight for many is the free unlimited golf on a course judged the best in the Indian Ocean at the World Golf Awards every year from 2014 to 2020, set between the mountains and the lagoon.

This spruced-up resort, strung along 2km (1.2mi) of beach on a pale east-coast lagoon, has contemporary rooms, junior suites, deluxe suites, villas and a plush presidential villa done up in shades of the sand and sea. But you’ll spend little time there, given the lure of the beach, a spa with all the trimmings, seven restaurants and six cool bars. Hankering for some alone time? The Constance kids’ club has you covered.

Just minutes from the airport, this smart family hotel is on a peninsula near the Blue Bay Marine Park. Rooms and suites are in white, lit with teal throws and coral-pink murals, but ask for a charming first-floor junior suite, set beneath sloping thatched eaves. Chill on the beach, at the infinity pool or in the Banyan Spa’s hammam, sauna, Vichy cabins or jacuzzis. You can take to the water on a pedal boat or paddleboard, or take a lesson in windsurfing, water-skiing or kitesurfing in the protected lagoon of Pointe d’Esny. Kids are also “edutained” at the Tikoulou kids’ club.

The northern tip of the Belle Mare coast is one of the loveliest parts of the island – and One&Only’s tasteful pared-back suites don’t try to compete with the surrounds. Villa One, with its open-plan, bare white rafters and teal and ivory sofas, is a favourite. Meals centre on authentic Mauritian cuisine from La Terrasse, in pavilions surrounded by the water of the main pool, and La Pointe, with Mauritian-style barbecues, and fine-dining Prime, with seasonal seafood and Wagyu beef. Work it off with a kayak tour of the mangroves, or on a guided hike of the wilderness beyond the beach.

The Oberoi’s traditional thatched chalets open onto sub-tropical gardens and the pale sands of Turtle Bay in northwest Mauritius. The resort prides itself on a mix of Creole and international cuisines. Savour fresh seafood at beachside grill On the Rocks; gourmet French dishes under chandeliers in the stone-walled Gunpowder Room; or dine “On the Herb Trail” – beside a fire pit and smoke house in the resort’s herb garden. Expect the likes of a seafood sharing platter, firepit-cooked whole leg of lamb with roast potatoes and jus, and semifreddo Sardinian filu ‘e ferru (grappa) with tropical fruit flambé.

This five-star privately-owned resort and Ayurvedic spa, set on a translucent lagoon protected by a coral reef, specialises in personalised experiences and seclusion. The 65 grey-tiled chalets are tucked away in gardens above the beach, each with its own pool. While there are fine restaurants serving Mediterranean, Asian and Indian fusion food, don’t miss the option to dine in-villa, with romantic candle-lit suppers served beside your own pool.

On the untamed south coast of the island, in the Unesco-listed Bel Ombre nature reserve, this Outrigger offers powdery sands, translucent waters and swims with dolphins among a slew of activities. When the sun sets, go on a Mauritian rum tasting before dinner at one of the resort’s restaurants. Don’t miss the Mercado Market Dining experience, where you interact with chefs at live cooking stations, showcasing cuisines from Europe, Asia and India.

Positioned near two championship golf courses, this plantation-style resort on the sheltered west coast bay of Flic en Flac is a mix of old-world charm and contemporary comforts. The 250 rooms have private balconies that open onto the garden and an ocean playground with a smorgasbord of watersports. The bohemian new Buddha-Bar Beach restaurant serves cool cocktails and on-trend dishes; Mon Plaisir does sophisticated buffets; and Citronella’s Beach Lounge, on a deck with a firepit, serves antipasti, pizzas and pastas.

Stay here in a manor house-style suite, or splurge on the St Regis Villa – the biggest and swankiest private accommodation on the island, catering for eight adults and eight children. It has four heated pools, its own gym and steam room, and butlers, valets and a chef to serve your favourite dishes whenever and wherever you choose – your dining area, the garden or beach. The resort also has five restaurants, serving different cuisines, and is set on the Le Morne peninsula – a World Heritage Site with caves, sheer rock faces and rare plants. Kitesurfing at “One Eye”, deemed one of the world’s fastest and cleanest waves, is legendary.

Long Beach on the east coast is not only one of the island’s longest beaches (of course) but one of the widest. Naturally, each of the 255 airy, sleekly furnished contemporary rooms at this attendant hotel, open on to the beach and the garden, with its own terrace or balcony. Five restaurants give you a choice of Asian, French and Mediterranean cuisines. If you can tear yourself from the beach and watersports, you can play golf at some of the island’s top courses.