The checklist as a PDF
Entry, health, money, transport and safety, laid out for print, with their sources and verification date.
Mauritius
East Africa
Paradise beaches, volcanic islands and rich food. Indian Ocean horizons and the histories of Le Morne and Aapravasi Ghat.
- On the map
CapitalPort Louis
When to goApril to November
Suggested length8 days min.
CurrencyMauritian rupee
LanguagesEnglish, French
The Viafro verdict
For whom, and for which trip.
An editorial bearing, with no percentage and no rating: our criteria are written down, and every “good to know” links to its source.
- For which trip
- Port-Louis · Flic en Flac · Morne-Brabant · Île aux Cerfs
- Best season
- April to November
- Length
- Allow at least 8 days for these 4 essentials, one stop every two or three days. (Viafro’s rule of thumb)
Best time to visit
Twelve months, in colour.
Hover or tap a month: its reading and its source appear. Bars measure rain, the figure is the capital’s mean maximum.
Ideal
November
Peak season; clear water for diving.
- Mean maximum
- 30 °C
- Rain
- 24 mm
- Station
- Port Louis
Source: Rough Guides
Before you go
The essentials, tab by tab.
Entry, health, safety, money and facts: dated official extracts, never paraphrased.
Visa, passport, customs
GOV.UK advice, written for British passport holders. French travellers: see France Diplomatie (https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/information-par-pays/maurice/conseils-aux-voyageurs-entree-sejour).
- be valid for the duration of your stay Check with your travel provider that your passport and other travel documents meet requirements. Renew your passport if you need to.
- You can visit Mauritius without a visa for up to 60 days. When you arrive, a border official will stamp your passport to show the end-date for your permitted stay. You must be able to show proof of onward or return travel.
- For details about health entry requirements and recommended vaccinations see TravelHealthPro’s Mauritius guide.
Vaccines, malaria, water
This is not medical advice: talk to your doctor or an international vaccination centre before you travel.
- At least 8 weeks before you travel: Stonefish stings are rare but can be fatal. Get urgent medical attention if you are stung. Many hotels stock anti-venom serum.
- Good private healthcare is available but can be expensive. More complex cases may require evacuation to Réunion or South Africa. Make sure you have adequate travel health insurance and accessible funds to cover the cost of any medical treatment abroad and repatriation.
Per the ministries
Viafro gives no safety rating: here are the zones and advice published by the French ministry (in French) and the official extracts, with their dates.
No particular vigilance zone is listed on the official page (in French) (updated on 15 Sept 2026) · see the page.
- Most crime is non-violent such as burglaries from tourist villas or theft of unattended bags. Petty crime is common, particularly in tourist areas such as Port Louis, Grand Baie and Flic en Flac. There have been some reports of sexual assaults on tourists.
- There is a high threat of terrorist attack globally affecting UK interests and British nationals, including from groups and individuals who view the UK and British nationals as targets. Stay aware of your surroundings at all times.
What the country’s law provides
Photography, alcohol, drugs, relationships: the rules published by the ministries, quoted as they stand, without comment.
- Illegal drugs, including cannabis, carry severe penalties. Pack all luggage yourself and do not carry anything through customs for anyone else. You should expect a long jail sentence and heavy fines for possessing, using or smuggling illegal drugs, including when transiting through the airport.
Currency
Mauritian rupeeViafro publishes no price or budget range without a source: amounts will come from our own expenses recorded on the ground, dated and itemised.
- There are strict rules about goods you can take into or out of Mauritius. You must declare anything that may be prohibited or subject to tax or duty.
Express card
Structured data from Wikidata and the CIA World Factbook, re-checked at every site update.
- Population · 2025
- 1,243,741
- Time zone
- +3 h from Paris
- Plugs and voltage
- Type C and G plugs · 230 V
- Driving side
- Driving on the left
- Calling code
- +230
- Languages
- English, French
- Area
- 2,040 km²
- Highest point
- Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire, 828 m
- Main religions
- Hindu 48.5%, Roman Catholic 26.3%, Muslim 17.3%, other Christian 6.4%, other 0.6%, none 0.7%, unspecified 0.1%
Getting there and around
Airports, roads and transport.
- MRUSir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International AirportPlaine Magnien3.9 M passengers · official site
- RRGSir Gaëtan Duval Airport
Direct flights from Paris are to be checked on the airport’s or airline’s website.
On the road
- If you are planning to drive in Mauritius, see information on driving abroad. As in the UK, left-hand traffic is standard across Mauritius.
Destinations
The essentials.
Port-Louis
Port Louis (French: Port-Louis, [pɔʁ lwi]; Mauritian Creole: Porlwi, [poːlwi]) is the capital and most populous city of Mauritius, mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District.
Flic en Flac
Flic-en-Flac (Mauritian Creole: Flikanflak; French and Mauritian Creole pronunciation: [flikɑ̃flak] ) is a seaside village on the west coast of Mauritius in the district of Black River.
Morne-Brabant
Île aux Cerfs
Île aux Cerfs ('Deer Island') is a privately owned island near the east coast of Mauritius in the Flacq District.
Activities
What to do, sheet by sheet.
Starting point, season, tips and sources: each sheet says only what its sources say.
Mauritius
Le Morne Brabant
At the island’s south-western tip, the Le Morne peninsula carries a 556 m basalt monolith.
Mauritius
Black River Gorges
Mauritius’s largest national park, created in 1994 in the hilly south-west, covers 67.5 km² of forest and heathland.
Mauritius
Chamarel and the Seven Coloured Earths
The village of Chamarel is known for its Seven Coloured Earths, an undulating landscape of contrasting shades.
Mauritius
Aapravasi Ghat in Port Louis
From 1849 to 1923, half a million Indian indentured labourers passed through this Port Louis immigration depot on their way to plantations across the British Empire.
Mauritius
The Pamplemousses botanical garden
Created by Pierre Poivre in 1770 near Port Louis, the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam garden is the oldest botanical garden in the Southern Hemisphere.
Mauritius
Blue Bay lagoon and marine park
In the island’s south-east, Blue Bay is famous for its intensely blue water and white sand beaches.
Mauritius
The sacred lake of Grand Bassin
Ganga Talao, or Grand Bassin, is a lake sacred to Hindus, set in a volcanic crater in the Savanne district.
Mauritius
Port Louis, the capital
Mauritius’s capital and largest city, Port Louis mixes the Jummah Mosque, St James Cathedral, a Tamil temple, a Chinese pagoda and a colonial theatre.
Mauritius
The Île aux Aigrettes reserve
850 m off the south-east coast and about a kilometre from Mahébourg, this 27-hectare islet has been a nature reserve since 1965.
Mauritius
The Trou aux Cerfs crater
In Curepipe, Trou aux Cerfs is a dormant 605 m volcano with a well-defined crater 300 to 350 m across and 80 m deep.
"dronepicr"
Must-try food
Five dishes, and where to taste them.
Briani
Le briani, biryani, bryani ou brié en mauricien, est un plat originaire de la gastronomie musulmane des Indes dérivée du biryani. (summary in French)
Vindaye
Le vindaye est un plat de la cuisine mauricienne préparé à partir de poisson, le plus souvent du thon ou de l'espadon. Le nom de ce plat a la même origine que vinha d'alho du Brésil et vindaloo de Goa. (summary in French)
Rougaille
Rougaille, also written as rougail, is a spiced tomato sauce common in the cuisines of Mauritius, Réunion, Seychelles, and other parts of the Francophone Indian Ocean and West Indies. It is a Creole dish, combining ingredients and characteristics from French,
Alouda
L’alouda est une boisson sans alcool originaire de l'Ile Maurice. (summary in French)
Bol renversé
Un bol renversé est un plat d'origine chinoise. Il s'agit d'un monticule de riz recouvert d'un œuf que l'on place dans l'assiette où il est servi en renversant le bol hémisphérique qui originellement le contient. (summary in French)
Culture and etiquette
Customs, dress, useful words.
- Hellohello
- Thank youthank you
- Pleaseplease
- Entries checked on Wiktionary.
- Religions: Hindu 48.5%, Roman Catholic 26.3%, Muslim 17.3%, other Christian 6.4%, other 0.6%, none 0.7%, unspecified 0.1%.
- Languages: Creole 86.5%, Bhojpuri 5.3%, French 4.1%, two languages 1.4%, other 2.6% (includes English, one of the two official languages of the National Assembly, which is spoken by less than 1% of the population), unspecified 0.1% (2011 est.).
Festivals and events
The big dates.
- National holiday
Independence and Republic Day, 12 March (1968, 1992) ; independence: 12 March 1968 (from the UK).
became independent and a republic on the same date in 1968 and 1992, respectively
Fixed dates and moveable events, each with its source; moveable dates change every year and are to be checked on an official calendar.
Did you know?
Three things to remember.
The country’s highest point, Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire, reaches 828 m.
1,243,741 inhabitants in 2025 on 2,040 km², about 610 per km².
Independence on 12 March 1968 (from the UK).
Gallery
See it before you go.
Real photographs: free images under a verified licence and Viafro images. Never a generated image. Credits in the footer.
Share your trip with #viafro: the best images will join this gallery, with your credit.
Live, work, invest
A few key figures.
Sourced data (World Bank). No investment advice.
GDP per capita (current US$)13World Bank · 2025GDP growth3.2 %World Bank · 2025Inflation (consumer prices)3.7 %World Bank · 2025Unemployment (ILO estimate)5.6 %World Bank · 2025International tourist arrivals316World Bank · 2020
World Bank data (World Development Indicators), consulted on 28 Oct 2026. Tourist arrivals are the latest year published.
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Sources and verification dates · 19 sources, checked on 28 Oct 2026
Travel advice · GOV.UK (FCDO)Entry, visa, safety: the official page, kept up to date by the ministry. Travel health · US CDCVaccines and precautions from a reference medical source. World Heritage · UNESCOThe country’s inscribed sites and tentative list. WikidataCapital and currency, verified structured data.
- Wikidata · Mauritius (Q1027)
- World Bank · World Development Indicators
- GOV.UK (FCDO) · Mauritius · Foreign travel advice · Entry requirements (page updated on 19 Oct 2026)
- GOV.UK (FCDO) · Mauritius · Foreign travel advice · Health (page updated on 19 Oct 2026)
- GOV.UK (FCDO) · Mauritius · Foreign travel advice · Safety and security (page updated on 19 Oct 2026)
- Rough Guides · Best time to visit Mauritius
- Wiktionary · Checked entries (English)
- Wikipedia · Briani (gastronomie)
- Wikipedia · Vindaye
- Wikipedia · Rougaille
- Wikipedia · Alouda
- Wikipedia · Bol renversé
- Wikipedia · Port-Louis (Maurice)
- Wikipedia · Flic en Flac
- Wikipedia · Île aux Cerfs
- CIA World Factbook · Mauritius (public domain) (page updated on 29 Oct 2026)
- France Diplomatie · Maurice · Travel advice · Security (zones, in French) (page updated on 15 Sept 2026)
- Wikidata · Airports of the country (IATA code, traffic) (page updated on 29 Oct 2026)
- Wikipedia (climate normals) · Port Louis · monthly normals (World Meteorological Organization.{{Cite web) (page updated on 29 Oct 2026)
Information checked on 28 Oct 2026. Check the official source before you travel. Viafro gives no safety rating and publishes no price without a source.