The driver was incredulous. “Everyone usually complains about the Laguna,”
he said. There was no nightlife, the place was too quiet, there was nothing
at all to do, he added dismissively. But I’d loved my few days in what felt
bizarrely like a tropical Lake District, set as it was in a beautiful bay on
the quiet eastern side of the island. I had borrowed a bicycle and cycled 20
miles down the coast beside the waving sugarcanes. In fact, my only
reservation had been the loud music that had accompanied the “aqua
sports” sessions in the pool.

My next hotel, the driver told me cheerily as we drove towards it, was “even
worse”. Very quiet. No nightlife. And on a windy exposed north-eastern
coast. I couldn’t wait – and indeed, this hotel, the similarly priced
four-star Jalsa Beach Hotel & Spa, was simply glorious, just like the
celebrated Prince Maurice whose lights I could see across the bay but at a
fraction of the price. But perhaps I am just showing my age, an age at which
I ask for nothing more than delicious pancakes by the pool in the afternoon
and a cycle ride along a gently undulating coastline to a point where I can
sit and take in a lovely view.

I also loved the four-star-plus Sands Resort & Spa, located near the
delightfully lively Flic en Flac on the west coast. It has three
restaurants, a watersports centre and spa and is very attractively laid out
around an infinity pool. If you want to explore the interesting gorges and
waterfalls and nature reserves of the south-west of the island, this makes a
very satisfactory base.

Interestingly, my least favourite of the hotels I visited was the three-star
Le Palmiste. But Le Palmiste, according to my driver is “very, very
popular. Everyone has a good time. The nightly disco, the table tennis…”
But it’s not even on the beach, I said. It had actually been a walk along a
busy road to a shared public beach. And the food was – well, put it like
this, I had been thrilled to locate a local supermarket down the street to
stock up on nuts and fruit.

Which all goes to show how subjective the choice is. But the point is, there
is a choice. Making the right one, however, can be a complicated business as
not only do you have to work out which hotel sounds as if it does the kind
of holiday you want, but the deals the different hotels offer vary
considerably. Navigating the choices can feel like mathematics homework. You
certainly need a calculator as there are a lot of variables and you are not
always comparing like for like.

For example, while an all-inclusive week at the Laguna in October costs from
£1,179, two weeks is from £1,635 and three weeks from £2,045. At Le
Palmiste, a week’s all-inclusive stay for the same period is £1,059, two
weeks £1,335 and the third week is free (but on a room-only basis). You can
reduce the price by £70 if you opt for half board for the first of the two
weeks rather than all-inclusive. The cost obviously varies throughout the
year, depending on the season.

The other important thing to bear in mind is that the hotels’ own beaches are
not as important as you might think. All the three-star hotels, for
instance, have a lovely public beach nearby. In fact, some of the best
beaches on the island are public – you can simply walk (or cycle) to them
and enjoy them with the locals.

The Palmiste, for example, might not be on its own beach but it is close to
the Trou aux Biches, one of the best on the island (it is also very safe,
thanks to the security guards employed by the five-star hotels that face on
to it). Similarly, the three-star Casuarina Resort & Spa is just across
a busy road at the other end of the Trou aux Biches, so well worth
considering.

In addition, because sea frontage is publicly owned, there is nothing to stop
you enjoying any of the (sometimes artificial) beaches that belong to the
upmarket hotels (they all employ security guards but as long as you dress
respectably they won’t bother you). We visited the boutiques, restaurants
and bars (paying in cash) on a number of occasions.

If you feel awkward strolling into a hotel where you are not staying, there is
a new beach club attached to the Telfair Heritage hotel on the south of the
island deliberately designed to cater for those who are staying elsewhere
but want the luxury of an upmarket beach. And pleasingly, entrance to the C
Beach Club is free.

Finally, if you’re a little less strapped for cash, you can adapt these
good-value packages to your own needs by buying add-ons such as spa
treatments, catamaran cruises and watersports. And if the group activities
laid on by many of the hotels are not your thing, call up a taxi – nowhere
on the island is more than an hour away. Though you will probably have to
listen to the details of David Beckham’s latest sojourn on the way.

Getting there

British Airways (0844 493 0787; www.britishairways.com)
and Air Mauritius (020 7434 4375; www.airmauritius.com)
fly direct from Heathrow from £750 return.

Packages

All the prices quoted in the main article and “The Best Hotels” (see below)
are for travel with Mercury Direct (0800 230 0172; www.mercurydirect.com),
which offers seven-night packages from £888, based on b & b in a two-star
hotel (all prices are subject to change and correct at time of going to
press). Other package operators include Virgin Holidays (0844 557 3865; www.virginholidays.co.uk)
and BA Holidays (0844 493 0787; www.britishairways.com)

Getting around

Trains were sold and the tracks torn up 50 years ago. I rented bicycles and
used taxis. Buses are cheap and fun if you have plenty of time, but are
often hot and crowded; and the timetables are unfathomable, making return
journeys uncertain.

When to go

Mauritius has a tropical climate. The highest temperatures and rainfall are
between December and April, making April to November the ideal time to visit.

The inside track

If you want to see more of the island than a resort hotel might offer in terms
of the standard trips to the Pamplemousses botanical gardens, consider a
photographic safari. These are run by a professional photographer who will
take you to places you might not otherwise see, teach you how to get the
best out of your camera and send you home with some unique shots (00230 490
1427; www.cliquemauritius.com).

The C Beach Club is at the Heritage Le Telfair golf and spa resort (601 5500; www.heritageletelfair.mu)
is in the Domaine de Bel Ombre on the south coast of the island and is open
to all. There is an excellent bistro, a teenagers’ club with games consoles
and pool table, a boathouse for watersports and a nice ice-cream bar.

L’Aventure du Sucre (Beau Plan, Pamplemousses; www.aventuredusucre.com)
museum recounts the complex history of Mauritius with regard to its main
export and is well worth a visit, if only for the sugar (22 different types)
and rum tasting.

The Blue Penny Museum at the end of the Caudan waterfront in Port Louis is
fascinating, even if you long ago gave up stamp collecting. It also has a
good bookshop.

The manioc biscuit factory in Mahebourg is also fascinating. It has been run
by the same family, using the same sugarcane-fired ovens, since 1870. The
gluten-free cassava biscuits in six different flavours are healthy and
delicious.

What to bring home

Model boats, sugar and the local rum. Aficionados rate a new brand called Pink
Pigeon. The jewellers up in the old British citadel above Port Louis are
worth visiting, if not to buy diamonds at least to see inside the ancient
building.

The Best Hotels

Le Palmiste £££
Serviceable and good-value three-star, situated in the popular north-west of
the island and near one of the best public beaches, the Trou aux Biches (251
1153; www.lepalmistehotelmauritius.accommodation.io;
seven nights’ all-inclusive from £1,044 per person, including flights).

Laguna Beach Hotel & Spa £££

A four-star hotel on the quieter east coast, set in a tropical garden and with
its own sandy beach. A relaxing base with its own facilities but with plenty
of excellent tennis, golfing and sailing nearby. Glorious sunrises (417
5888; www.lagunabeachhotel.mu;
seven nights’ all-inclusive from £1,091 per person, including flights).

The Sands Resort & Spa £££

A four-star-plus hotel on the west coast; popular for dinner and the evening
entertainment (Wolmar, Flic en Flac; 403 1200; www.thesandsresort.mu;
seven nights’ half board from £1,151 per person, including flights).

The best restaurants

Eureka ££

Genuine Creole food served in the grounds of a converted colonial house on the
island’s central plateau. You can sometimes help cook; it’s essential to
book well in advance (Moka; 433 8477; www.maisoneureka.com).

The Fangourin ££

An old sugar mill in the gardens of Beau Plan at L’Aventure du Sucre museum.
The Fangourin serves an excellent lunch, with some great fish and seafood
(Beau Plan, Pamplemousses; 243 7900; www.aventuredusucre.com).

Le Château de Bel Ombre £££

A beautifully restored colonial house, on whose grounds have been built the
Heritage Le Telfair and C Beach Club. Le Château de Bel Ombre serves
delicious Mauritian cuisine on a pretty veranda. Delightful (623 5522; www.domainedebelombre.mu).

What to avoid

Getting carried away by those model boats. I bought a beautifully crafted ship
on impulse but, packed for safety into a vast cardboard box, it went through
the airport scanner by less than 1mm.

Toy dodos. They are everywhere and hard to resist but the hideous one I
brought home quickly became an expensive dog toy.

Car hire. The traffic is fast and furious on small winding roads. It’s
terrifying enough being driven.

Port Louis during rush hour. The traffic jams are solid and if you have to
drive through the cramped city, do so when everyone else is at work. Or at
home. Even then, the long queues hardly move.

Rip-off “factory shops” selling fake everything. You’ll find that pretty well
everything is fake.