Two weeks in Belle Mere Mauritius.

O.M.G where do I start!?
We had the most action packed and yet relaxing holiday in paradise.

Mauritius was amazing, we stayed all inclusive in a hotel called Long Beach Golf & Spa resort which was incredible and located on the eastern coast of the island. We had a sea view room which was tastefully decorated and really clean. We were blown away by the friendly staff, beautiful hotel, entertainment and the choice of activities and food. Every night offered a different cuisine including Mauritian, Mediterranean, Indian and Lebanese and it really was a 5 star feast.

The hotel has four additional restaurants as well as the buffet which are situated in the piazza and we visited each one at least once. Tides being our favourite lunch time spot overlooking the beach with a great selection from posh fish and chips to local Mauritian curries. Chopsticks offered a delicious Chinese menu and really relaxed vibe with bench seating and moody lighting, the Italian was a great spot to curb that pizza crazing however probably our least favourite place to eat and last but not least HASU our favourite one of all. Hasu is the fine dining restaurant at the hotel and it is rated 2nd out of 17 restaurants in Belle Mere and 52 out of 856 restaurants in Mauritius. We had 900 rupees credit towards eating here each time we visited and had to pay a surcharge on top of that however it was so good we went back 3 times! Nadeem our waiter was extremely helpful and the sushi was incredible. I highly recommend a visit if you are ever in Mauritius and fancy something different and can vouch for the sauteed beef and beef cheeks! *DRIBBLE*

The hotel has a very zen like feel to it, it was really relaxed and spacious and even though there are over 200 rooms the place never looked busy. The spa is gorgeous and on a day when the weather wasn’t so great we opted for a 45 minute back massage each which left us feeling chilled to the max. The beach itself was clean and looked after, the water was so warm even on cooler days and the coral reef was spectacular for exploring. I finally got round to parasailing which has been on my bucket list for years and it was AMAZING, although I was a nervous wreck to start with I would definitely do this again. I have been petrified of the sea for most of my life so I was shocked with myself when I finally let Dave convince me to give the snorkelling trip a go (which was included on our all inclusive package) this took a lot of encouragement and I had to have a serious word with myself ‘Man the F. up Terri you can do this‘ but I am so glad I let him persuade me to do this I thoroughly enjoyed myself and can’t believe so many pretty fish can live in one place. We also booked an under sea walk which we paid a supplement charge for however it was really worth the money. It is hard to describe this experience so I will just leave these pictures here.

The hotel offers lots of fun things to do and we took advantage of them all. We did archery with a guy who ranks 14 in the french world championship (he said we were amazing for first timers btw Dave was very proud of his 58 out of 60 score!) The hotel has a giant climbing wall which was quite daunting but really fun (and finally something that I beat Dave at YAAAY) we took the double and single kayaks out on the sea and the pedalos which were all included in our package. We had a cooking lesson from the sous chef one afternoon who made us the most amazing swordfish curry (stay tuned for my future post as I am going to attempt to make this at home).

I should point out that I only took pictures of the scores at the very start – We did MUCH better than this and our teacher said we should seriously consider it as a hobby.
#Proud.

We hired bikes and went on a guided bike ride into the town of Flacq which was a 20km round trip. The market was mental with so many bright colours and amazing smells in the air, I can imagine Rick Stein being in his element here (I know Dave certainly was). This is where all the local people go to buy everything from fresh herbs, meat and fruit to clothes, jewellery and shoes.

I would also highly recommend a day at Casela. The park is huge and there are a lot of beautiful animals and scenery to keep you occupied. We did a quad bike safari which was good fun as we got to pet the Zebras and I got harassed by several ostriches who took a liking to me, we also got to see the famous huge tortoises. They also have a giant zip wire and you can walk with the lions however those were expensive add ons and we ran out of time. On the way home our friendly taxi driver took us to stand on the edge of the volcanic crater and gave us so much information on the history of the island, their independence and their various beliefs and legends.

Side note: Taxis are VERY expensive in Mauritius with cars being imported they cost double what they do in the UK, therefore Taxi’s do not come cheap and generally you have a taxi driver for a 2 hour trip, a half day or a full day.

Despite it being the start of their winter season the weather was great most days, like any tropical place it had the odd showers and cloudy days however for the most part it was beautiful. We were really lucky because 10 days before we arrived Mauritius saw the worst weather they have had in years with an anti-cyclone and torrential downpours. Lots of guests were leaving early or flying to Dubai instead! We definitely picked the right time to go.

The island is multi cultural and there are Indian, French, and British influences everywhere you look and lots of different religions (mainly Muslim, Hindu and Christian) and they all live in harmony together it was really quite humbling to learn so much about the island and how they all live in peace together. Everyone we came across was more than happy to help us and it really made our holiday special.

This was by far my favourite trip yet.

Thanks to my Bae for booking this and treating me to the most enjoyable and memorable holiday I have had and for encouraging me to conquer multiple fears and giving me lots more 1st’s.  ❤ I couldn’t ask for a better partner in crime to explore the world with.

I won’t forget this in a hurry.

Three lessons that will stay with me from Mauritius:
1. If a woman says she will do something, she will do it.
2. If you have a secret – don’t drink rum.
(Thank you to our taxi driver for sharing the legend of the fairies and the mountains… I really did enjoy it)
3. Do not tread on Mauritian wasps – They pain in UNREAL.

♥