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Forget the Maldives, this is where you want to honeymoon
It’s hard to look past the Maldives when thinking of the perfect, tropical honeymoon. But if you turn your head 3,000kms to the south west, you’ll find a tropical island that’s just as spectacular and much less ‘done’.
Mauritius, a tiny patch of paradise off the coast of Madagascar, is an eight-hour flight from Perth and is surrounded by that turquoise-tinged water every newlywed dreams of – and I should know, because my new husband and I were invited there for our own honeymoon in March.
We were silly enough to condense the usual 12 months-worth of wedding planning into just 12 weeks, so we were extremely keen to start our trip off at a leisurely pace. Fortunately, the coast of Mauritius is lined with luxury resorts that supply enough sun and sand to cater to even the most enthusiastic of sunbakers.
Venturing up to the north-east corner of the island, we were guests of the newly refurbished LUX* Grand Gaube, where every suite boasts views over the Indian Ocean.
It’s only a matter of a few steps to find yourself under a cabana on the sand, where a neatly dressed staff member lays a towel out over a banana lounge, offers you a drink, and asks if your sunglasses need a polish. They have 525 staff members to just 186 rooms, so you can imagine the kind of service on offer.
Instagram snaps taken, the water was too inviting not to be tempted in, and we hitched a ride to a nearby reef for a spot of snorkelling, before cruising around the bay at our own pace on paddleboards.
For the more adrenaline-inclined however, sailing, water skiing and single-person water plane rides are also available to try from the resort and at various locations around the island, while glass-bottom boats, kayaks and pedal boats, are a gentler way to enjoy the stunning surroundings.
But Mauritius isn’t all about the beaches. Looking down on them from the centre of the island are lush green mountainsides, which are the remnants of the country’s explosive volcanic past.
Mauritius is a nature-lover’s paradise, and there’s no shortage of wonders to be seen when exploring the waterfalls in the south, and meandering through exotic gardens and national parks that are lined with more types of palms that you could ever think possible.
It’s easy and relatively inexpensive to hire a driver to drop you off and pick you up from whichever attraction takes your fancy.
We stopped by the botanical gardens where we marvelled at floating lotus flowers and giant water lilies, and later sampled 12 types of sugar and (a little rum) at the sugarcane factory museum.
The latter will also tell you everything about the country’s history as the home of the dodo, and as a Dutch, then French then English colony, before it finally gained independence half a century ago.
To experience some of the island’s natural history first hand, you could also hike through the Black River Gorges national park that will give you the most spectacular view.
Another way of getting a dose of both nature and culture is via a bike tour. We organised one through LUX*’s private gym, and were shown around Grand Gaube town by one of their trainers – who by the way, you might have seen wrestling for gold at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
While he led us past fishing villages and open sugarcane fields, we stumbled across two 60-year-old tortoises with a ravenous love of bananas (and who were much faster on their feet than you’d expect).
Back at the resort, a spot of pampering was in order, and while we went down the traditional relaxation route at the spa – which gives you the use of three differently temperatured plunge pools, a steam room and a host of detox teas alongside any treatment – we also stopped by the newly opened salon.
It doesn’t seem like your obvious choice of activity on holidays, especially after I’d just gotten a fresh cut and colour for the wedding, but there’s nothing like a half-hour head rub and personalised hair treatment to wash away the last of that stress.
Plus, across the hall, the husbands have their own man retreat in the form of a gentleman’s barber shop which is fitted out by Murdoch London and equipped with its own whisky bar.
Of course, no honeymoon is complete without a little romance, and for me, that’s all about food.
Having been influenced by a mix of Creole, French, Indian and Chinese flavours, Mauritian cuisine is extremely rich and diverse. Curries, rougaille sauces and fresh seafood are the most traditional options, and as with any destination, you’ll find the most authentic flavours at small, hole in the wall restaurants recommended by locals.
We went for a less adventurous but more romantic option at the resort, and enjoyed some exquisite, smoked Creole meals at an outdoor table surrounded by ancient banyan trees.
The swaying canopy is illuminated by fairylights by night, and you can climb to the nearby ‘treehouse’ rum bar for a tipple with a view afterwards.
Had we not torn ourselves away from the resort’s envy-inducing beaches and pools, we still would have had a perfectly relaxing honeymoon. But the beauty of our trip was having the convenience of water sports, spa treatments, gym facilities and delicious meals on hand, and being easily able to take rides out through the rest of the island to explore everything Mauritius has to offer.
Check out the video at the top of the article to see all the activites we got up to.
The one drawback about Mauritius is unfortunatley it's location from Australia's east coast. If you live in Perth, the flight is comparible to the one needed to visit Thailand, but if you live in Sydney, Brisbane or Melbourne it's not all that close. It is a similar distance to the Maldives however, and it would be a great stop-over to Europe if you have enough holiday leave to kick on!
This reporter was invited to Mauritius as a guest of LUX* Grand Gaube.
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