Have you decided to organize a holiday in Mauritius? Looking for the best Mauritius hotels, last minute tours, resorts and last minute tours? Are you interested in the weather in Mauritius, prices, cost of travel, do you need a visa to Mauritius and would a detailed map be useful? Would you like to see what Mauritius looks like in photos and videos? What excursions and attractions are in Mauritius? What are the stars and reviews of Mauritius hotels?
Mauritius- a state located on the islands of Mauritius, Rodrigues, Agalega and the Cargados-Carajos archipelago in the southwestern Indian Ocean.
The center of the island of Mauritius occupies an elevated plateau with a number of low mountains. The highest point is the Rivière Noire peak (828 m) and three similar low mountain ranges. Most of the island is flat. Along the coast stretches a wide strip of white sandy beaches, indented by small bays.
Mauritius Airport
Plaisance Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport
Mauritius hotels 1 - 5 stars
Mauritius weather
Marine subtropical climate. The island is located in a strip of southeast trade winds, turning the hot, humid climate into an easily tolerated one. The hottest and wettest period lasts from December to March, the coolest months are May-September. The water temperature is 20-26 C all year round.
Average air temperature in Port Louis t°C
Language of Mauritius
Official language: English
Most of the population speaks French. Creole, Hindi, Urdu and Chinese are spoken.
Currency of Mauritius
International name: MUR
The Mauritian rupee is equal to 100 sous. In circulation are paper notes of 25, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000 and 2000 rupees, coins of 1, 5 and 10 rupees, as well as 5, 10, 20 and 50 sous. Small change coins are increasingly falling out of use due to inflation, but in the interior they are still in use.
Foreign currency exchange is not limited; exchange can be made at any bank or at hotel exchange offices (commissions are higher). Rupees can be exchanged for foreign currency only at the airport when leaving the country. Credit cards and traveler's checks are accepted in almost all hotels, shops and travel agencies. ATMs are also installed almost everywhere.
Customs restrictions
The import and export of foreign and national currencies is not limited (declaration is required). For persons over 16 years of age, duty-free import is allowed: cigarettes - up to 200 pcs. or 50 cigars or 250 g of tobacco, spirits - up to 1 liter, wine or beer - up to 2 liters, up to 250 ml of eau de toilette or 1 small bottle of perfume, as well as video, photo and other household equipment - one item each each name.
The import of drugs and drug-containing medications, weapons, military equipment and ammunition, fruits and food products from Africa, East and Southeast Asia, seeds, plants and flowers, as well as car tires is prohibited. The export of products made from coral and items unauthorized raised from the bottom of the sea is prohibited.
Mains voltage: 220V
Tips
Payment for services is usually included in the total price or indicated separately, and the size of the tip depends only on the client’s wishes.
Purchases
Government tax (3%) and general tax (10%) are usually automatically included in hotel and restaurant bills and most service charges and are non-refundable.
Souvenirs
Most tourists buy jewelry with precious stones, the prices of which here are on average 40% lower than in Europe; pottery, wood carvings, quilts, hand-embroidered tablecloths, macramé, and replica models of antique wooden sailing ships made by local craftsmen. Excellent cashmere products are produced here, which can be purchased at prices significantly lower than in Europe. The island is famous for the production of the highest quality cotton, sugar, tea and a variety of spices.
Office hours
Banking hours are from 9.15 to 15-15.30 on weekdays, and from 9.15 to 11.15 on Saturdays.
Shops are open from 9 to 17 hours (in Port Louis) or from 10 to 18 hours (in other cities) on weekdays, on Saturdays - from 12 to 17 hours in the capital, in other cities they usually work longer. Department stores are also open on Sunday - from 9 to 12 o'clock. Once a week (usually on Thursday afternoon) stores close for a "sanitary day".
Safety
In Mauritius, a special narcotic herb grows and is sold almost uncontrollably on the beaches (allegedly by shell sellers). Using and possessing it is a serious violation of the law, for which the police can impose a large fine or even expel you from the country, regardless of whether it concerns a foreigner or a local resident.
Collecting and breaking off corals is punished quite harshly, as is purchasing them from local traders.
Code of the country: +230
Geographic first level domain name:.af
Medicine
You can drink water from the tap, but it is still recommended to drink bottled drinks. You can also buy food in the markets, but it is recommended to have stomach remedies with you due to the abundance of spices in local cuisine. The bites of many representatives of the local fauna are painful and can cause allergic reactions. You should be careful at sea - the thorns and thorns of many marine inhabitants leave painful wounds.
Emergency numbers
Seewoosagar Ramgoolam International Airport is the only international airport in Mauritius. It is located 46 kilometers from Port Louis, near the town of Maheborg.
The airport has one terminal - Terminal 2, which consists of two floors and has a large open parking lot. All departures take place from the second floor of the building, and arrivals - on the first floor. Only passengers are allowed into the terminal area, so apart from duty-free there is no infrastructure at the airport. There are small grocery stores for guests in the departure and arrival areas.
The opening of Terminal 1, equipped with modern technologies, is planned for April 2013.
The airport has a taxi service and a car rental service, but to get a car you must be 23 years old and have an international driving license.
The export and import of national and foreign currencies is allowed at the airport. Young people over 18 years of age are not prohibited from duty-free import of 50 cigars, 200 cigarettes or 250 grams of tobacco, up to a liter of alcoholic beverages, one bottle of perfume or up to 250 milliliters of eau de toilette, as well as cameras, video cameras and telephones - one of each item. The import of drugs, as well as many medicines, weapons, some fruits, plants, flowers and seeds is prohibited.
Before traveling to Mauritius on your own, you should read information about how to get from Mauritius airport to the cities of the island, and how to get from cities to Mauritius airport. Thanks to the article, you will be able to choose the optimal transport for yourself.
Mauritius airport information
- Official name of the airport: Mauritius Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport
- Airport code: IATA: MRU, ICAO: FIMP
- Addressairport: AML House,SSR International Airport, Plaine Magnein, Mauritius
- Airport location and distance to the capital center: The airport is located 46 km southeast of the capital Port Louis.
- Airport information telephone: +230 603 6000
- Official website of the airport: http://aml.mru.aero/
- Airport passenger turnover: 3.5 million people per year
- Flight cost from Moscow and St. Petersburg: round-trip air ticket Moscow – Mauritius from 728 Euro with connection in Paris or Amsterdam; round-trip air ticket St. Petersburg – Mauritius from 717 Euro with connection in Istanbul.
- Direct flights to Mauritius are available from the following major cities: Paris, Dubai, Frankfurt, Vienna, Munich, Cologne, Milan, Rome, London, Istanbul, Johannesburg and charter from Moscow
- Local time: UTC+04:00
- Local currency and exchange rate: Mauritian rupee (MUR). Current exchange rate: 1 Euro = 40 MUR or 1000 rubles = 500 rupees.
- Airport weather: Ocean water temperature: 23-28 °C all year round. The air temperature is stable: 25-33 °C all year round. The most rainy days are in December-March.
- Restaurants and food outlets: Café Lux cafe, Tropical break restaurant, SUBWAY fast food, bars where you can have a drink and a snack before the flight
- Shopping/shopping: Duty Free Paradise, bookstore, souvenirs
- Additional services: ATM, exchanger, free WiFi, VAT refund (tax free)
Mauritius is an island in the Indian Ocean, measuring 45 by 65 km. The island is located east of the island of Madagascar. If you want to be on the mainland, i.e. in Africa, then you will need to fly 2000 km to the nearest point. The only international airport on the island is Mauritius Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport, and no matter where you fly from, this is where you will arrive on the island. Since 2013, a new modern terminal began operating at the airport. I am posting a map of the Mauritius airport with the departure area for international flights so that you can understand the location of the gates.
Air Mauritius is the country's largest airline, flying to South Africa, Australia, Paris, Germany (Frankfurt, Munich), Nigeria, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, in total, more than 40 destinations. Since the flights to destinations are quite far, the main aircraft of the airline are Airbus A340.
On the map of the island of Mauritius you can see the location of the airport and all cities of the island.
Buses from Mauritius airport
The bus is the only form of public transport that connects Mauritius airport with several major cities on the island. There are a total of 3 bus routes that go to Mauritius airport. You can take any of them at the bus stop, which is located in the parking lot opposite the airport terminal building.
Bus number 9 runs between Mahebourg Bus Station (Mahebourg Bus Station) and Curepipe Jan Palach South Bus Station (Curepipe) via the airport. Route duration: 70 minutes. Buses run every 10 minutes from 5:20 to 20:00.
Bus number 10 runs between Mahebourg Traffic Center and Rivière des Gallets bus stations via the airport. Route duration: 105 minutes. Buses run every 20 minutes from 5:30 to 18:00.
Bus number 198 runs between Port Louis Victoria Square Bus Station and Mahebourg Bus Station via the airport. Route duration: 85 minutes. Buses run every 15 minutes from 6:15 to 18:45. Port Louis Victoria Square Bus Station is a port bus station in the island's capital, Port Louis. At the bus station you can change to buses that go to the west of the island or to the south, for example, to Flic-en-Flac.
If you need to get from the airport to Grand Bay, you first take bus number 198 from the airport to the Port Louis Victoria Square Bus Station, where you change to bus number 215. The journey time with a change will be approximately 2.5 hours. The fare for the entire journey will be 50-90 rupees. You may be asked to pay extra for luggage.
Please note that the fare will depend on the condition of the bus, your destination, whether the bus is air conditioned, and how good you look.
Taxi from Mauritius airport
The most comfortable way to get to the hotel after a long flight is by taxi. But don’t expect that local taxi drivers will be kind and agree to take you for a reasonable price. There are no meters, and you have to negotiate with drivers on the fare on the spot. Even upon arrival at your destination, local taxi drivers always beg for tips and say that there is no change. Another problem is the optionality of drivers: you can agree with a local driver about a trip somewhere in a day or two, but he will simply become lazy and will not arrive at the appointed time.
Car rental at Mauritius airport
Experienced travelers, going to some resorts, do not rely on public transport, but rent a car immediately upon arrival. Renting a car solves several problems at once:
- There is no need to order a transfer upon arrival.
- You can independently explore all the sights of Mauritius, even its most remote corners, without annoying guides and the need to adjust your time.
- There are nice villas and bungalows in Mauritius that are not very close to the beaches, so the beach can only be reached by car. This may not seem like a very comfortable option, but such villas are much quieter than hotels, and the cost of renting a villa can be 3 times lower than the cost of renting a room.
- Every day you can spend on a variety of beaches in Mauritius, fortunately, the beaches here are very picturesque.
There are offices of 8 rental companies at the airport; on a reliable website with a Russian version you can book a car in any of them, where you will be shown the price of all rental companies in the search results. The cost of renting a car starts from 30 Euro per day.
There should be no problems with traffic on the roads, the roads on the island are paved, traffic is normal, there are signs, the police do not harass tourists. The only catch is that it drives on the left, which means you'll have to get used to the right-hand drive.
In addition to renting a car, you can rent a motorcycle, scooter or bicycle in popular tourist destinations. Depending on its condition and the adequacy of the rental companies, prices for renting a scooter vary from 10 to 15 Euros per day. The cost of gasoline on the island is 1.2 Euros per liter.
International airport named after Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport is the only international airport in Mauritius, it is located 46 kilometers south of Port Louis, the capital of the country.
general information
In 2013, a new terminal was opened at the airport, which became a continuation of the existing building. Capacity was increased to 4 million passengers per year. Environmental aspects were taken into account during its construction, including the use of solar energy, the use of a thermally insulated facade to reduce heat loss and a rainwater recovery system.
The terminal covers an area of 57 thousand square meters and is equipped with five boarding bridges, including one compatible with the Airbus A380. Also on its territory there is an immigration service, there are departure check-in counters and a carousel for baggage claim. The construction of the terminal cost the country's government $306 million.
Basic airlines and flight routes
The airport is a transport hub for the national airline Air Mauritius, which flies directly to countries in Africa, Asia and Europe.
The most popular destinations are: Paris, London, Moscow, Milan, Geneva, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Dubai, Johannesburg and others.
Service and additional services
Waiting rooms. Passengers are provided with comfortable places to relax, where they have the opportunity to read local and foreign press and watch TV programs.
- Internet. In addition to free Wi-Fi, the terminal has stationary Internet access points that provide high data transfer speeds.
- Purchases. After the check-in and security checkpoints there are a large number of shops selling clothes, souvenirs, jewelry, cosmetics, etc. There are also shops in the baggage claim area.
- Nutrition. Before boarding, passengers have the opportunity to have a snack in one of five dining areas.
- Currency exchange. There are exchange points near check-in counters, in the arrivals and departures halls, and they work with major world currencies.
- Rent a Car. Car rental services are offered by several agencies: ABC Car Rental, ADA, Budget, Europcar, Hertz and others.
