The full address of your Hotels or private Holidays Houses and Bungalows before you arrive. Please note this carefully as you will be required to write it on a card to be given to the Mauritian immigration authorities in the airport on your arrival. Airports:
1.Flic-en-Flacq is about one hour from the airport. Le Morne/Grand Baie [1.5 Hrs], Belle Mare/Palmar [1.2 Hrs], Port-Louis [1 Hr], and Mahebourg [20 mins]. Transfer costs varies from 500 to 1200 rupees.
2.We recommend that you change some money in the airport immediately on arrival. (e.g. no banks in Grand Gaube area, which is on the North-West coast.)
3.On departure an airport tax of 500 rupees per person is payable. This can only be paid in rupees.
4.You need to re-confirm your return ticket at least 72 hours before departure.For Air Mauritius (230-208-7171), British Airways (202-8000), Condor (207-3000),Malaysia Airlines (208-4685), SAS (208-5538), and Singapore Airlines (208-7695).
Visas:
Visas are not required for people with EEC or American passports.
Language:
The official language of Mauritius is English. A large number of people can therefore understand and speak it. The main language of the island however is Creole which is based on French. In addition the different ethnic groups speak such languages as Chinese and Hindi.
Mauritian Cuisine:
Basic ingredients of the Creole cuisine are the tomatoes (known as pommes d'amour), onions, ginger, garlic and chillies. Palm heart and Camarons (giant prawns), venison and wild boar are favourite items of French cuisine. Fresh fish and seafood set the keynote for Chinese cooking.The traditional blends of home crushed spices are the sauce base for mouth glowing Indian curries. The delicate blend of spiciness and subtle mix of ingredients constitute the setting for the event-related Muslim cuisine. Local vegetables and fruits abound all year round in a colourful selection of mouth watering delights. However there are plenty of restaurants which offer European, Chinese, Indian, Creole, Italian, Japanese, Thai food.
Currency:
They use the Mauritian rupee. Currency rate is EURO 1.00 = 29.00 rupees [Aug 02]. Mauritian rupees do not circulate outside Mauritius so that you can only change money on the island. DM/EURO/GBP or US$ travellers cheques and cash can be changed in the banks. (Please NOTE that the exchange rate for traveller's cheques is much better than for cash).
Holiday Clothing:
Men can usually spend most of the time in short trousers unless you want to enter a hotel for the evening, in this case long trousers are required. Additionally the maid in the house washes and returns clothes by the next day so that you do not need to take much with you. Do not overload your suitcase with unnecessary clothes. Leave some room for any shopping that you do on Mauritius.Mauritius has a well advanced textile industry so that instead of taking all your holiday clothes with you might consider buying them locally on the local market. The shops are full of ready to wear polo shirts, T-shirts, shorts, shirts, trousers, pullovers, dresses and beachwear at low prices.
Important Must Haves:
1.Sunscreen Cream as the sun is exceptionally strong on Mauritius and many people are surprised (too late) by its strength and have to suffer sunburn for several days. Even on cloudy days, please make sure that you use a good sun cream.
2.As in all tropical countries (even Europe in the summer) mosquitoes do exist. We recommend using a mosquito repellant cream to keep them away. Always Keep electrical mosquito repellers (vapes) with you.They are readily available in the local market.
3.Maps to help you find your way locally.
4.The address/phone numbers of your embassy in Mauritius, in case of emergencies.
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