A brand new catamaran specially designed for day charters will take you to the South east coast of Mauritius. On board the catamaran you will enjoy good quality lunch, selection of alcoholic beverages (beer, rum, cocktails) and non-alcoholic drinks and more.
Catamaran Cruise to Ile aux Cerfs
The catamaran cruise starts at 09:30 from the Jetty located at Pointe Jerome on the south east of Mauritius and returns to the hotel by 16:30. At around 11:00, the catamaran makes a stop near the lagoon,for you to enjoy snorkeling inside the island’s largest lagoon. You will see underwater marine life and swim amongst superb corals and brightly colored tropical fish.
After snorkeling, a BBQ lunch is served on board the catamaran. For vegetarians and for those who have other needs special lunch will be served.
Catamaran
After lunch the catamaran will cruise into the sanctuary of Anahita and then it will drop you off the famous white sand bank of Ile Aux Cerfs. After spending some time on Ile aux Cerfs, you will re-embark on the catamaran and sail back to the Hotel’s jetty. Once on board tea and coffee is served as well as slices of cake. The bar remains open.
Ile aux Cerfs is a picturesque island spread over 87 hectares of land off the east coast of Mauritius. It is well known for its white sandy beaches, its turquoise lagoons and for the wide range of restaurants, water sports and land activities on offer.
Ile aux Cerfs in English means deer island but nowadays there are no more deers on the island.
The Ile Aux Cerfs offers a five star hotel with a golf course, several water sports activities, and restaurants. Water sports include water skiing, banana, glass bottom boats and more.
Ile aux Cerfs
It is also home to one of the most beautiful golf courses in the world, the Ile aux Cerfs Golf Club, an 18-hole championship golf course designed by two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer.
You can get to Ile Aux Cerfs from the mainland by speed boat, catamaran or even yacht. These are available at various points on the east coast of Mauritius. There are several organised tours available which can be cheaper than individual tours. Most organised tours provide lunch and drinks as part of the package.
The Ile aux Cerfs Leisure Island is open everyday from 09:00 to 18:00. The Ile aux Cerfs Golf Club is open everyday from 07:00 to 20:00.
The Crocodile & Giant Tortoises Park is home to various species of animals, reptiles, and plants. It is in a rain forested valley with freshwater springs. Banana plants, palm trees and giant bamboo provide shade for the crocodiles and the giant tortoises.
Crocodile park
During your visit to the park you will get a chance to feed, pet and play with giant tortoises. There is maximum safety to enable you to watch thousands of Nile crocodiles and giant tortoises.
In the park there is also a mini zoo of Mauritian fauna where you can find most of the Mauritian mammals and reptiles including skinks, phelsumas (geckos), giant tortoises, turtles, bats, deer, mongooses, monkeys, pigs, as well as domestic livestock such as goats, fat-tailed sheep and donkeys. There is also a Jungle Adventure Playground for kids to play.
You can visit the tortoise nursery where you will encounter Aldabra giant tortoises and you can feed them.
Hungry Crocodile Restaurant
Hungry Crocodile Restaurant built among tree tops offers various local food and international dishes. You can also taste various dishes made out of crocodile meat. Snacks and beverages are also available.
The park is open from 9:30 to 17:00 and the price per adult is 13 euros and children (3-12) 7 euros. Visit the Tortoise Nursery is priced at 14 euros for adults and 9 euros for children.
Hinduism is the most widely practised religion. The people of Indian descent (Indo-Mauritian) follow mostly Hinduism and Islam. The Franco-Mauritians, Creoles and Sino-Mauritians follow Christianity. A minority of Sino-Mauritians also follow Buddhism and other Chinese-related religions.
The constitution prohibits discrimination on religious grounds and provides for freedom to practice or change one’s religion.
According to the 2011 census Hinduism accounts for 48.54% of the population, followed by Christianity at 32.71% (with Catholicism as the largest Christian denomination at 26.26%), followed by Islam 17.30% and Buddhism 0.18% in terms of number of adherents. Mauritius has the highest percentage of Hindus in Africa and third highest percentage of Hindus in the world after Nepal and India, respectively.
A Catholic Church
The government provides subsidies to the Roman Catholic Church, Church of England, Presbyterian Church of Mauritius, Seventh-day Adventists, Hindus, and Muslims according to their tax-exempt status and numbers in the census. Other religious groups can register to get their tax-exempt status but they will not get any subsidy. Religious public holidays are the Hindu festivals of Maha Shivaratree, Ougadi, Thaipoosam Cavadee, Ganesha Chaturthi, and Diwali; the Christian festivals of Assumption and Christmas; and the Muslim festival of Eid al-Fitr.
A Pagoda
Maha Shivaratri, or the ‘Great Night of Siva’ is one of the biggest festivals on the island . During this annual Hindu celebration, which takes place in the months of February and March, four to nine days of ceremony and fasting lead up to an all-night vigil of Siva worship and Ganesha worship.
Among Mauritius’s Christians, 83% are Catholics (26% of the total population or 324,811). Christianity came to Mauritius with the first inhabitants, the Dutch. The French arrived in 1715 and revived Christianity. From 1723, there was a law which required all slaves coming to the island must be baptised Catholic. But this law was not followed strictly. During the 1840s and 1850s, the British tried to turn Mauritius Protestant. Today Christianity is practiced by 31.7% of the total population.
Jummah Mosque
Islam is practiced by 17.3% of the Mauritian population. Approximately 95 percent of these are Urdu speaking Sunni Muslims. Memons and the Surtees are rich merchants who came from Kutch and Surat province of Gujarat in India, while the “Hindi Calcattias” came to Mauritius as indentured labourers from Bihar. The first purpose-built mosque in Mauritius is the Camp des Lascars Mosque in around 1805. It is now officially known as the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Jummah Mosque in Port Louis was built in the 1850s and is often described as one of the most beautiful religious buildings in Mauritius by the Ministry of Tourism.
The Botanic Garden, formally known as Sir Seewoosagur Botanic Garden, is one of the most visited attractions in Mauritius.
National Botanical Garden
The garden is located in the proximity of Port-Louis. The botanical garden was first opened nearly 300 years ago. It is populated with more 650 varieties of plants including the famous Baobabs. There are also 85 different varieties of palm trees brought from different corners of the world. The garden also contains the Palmier Bouteille, the Giant Water Lilies, dozens of medicinal plants, a large spice garden and many more. You also can enjoy the smells of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, camphor, lemon, eucalyptus, sandalwood, and others.
Lilli Pond
There is a 200-year-old Buddha-tree and the crosstree, with leaves shaped like a cross. You can visit the Java Deer reserve and the giant Aldabra tortoise park.
National Botanical Garden
Castle of Mon Plaisir, built by the British in the middle of the 19th century, which is a historical monument, is also found in the gardens.
The garden covers an area of around 25,110 hectares (62,040 acres). Entrance fee to the garden is $8 per adult and children under the age of five are admitted free of charge. Guides are available at the entrance of the garden. A guide will cost 1 euro/hour per person. The payment for the guides is made at the entrance of the botanical garden.
The garden management request the visitors to refrain from feeding the animals both aquatic and terrestrial, plucking flowers, fruits or any other plant, lighting fires, swimming and fishing, throwing coins in ponds or on water lilies, consuming alcoholic drinks and smoke, and climbing on the trees, monuments, buildings and structures.
Saint Gabriel church is located at the heart of Rodrigues Island and has one of the largest Port Louis diocese congregations. The religious building serves as a cathedral of the Catholic Church’s Apostolic Vicariate of Rodrigues. About 32.7% of the Mauritian population adheres to Christianity and Christian beliefs. Christianity was introduced in Mauritius with the arrival of the Dutch.
Saint Gabriel Church
The parish of Saint Gabriel, the largest in Rodrigues, includes 33 villages. Placed at the heart of this parish territory, the newly renovated cathedral is a place of worship for more than twelve thousand parishioners.
It is also the seat of the bishop of the Apostolic Vicariate of Rodrigues. Hundreds of people from all parts of the island gather here every Sunday for the Mass.
Hardworking local volunteers hoisted sand, stone and corals from all parts of the island to build this church, which was completed on 10th December 1939.
There are 2,000 feet of stalactites and stalagmites, which decorate the cave of more than 1000 meters long. The cave is located in the village of Petite Butte. The relief and the tints of the vault are the principal charms that fill one with wonder.Usually guides will accompany you with electric torch, as there is no artificial light inside the cave. The last visit is at 3 p.m. It is advisable for you to carry your own torch as well in case you get lost in the trail.
Caverne Patate
The tourists are allowed to go inside the cave on their own, without taking the help of a guide, but a guided tour is recommended if you’re interested in knowing more about the cave and the various formations inside it. Some places in the cave could be slippery and require some tricky maneuvering. This is where the guide can help you to get through the slippery parts. You may want to wear shoes with good grip and take a light jacket.
Caverne Patate
Literally translating to ‘Sweet Potato Cave’, it is now famous as the longest limestone cave not just in Rodrigues, but in the entirety of Mauritius as well. A visit to the Caverne Patate is a visit to a place that is as old as time itself.
Rodrigues island is home to quite a few caves and caverns which were used in the ancient times by pirates to hoard their treasure.
You need a permit issued by your hotel in Rodrigues or by the “Terres” office in Port-Mathurin to access the cave. As for the natural site, it is accessible 4 times a day: 9 am, 11 am, 1 pm and 3 pm. Helmets are mandatory during the visit. Torches are also supplied with helmets at the entrance.
