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8 reasons Mauritius is the next big destination

With calm lagoons, tropical beaches, volcanic mountains and a deeply layered culture, Mauritius is the perfect place to relax.

If your holiday checklist includes glassy aqua beaches, lively coral reefs, dramatic natural wonders and unique wildlife, then Mauritius is for you. This tropical island nation is a harmonious melting pot of cultures, traditions and languages.

On its pristine shores, you’ll find a rich culture influenced by Indian, Chinese and African traditions, incredible culinary offerings and everything you’ll need for a refreshing wellness holiday. This island paradise is still off the well-worn path of most tourists. So, now’s your chance to enjoy this pocket of peace in the middle of the Indian Ocean.

1. Underwater worlds (and peaceful beaches)

With over 330km of beautiful coastline to explore, Mauritius is just made for water play. Grab a paddleboard, go snorkelling or hop aboard a catamaran and enjoy the clear blue waters, coral reef and over 49 sparkling inlets. For those who like the world underwater, there are around 100 spectacular diving sites to immerse yourself in, where you can get up close and personal with the local marine life.

Clear blue seas of Mauritius
Have an up-close encounter with Mauritius’s vibrant marine life.

2. Rich culture

Mauritians are proud to celebrate different religions and ethnicities, and as such, there is a beautiful, complex tapestry of architecture, festivals and events throughout the year for locals and visitors to experience. A favourite pastime, the joyous, traditional Sega dance connects the whole island. It’s so important to the local culture that it’s even on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Plan your trip around one of their many festivals, ranging from regattas, culinary festivals and music festivals, or be a part of the traditions of Diwali, Chinese New Year, Holi, Independence and Republic Day.

Two ladies dancing for the Diwali festival
Immerse yourself in the rich culture.

3. Tasty cuisine

If food is your love language, Mauritius will be your culinary heaven. The diverse mix of Indian, Chinese and African cultures has created a foodie scene that is exploding with flavour and colours. As well as the many fine dining experiences, the food stalls offer fresh food on a daily basis. When you’re finished savouring the island’s foodie fare, sit back and relax with a glass of their local rum or tea as the sun sets over the beach.

Overhead view of a table for dinner with friends
Delight in mouthwatering meals.

4. Family-friendly

Finding a holiday for the whole family can be challenging. But not in Mauritius. Whether your kids (and you) like hiking, ziplining, treetop walks, quad biking, mountain biking, or abseiling and canyoning, they will find an adrenaline rush to keep them busy. If they are water lovers, there’s also snorkelling, diving, kitesurfing, paddleboarding or kayaking. You could join in, of course, or you could relax in a lounge chair on the beach and sip a cocktail in the sun. It’s your choice (and no one is judging).

professional kiter makes the difficult trick on a beautiful background of spray and beautiful mountains of Mauritius
Find plenty of activities to entertain the whole family.

5. Unbelievable nature

Mauritius isn’t all adventure sports and spice-filled cuisine. This island nation happens to be packed full of bubbling waterfalls, misty mountains, protected wetlands, marine parks and even bird sanctuaries. Known as the home of the now-extinct dodo, this remote island has several endemic species such as the pink pigeon, Mauritius kestrel and the echo parakeet. Bring your binoculars and swimmers and spend the day as a twitcher.  

Beautiful scenery of Le Morne Beach.
Spend a day diving deeper into nature.

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6. Luxury lifestyles

While you don’t need a big budget to enjoy the lagoons, beaches and culture of Mauritius, if you’re after a little luxury, you’ll easily be able to find it. There are incredible five-star resorts and catamarans. And let’s not forget the 12 impeccably manicured golf courses to choose from. You don’t even need to bring your five-iron, as you can hire a set of clubs on arrival.

exclusive charter yachts
Treat yourself to a luxurious experience.

7. Romantic offerings

While you could bring your family and friends, Mauritius is also the perfect place for a little alone time with your significant other. From couple’s massages and private catamaran snorkelling trips to hiking and exploring the Mauritian culture in the capital Port Louis, you’ll find new (and rediscover old) ways of connecting. Plus, nothing beats an evening walk on the beach, holding hands as you count the stars.

Silhouettes of young couple at scenic sunset on tropical beach in Mauritius
Take a serene walk, hand in hand.

8. Wonderful for wellness

With more and more travellers looking for holidays with a wellness edge to them, Mauritius is becoming a haven for relaxation and reflection. The locals say the volcanic island soil has a unique energy to it, and after a few days you’ll start to agree. Create your ideal wellness holiday with world-class spas, yoga classes on the beach, forest bathing in the rainforests, Tai chi lessons and local energy experts. There’s even medical tourism. However you choose to spend your time, you’ll feel brighter and have more energy after just a few days.

A person doing yoga in the beach
Indulge in a peaceful recovery retreat.

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At the foot of the pyramids, Egypt finally tells its own story

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    Ancient Egyptian history has been scattered across the globe for decades, admired, preserved, and studied, but it’s rarely seen where it actually belongs. The newly opened Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) brings it home.

    From a viewing platform inside the Grand Egyptian Museum, the Great Pyramids of Giza rise from the desert, and for a moment, it feels like modern Egypt and ancient Egypt are shaking hands. The museum, grand in name and reality, has been a long time coming—since 1992, to be exact. Towering pharaohs, relics, and entire chapters of civilisation are on display here, all in full view of the pyramids. And because the GEM is the largest archaeological museum in the world dedicated to a single civilisation, it gets to tell Egypt’s story through its own voice, something many overseas institutions, understandably, haven’t quite managed.

    Reshaping Giza

    GEM entrance and gardens
    The GEM holds its own commanding position. (Image: Natasha Bazika)

    You might expect any building beside the Great Pyramids of Giza to fade into the background, but the GEM doesn’t bow to its famous neighbours. Perfectly aligned on the same axis and vast enough to span 70 football fields, the museum is less of an addition to Giza and more of a marker of the shift from a gateway to a cultural district.

    Inside, hieroglyphs carved from alabaster sweep across the walls and triangles appear everywhere, yet it’s a 3,200-year-old, 11-metre-tall, statue of Ramesses II who commands the room. His scale dictated the soaring atrium ceilings, which pour in natural light, unusual in museums but safe for the stone artefacts displayed.

    Hieroglyphs line the walls of the main entrance of the GEM
    Hieroglyphs line the walls of the main entrance. (Image: Natasha Bazika)

    Unlike many museums, the GEM has really considered how visitors move through it. The six-storey grand staircase leads you chronologically through Egypt’s history, from the Predynastic era to the Coptic period, flanked by statues that grow in scale and complexity as you climb. Elevators and lifts run alongside, keeping the journey accessible to everyone.

    At the top, a viewing wall frames the pyramids before you enter the main gallery to see artefacts rarely seen outside tombs, including the complete contents of Tutankhamun’s tomb, a highlight for many visitors.

    Pharaohs, artefacts and everything in between

    The GEM's showpiece Ramesses II
    The GEM’s showpiece Ramesses II. (Image: Natasha Bazika)

    The GEM holds around 100,000 artefacts across seven millennia, but the experience is entirely modern. Digital panels, QR navigation and clear bilingual signage make self-guided wandering easy, while short, glare-free labels in English, Arabic and braille are colour-coded to move you from broad themes to object-level detail.

    That said, a guide adds context you don’t get from a panel. I was lucky to have Essam Al Ebd Aziz, an Egyptologist, on board a 12-day Uniworld Nile cruise, walk me through some of the museum’s standout pieces.

    Top of the list is, of course, the Tutankhamun exhibit. Almost everything from his tomb, much of it never shown outside the Valley of the Kings, is here, from his golden funerary mask to delicate jewellery and ceremonial objects. But the GEM isn’t just about one boy king.

    GEM entrance is guarded by an 11-metre-tall Ramesses II statue.
    An 11-metre-tall Ramesses II statue guards the entrance. (Image: Natasha Bazika)

    Essam points out the canopic chest of Hetepheres, mother of Khufu, where her organs were stored in alabaster. I loved the forty little marching soldier figurines from the tomb of Mesehti, all lined up and hanging on a wall. And then there’s the statue of Metri, a scribe, with piercing blue eyes carved from lapis lazuli. All these pieces, and thousands more, now sit under one roof. And for the first time, people can see Egypt’s history in one place, told in its own voice, without leaving the shadow of the pyramids. That alone changes everything.