Natasha’s Family Holiday To Mauritius
As many of you know at Simply Luxury Escapes, we are continuing to grow our portfolio of fabulous destinations. Our promise to clients is simple; to provide first-hand knowledge of the hotels and destinations we offer. With this in mind our Managing Director, Natasha, took her family on an October half term break to Mauritius and we’re pleased to share her highlights.
I was really looking forward this trip as Mauritius is a new destination for me. We travelled on a direct 12-hour night flight from London Gatwick with British Airways. We arrived early morning to the sun shining and our transfer company meeting us with cold water and a nice, air-conditioned car.
Our first hotel was Le Jadis Beach and Wellness Resort. This is a fabulous small boutique hotel, with outstanding beachfront pool suites. Our pool and jacuzzi lead directly onto the beach and was bigger than expected; an unexpected bonus! Le Jadis is in the North of the island at Turtle Bay Cove. Situated nearby is the energetic tourist village of Grand Baie, which is full of life and restaurants. The secluded resort is intimate and charming, perfect for couples and young families.
Most of the suites have individual pools, however the hotel has 2 additional pools to enjoy, one which is great for young children as it features a beach effect shallow end. The food at Le Jadis was excellent and evidently every improving as a new head chef started the day we departed! The cocktails in the evening at the main bar were wonderful, the prefect way to start the evening.
From Le Jadis we did most of our exploring around the island. Having hired a car for 3 days, we were able to explore the whole island and fortunately for us Diwali was being celebrated. Lights and colour filled the scenery as we watched families and communities come together to celebrate. Learning about this wonderful tradition was a true pleasure, I cannot recommend being in Mauritius as this time enough.
Whilst in Mauritius I had the pleasure of visiting Maradiva Villas and Spa resort in Flic-En-Flac. This 5-star resort consisted of extremely large private villas, all with large pools. All villas are situated beachfront. The Presidential villas were wonderful. Each villa featured spacious bathroom with deep bath, rain shower and walk-in wardrobe. The finest furnishings had been used as the majority were finished with Hermes. This resort is discreet and peaceful, accompanied by a blissful beach and luxury spa; a perfect honeymoon destination or for those seeking a true Mauritian experience.
Our next stop was JW Marriott Resort (formerly St Regis). I have always wanted to visit JW Marriott as the hotel is based around a Great House. The hotel is situated on a vast white sand beach that spreads further than the eye can see. This resort is paired with the befitting backdrop of the Le Morne Brabant Mountain, which combines the breath-taking coast and deep nature of Mauritian landscapes. This resort is the perfect place for families, with endless activities so no one would be short on fun. The private suites are only a few steps onto the beach. A large pool that stretches across the hotel, a range of immersive water sports, luxury cinema room and game rooms, kids’ clubs are all perfect to distract the kids… especially if you want to sneak away to enjoy a well needed break at the spa. The spa at JW Marriott is wonderful and has everything you could possibly want.
The hotel is also home to five different restaurants which provided endless dining options to fit everyone’s needs so all can enjoy a fine dining experience, a definite check point for all families or groups. My favourite was the floating market serving Asian food, this restaurant whisked you away to another place.
Our last stop of the day was to spend the afternoon in the South of the island at Shanti Maurice resort. This resort was the perfect mix of rustic simplicity and elegance, with endless activities for all types of holiday makers to enjoy. Large white sandy beach, private suites overlooking the Indian ocean and kind staff help all experience the pure bliss of Mauritius. The hotel had arranged for us to experience the spa, we all had a full body massage, which included a personalised deep tissue massage that we all loved! After our spa visit, we had a light late lunch in Red Ginger Bar, I can highly recommend the tempura prawns, they were delicious. The food and service were both excellent at Shanti Maurice. We then spent our time in the adult only pool which by 4.30 was deserted, another beautiful, heated pool which reminded me of my time in Bali. Overall, we had a great day at Shanti Maurice, this is a fantastic 5-star luxury hotel.
After 3 nights it was time to leave La Jadis and head over to the East coast to stay at the legendary resort Shangri-La Le Tousserok. On arrival at this hotel, I just knew I’d fall in love with it. From the door staff to reception, you instantly felt an amazing sense of luxury but totally at home. We decided to just stay at the hotel for 4 nights and just enjoy everything the hotel had to offer. Totally relaxed, we lazed around on the beach, which always had plenty of sunbeds and a constant stream of cold water being delivered. We enjoyed the complimentary water sports and my daughters loved the water-skiing and snorkelling. We then spent a day exploring their private island and having a long leisurely lunch. The food at Le Tousserok was excellent! We really enjoyed the Japanese, Indian, and the beachfront restaurants with live music. The entertainment was good, with great bands playing in the background most evenings. Our daily routine of watching the sunset at the beachfront bar with a delicious cocktail was a perfect way to end the day.
If you enjoy the gym, Le Tousserok has one of the best gyms I have ever visited in a hotel, everything you could ask for and overlooking the adult only pool. The hotel has two pools; one for families and one for adults, both are great. Le Tousserok has 3 beaches plus the island, so you never feel as if you are part of a crowd, I really loved this about the hotel. The kind and warm staff welcome you every day and make your stay even better. I’d recommend this resort to anyone, couples, singles, families, honeymooners, it really has something for everyone.
Whilst staying at Le Tousserok we were invited to Four Seasons Resort, personally I believe it wasn’t just a resort, but it felt like you stepped inside another world. The separation of the private villas by lush thick greenery gives all an individual Mauritian experience, offering private plunge pools, garden, or beach front access. All villas had a breath-taking view of either the Indian ocean or vibrant tropical gardens. We sat down at the beach restaurant on their private beach, enjoyed a cocktail and learned more about what the hotel had to offer our clients. We had the pleasure of watching the parents and children’s joint beach games entertainment which looked like such good fun. People of all ages joined in the various games and competitions being held to involve the whole family in the fun. My trip to Mauritius was during school holidays so the Four Seasons catered to many family-friendly activities, however this did not stop me from slipping away to the spa and revelling in the services infused with cultural traditions and modern therapy. This resort caters for all your needs, simply asking and they will make it happen. The Four Seasons, Mauritius offers relaxed luxury with high level food and fun for the whole family.
To find out more about our Mauritius hotels, click here or call one of our experts on 01732 810372.