Mauritius - Hiking

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Like many reputable holiday companies we are ABTA registered, our ABTA membership number is 65310.

We also use ATOL protected tour operators. However if you wish to use a tour operator who is not ATOL protected then we will take our supplier failure insurance on your behalf.

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On the outskirts of St-Denis and beyond you’ll find picturesque hamlets in breathtaking surroundings. There are plenty of options in terms of hiking trails.

Inland from Roland Garros Airport, southeast of St-Denis, is the waterfall of Le Chaudron. Its name comes from the cauldron-like formation into which it plunges. Getting there entails an 8km hike, which takes around two to three hours (grading: moderate).

Hiking trails around Roche Ecrite (‘written rock’) are some of the island’s best. The Roche Ecrite forest road is also where you can see most of the island’s endemic birds. A 10km, four-hour hike (grading: difficult) takes you to the remote Bassin du Diable (Devil’s Pond). Alternatively, you could try the 9km, four-hour walk (grading: easy) to Piton Laverdure, an extinct volcanic peak, which features a mass of flowers in October and November. A popular and easily reached picnic spot is Cascade Maniquet (30 minutes’ walk).

The Roche Ecrite walk itself is wonderful, though quite challenging, and can be done in a day. It is, however, recommended that you stay overnight at the Plaine-des-Chicots gîte, which you can book at Maison de la Montagne. If you have a car, you can leave it at the Mamode Camp forest road car park but there have been reports of cars being stolen or damaged here. The first leg, which is the part covered by birding tour groups, involves the three-hour walk to the gîte on the Plaine-des-Chicots path (5km), through tamarind and bamboo forest. The second leg is on the Roche Ecrite path (4km, 1½hours). Do this early in the morning for the best weather. From a rocky spur covered with inscriptions (the ‘written rock’), you can see the magnificent amphitheatres of Salazie and Mafate. On the way back, stop off at the Soldiers’ Cave (Caverne des Soldats), overlooking Rivière des Pluies. Another path leads to Mare aux Cerfs (Stags’ Pond).

The energetic (and fairly fit) can continue from Roche Ecrite, west to Plaine d’Affouches, which means a three-hour hike past a disused prison, Ilet à Guillaume. You can continue even further, to Dos d’Ane village, by taking the path branching off after Ilet à Guillaume. Ardent hikers can confront the steep trail into the Cirque de Salazie. Bring warm clothing since night temperatures are often around freezing point.

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Mauritius - Hiking

St Denis

Mauritius - Hiking