Mauritius - Roches Noires

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South of Rivière du Rempart is the bulge of Roches Noires, with weekend houses – campements – facing the turquoise sea. The term campement originally referred to a weekend house made of ravenala and straw. Nowadays the word is applied to the ever-multiplying concrete villas.

In summer, this coast is pleasant, but it suffers from strong southeast winds in winter. Peddlers on motorbikes, loaded with goods of every description, travel the roads selling their wares to women working in the fields who can’t go to town to shop.

From Roches Noires the road trickles down the east coast, passing through Poste Lafayette. The coast is lined with casuarinas, bent by the winter winds. There are some beaches but the sea is rougher than in other areas and they don’t compare to those further south, although you may sometimes have a beach to yourself here. The town of Poste de Flacq is little more than a road junction, although there is a petrol station.

The heart of the Flacq district is Centre de Flacq, a town of about 15,000 inhabitants. Its courthouse and post office are housed in a well-maintained, French-style colonial building, listed as a national monument.

Belle Mare, Palmar and the surrounding area offer some of the island’s best beaches. Belle Mare Beach is true postcard material, with a long white-sand beach, shallow turquoise waters and a border of casuarina trees. The old lime kiln among the trees is one of many along this coast, where coral was burnt over casuarina wood fires to extract the lime. You can climb the steps to the top of the kiln for views back towards the mountains of the centre or out to sea. Among the trees, mobile eateries sell samoussas and other light bites, while hopeful pineapple sellers on mopeds chug up and down the beach looking for customers.

The eastern beaches are not easily reached by bus, but a taxi is inexpensive from anywhere on the east coast. The village of Belle Mare is small but has a few touristy shops, car hire and excursions companies and a police station. At the northern end of Belle Mare, opposite Belle Mare Plage Hotel, are a few modern shops aimed at tourists, an ATM and MCB currency exchange counter.

Sadly, the large upmarket hotels which have come to dominate this area of coast have brought with them jet skis, banana boats and water-skiing tourists. At times, you strain to hear the gentle lapping of the ocean over the wailing of outboard motors.

One of the best things about the area is that whilst there are hotels on the beach side of the road, the opposite side is still the domain of small farmers, who seem to tend their modest crops at all hours of the day. Vegetables such as onions, chillies and aubergines are the main crops, grown for sale at local markets.

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Mauritius - Roches Noires

Mauritius - Roches Noires

Eastern Mauritius

Mauritius - Roches Noires