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Traveler Tips

Airport Mauritius is well serviced by a number of main airlines. Air Mauritius has weekly flights to and from many European cities as well as to and from the major African cities including Antananarivo, Cape Town, Durban, Maputo, Harare, Johannesburg, and Nairobi. In addition, there are flights to and from Bombay, Delhi, Chennai, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Melbourne, Perth and Singapore. British Airways, Air France, Singapore Airlines and South African Airways operate weekly flights. A prime destination, Mauritius is only some 12 hours flight from Europe and about 4.5 hours from Johannesburg, South Africa. Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam is the internatinal airport which is located at Plaisance near the town of Mahebourg in the south of the island. It would be a good idea to change some money into Mauritian currencies immediately on arrival. Flic-en Flacq in the southeast is one hour from the airport by car, Port Louis the Capital 1Hr, Grand Baie and Perebere in the north 1.5 Hrs, Le Morne in the southeast 1.5 Hrs, Belle Mare and Palmar in the east 1.2 Hrs, and Mahebourg in the south 20 mins. Depending on your destination, transfer cost varies from 300 to 900 Mauritian rupees. Flights Air Mauritius 1 weekly flight from Milan 1 weekly flight from Chennai 2 weekly flights from Dar Es Salaam Minimum of 21 weekly flights from Reunion (Gillot) Minimum of 5 weekly flights from Reunion (Pierrefonds) minimumof 21 weekly flights from Rodrigues 3 weekly flights from London (Heathrow) 1 weekly flight from Manchester 1 weekly flight from Brussels and London 15 weekly flights from Paris (CDG) 1 weekly flight from Frankfurt 1 weekly flight from Munich 1 weekly flight from Geneva 1 weekly flight from Vienna 1 weekly flight from Rome (Fiumicino) 1 weekly flight from Johannesburg 2 weekly flights from Johannesburg and Durban 1 weekly flight from Cape Town 1 weekly flight from Melbourne 1 weekly flight from Perth 3 weekly flights from Mumbai 2 weekly flight from Delhi 1 weekly flight from Singapore 2 weekly flights from Hong Kong 5 weekly flights from Antananarivo 2 weekly flights from Narobi 4 weekly flights from Seychelles Air France: 6 weekly flights from Paris (Charles de Gaulle) Air Austral: Daily flights from Reunion Island, Rodrigues Island British Airways: 2 weekly flights from London (Gatwick) and Narobi, 2 weekly flight from London (Gatwick) Condor: 1 weekly flight from Frankfurt, 1 weekly flight from Munich South African Airways: 3 weekly flights from Johannesburg, 1 weekly flight from Durban and Johannesburg, 1 weekly flight from Cape Town and Durban Air Seychelles: 2 weekly flights from Seychelles Singapore Airlines: 1 weekly flights from Singapore, 1 weekly flights from Johannesburg Air Zimbabwe: 1 weekly flight from Harare Air Madagascar: 2 weekly flights from Antananarivo Entry A valid passport and a return or onward ticket is a must for travellers entering Mauritius. Visas are not required by those from a Commonwealth country, Japan, South Africa, the USA, the EU and the Scandinavian countries. Those that do require a visa can usually obtain one for three months, and they are renewable on request. Mauritian Embassies and High Commissions issue visas free of charge. Passengers in transit require no visas but they must continue their journey within 72 hours of checking in. Customs Passengers of 16 years of age and over may import the following duty free: 250 grammes of tobacco (including cigars and cigarettes), 1 litre of spirits, 2 litres of wine, ale or beer, one quarter litre of Eau de Toilette and a quantity of perfume not exceeding 10 cl. A plant import permit must be obtained from the Ministry of Agriculture, prior to the introduction of plants and plant material including cuttings, flowers, bulbs, fresh fruits, vegetables and seeds. All plants must be declared to Customs immediately on arrival and are subject to examination. It is prohibited, by law, to introduce sugar cane and parts thereof, soil micro-organisms and invertebrate animals. Health Requirements A yellow fever vaccination certificate is required for travellers over 1 year of age and coming from infected areas. Infected areas are those areas which according to the World Health Organisation are included in the endemic zones. There is no malaria risk in Mauritius or Rodrigues. Traveler Tips Business Hours Generally from 09H00 to 16H00 each Monday to Friday and a half-day on Saturdays. On the Central Plateau, shops are open all day on Saturdays and half-day on Thursdays. Because it is a free port, Mauritius has a number of commercial, development and offshore banks in addition to the central banks. Shopping Take your pick - packets of Mauritian spice, ship models, miniature dodos in copper or wood, Mauritian recipe books, Sega music cassettes, miniatures of island rum, anthurium flowers, Mauritian tea, T-shirts, shells (make sure you get a Clearance Certificate), Indian fabrics, basket work, quilts, hand-embroidered table cloths, pottery, casual wear and pareos. Knitwear and beachwear can be purchased at factory prices and duty free shopping includes designerwear, diamonds and gold jewellery. Time Mauritius time is 4 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time and 3 hours ahead of mid-European time. Communications The country telephone code is +230 and there are no area codes. Public telephone booths can be found at the airport and larger hotels. Fax facilities are available at most hotels. E-communication is also available. Electricity The power supply throughout the island is 240 volts. Most power sockets use the British 3-pin plugs. French 2-pin plugs are also in use all over the island. If you intend to bring electrical appliances with you it would be a good idea to have your own adaptor. Dress Beachwear is a popular form of dress in Mauritius. Otherwise, dress is casual although most hotels do not allow guests to wear shorts or T-shirts in the restaurants or bars in the evenings. Between June and October, a jacket or tracksuit top is recommended. Dress appropriately when visiting religious shrines and remove shoes when entering mosques and temples. Tipping There is no hard and fast rules about tipping in Mauritius and it is not generally expected. It is at the discretion of the customer whether to tip or not. Water Tap water in Mauritius is usually safe to drink. However you need to take precaution in case of heavy rainfall and flooding. In such situations it is advisable to drink boiled or bottled water. Weather In the central part of the island, 1968 ft. / 600 metres above the sea level, the average maximum day-time temperature varies from about 68 F / 20 C in August to about 79 F / 26 C in February. Along coastal areas, the temperatures are generally higher. The western and northern regions are warmer and relatively drier than the East and the South.