Attractions

Port Louis

Backed by mountains at the northwestern end of the island, the burgeoning capital of Port Louis is a relatively large city (in proportion to the size of Mauritius), though it contains a relatively small percentage of the country's total population.

During the day, it bustles with snarling traffic. By night, in contrast, all is quiet - except for the swish Le Caudan Waterfront, where you'll find a casino, cinemas, shops, bars and restaurants. There's a distinct Muslim area around Muammar El Khadafi Square and a Chinatown around Royal St.

Curepipe

The town of Curepipe owes its size and prominence to the malaria epidemic of 1867, during which thousands of people fled mosquito infested Port Louis for healthier, higher ground. The bulk of Franco-Mauritians live in outlying communities and come into Curepipe mainly to shop.

With the flavour of an English market town, Curepipe is the centre of the island's tea and model-ship building industries and the best place to scatter your money. The town itself is worth a quick visit at most as the surrounding countryside has a more universal appeal.

Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Gardens

These attractive gardens are one of the most popular tourist attractions in Mauritius, but the shady avenues of palms seem to swallow the numbers. One key attraction is the park's giant Victoria regia water lilies, native to the Amazon. Other attractions include golden bamboo, chewing-gum trees, fish poison trees and a 200-year-old Buddha tree.

These gardens were started in 1735 by Governor Mahe de La Bourdonnais as a vegetable garden for his Mon Plaisir Chateau. The grounds were gussied up by French horticulturalist Pierre Poivre in 1768 in his bid to introduce spices, but afterwards lay neglected until 1849, when a British horticulturalist, James Duncan, took over. His legacy is seen today in the garden's array of palms.

The fragrant flora of the garden - ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, camphor and sandalwood - is a high point, as are glimpses of Mauritian wildlife that are all but unavailable elsewhere on the island. Look for enclosures of Java deer and giant tortoises. There's also an art gallery and a cemetery, whichever way your tastes run.

South of Port Louis

A scant 12km (7mi) south of Port Louis, the town of Moka - in terms of ambience - is a world apart from the capital. Not only is it the island's centre of academia, it's also blessed with sylvan landscapes, towering mountains and a number of impressive manor houses.

The university is found here, as well as the Mahatma Gandhi Institute, founded to preserve and promote Mauritian Indian culture. The Gandhi Institute's Folk Museum of Indian Immigration houses around 2000 volumes of Indian archives dating from 1842 to 1910 as well as a small collection of artefacts.