Mauritius has reaffirmed its ‘Beyond The Beach’ positioning to show UK travellers what’s inland, in the water, in the kitchens and on the trails
This ranges from cultural encounters and food, to adventure, wellness, and conservation-led tourism.
Dinesh Burrenchobay, Chairman of the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Activity (MTPA), said that after Covid, the profile of travellers changed, with a shift towards having long-lasting, memorable holidays with a purpose, and travelling in a meaningful way to do so.
The Chairman also identified more multi-generational travel, with families travelling alongside grandparents.
The UK is still Mauritius’ largest tourism market, and the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA) is now pushing visitors to see more of the island.
This includes seeing its communities and culture, rather than just staying within resort grounds.
“With Mauritius, the sun, turquoise sea, beautiful sand, and beautiful beach, are all on the cover of the book. Inside, are all the different experiences tourists can have, whether it’s trekking inland, visiting cultural places, or tasting great food,” said Dinesh.
“We want to attract people to go beyond the beach.”
What this means for the market
Despite the shift in marketing, Mauritius still carries the same appeal to UK tourists.
“I think UK people still come to Mauritius for various reasons: we speak English, it’s far away from everything else, it’s peaceful, and we have beautiful beaches,” said Dinesh.
The initiative creates more choice in the UK market, with a wider range of options for experiences when travelling to the island.
Dinesh said, “The tourist product is of course made up of the beach, but now there’s also more choice for memorable experiences.
“We want them to meet the locals and be able to go and have a meal at a Mauritian’s house.”
The average UK tourist stays in Mauritius for seven to 10 days, and with this shift, the 10 days can be full of much more.
“We strongly believe that Mauritius as a destination has this capacity of attracting and making a first-time traveller come again and again. We’ve seen it in some other data, and we want to position ourselves that way,” the Chairman said.
Protecting the heritage
With tourism spreading inland, efforts are being made to make sure that the natural and cultural heritage of the country is protected.
With an informal rule of not building higher than a coconut tree and rigorous restrictions controlling every hotel development, high-rise buildings will not be found by the beach.
The Chairman also mentioned a set of rules being developed to control swimming, dolphin-, and whale-watching, an activity of growing popularity.
Another activity tourists won’t want to miss is a visit to Chinatown in the capital, Port Louis.
“Mauritius used to be completely uninhabited, so people came from everywhere,” said Dinesh.
“A visit to Chinatown is so interesting; visiting all the old little China shops that you don’t see anymore anywhere else, even China.
“And that can be combined with street food, or a foodie tour in the capital.”
For visitors wanting to explore more rural areas, they can trek Le Pouce, particularly recommended for sunrise or sunset, as it is a fairly easy climb up.
Other offerings include the UNESCO indentured labourer museum, Aparavasi Ghat, the Hindu festival of Thaipoosam Cavade, held in January or February, and visiting a temple, mosque, or pagoda.
An island of wellbeing
The Chairman said, “If you go to the south of the island, the air is extremely pure because beyond our coast, there’s nothing until you get to Antarctica.”
This clean air helps reinforce the idea of Mauritius being ‘an island of wellbeing’.
“We’re like an island of slow living. We are very lucky on many fronts. We have a really beautiful, rich ocean around us,” said Dinesh.
“We also have some nice, peaceful treks to with scenic trekking, which pushes that idea of well-being.
“The island, the climate, the people, the setting, the environment is just perfect. We want people to feel much better when they leave than when they arrived.”
The core idea comes back to wanting to showcase all that Mauritius has to offer, beyond the beach.
Dinesh said, “We’re more than just a little island. We have a lot of qualities and experiences for people to enjoy.”
