4 Things not to miss in Mauritius

We love Mauritius! We love the people, the vibe and the food. We’ve put together a short list of 4 things not to miss in Mauritius.

1.  Alouda – a milky cold drink (almost like a vanilla milkshake with basil seeds) well known by every Mauritian.  Perfect on hot days to cool you down and quench your thirst.  We almost missed out on this delicious drink, but after seeing the queue of locals waiting for their drinks, we decided to give it a go – and went back for more! 
2. Ala-lila – Ala-lila is a great taxi service in Mauritius, complete with it’s own app and very similar to Uber. We considered renting a car but it would’ve cost us money while standing in the driveway. Money we would much rather spend on Alouda 🙂  Ala-lila worked out much cheaper than other taxi services and we could use the service as and when needed! 
3. Street/Market Food – We know not everyone gets as excited as us about food but do yourself a favour and try the street/market food in Mauritius! Everywhere on the streets, and especially at the markets, you’ll find stalls and carts selling freshly fried snacks including Gateaux piment (Mauritian Chilli Poppers almost like falafel and not too spicy), yummy spring rolls and samosas. Other favourites are Dholl Pouri (a pancake made from ground yellow split peas, seasoned with cumin and turmeric, griddled on a tawa (flat pan) and wrapped around cari gros pois (butter bean curry) with rougaille (spicy Creole tomato sauce), pickled vegetables, coriander satini (chutney) and chilli), Pani Puri, Boulettes and really good Dim Sum.
4. Affordable Local Markets – One of our favorites, the Quatre Bornes Market, is primarily a market for the locals and you will not find a lot of tourists there, but this is what makes the market (and it’s low prices) so special! Locals buy all kinds of things at the market. We did some serious fruit, veg, meat and fresh seafood shopping there on a Wednesday and Saturday and on Sundays and Thursdays the area is transformed into a mini shopping mall with anything from clothes to kitchen ware, sunglasses, carpets, make-up and souvenir stands. The market is big. When you think it is the end of the market you’ll find there are even more stands and aisles! (Don’t be scared to haggle, the Mauritians are used to it!) When the market and the crowds gets too hot and humid, head outside and buy a bowl of shaved ice with flavoured syrup, yummy!

Have you experienced any of the things we’ve listed or want to add anything?  Please let us know by commenting below!