DG Southern Africa & Mauritius 2020 * | Page 59

The paradise island of Mauritius can be found out in the Indian Ocean and some 2,400 kilometres east of the Africa mainland. This makes this territory the easternmost member of the Southern Africa bloc and about a 12 hour flight from Northern Europe and 4 hours from Johannesburg. Over the years the island has developed an enviable and very well-deserved reputation as a high quality vacation and golf destination and the island has one of the highest densities of 5 star hotels in the World. MTPA (Mauritius Tourism and Promotion Authority) has intensified and broadened its efforts to promote the island to Africa and Asia prompted by the initial fall in revenues from its traditional markets in Europe from 2010 in the aftermath of the global financial crisis Within Mauritius’ overall attraction as a luxury destination golf is a key niche market, but quite naturally the resorts and estates’ are designed for mixed use and therefore must also market and promote themselves in terms of much broader and more general vacation audiences. All of this combines to make Mauritius a destination which has something for everyone. Perhaps as an Englishman and my being an islander I am a soft touch, but it seems that some places on Earth just seem to lend themselves to vacations. Mauritius’ combination of an island with white sand, blue skies and a warm gentle onshore breeze coming in across a blue lagoon to rustle the palms is a glorious sensory cocktail and when you throw 9 great golf courses into this mix, it could be just the stuff dreams are made of. These images will undoubtedly have a very special resonance if you are in the middle of your region’s winter with both the sight of the sun and a blue sky just a very distant memory! From my own personal experiences, having been fortunate to have visited Mauritius many times, the warmth of the climate is matched by the warmth of the welcome you will receive as a holidaymaker. The resorts will have an aquatic related activity to suit every taste from snorkelling to paragliding and surf skiing to marlin fishing. Should your choice of pursuits be of a more relaxed nature, then to paraphrase the famous anonymous quote about golf, it might be said that ‘a game of golf in Mauritius is a good day at the beach spoiled!’ The Seven Coloured Earths, popular tourist attraction. C/O Mauritius Tourism That said on some of the courses I have seen several errant players spend more time looking for their golf ball on the beach than on the golf course – so perhaps you can enjoy both at once! DG DG SAIO SAIO 2020 2020 | 57 | 57