Heartfelt Luxury at the Oberoi Beach Resort Mauritius
As we arrived at The Oberoi Beach Resort which is located in a very picturesque location in Turtle Bay Marine National Park on the west coast of the island, we had a swift rapid antigen test that was organized by the resort. The lush grounds of the resort were an absolute treat to the eyes and soul. We were escorted to our Luxury Pavilion after check-in that had floor to ceiling glass windows and doors that opened up in front of a verandah with beautiful views of the landscape filled with palm trees, clear blue summer skies and the range of volcanic erupted mountains in the background. The four-poster bed in the villas and the sunken bathtub with an outdoor shower overlooking the frangipani tree gave it all the exotic feels.
Today’s Luxury Traveller seeks not only a strategic location to have complete privacy with all the finer things catered for, but what is also important is how these elements of luxury are delivered to the most discerning traveller. At the Oberoi Beach Resort in Mauritius, we had the next few days to experience just that. The heartfelt hospitality that the Oberoi group of hotels is well-known for.
The island nation of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean is 65 Km long from north to south and 45 km wide from east to west, making it easy to explore and maximize your holiday if you are on a short getaway for 5 – 7 days. While the east and the south coast of the island is favoured by kite surfers, as the stunning beaches here are more favoured by the winds, the west coast is more popular with the families with the flat, calm beaches with arguably the most spectacular sunsets.
The weather in Mauritius is tropical all year round and has only two seasons, Summer, which lasts from November to April, and Winter, which lasts from May to October. On my second day there I woke up at the crack of the dawn and decided to take advantage of the onset of the beautiful summer weather. I decided to take a stroll through the nearby areas of Balaclava Beach on the bike. The lady at the reception at the resort handed me a map of the biking trail and the bike keys that are available at the resort exclusively for the in-house guests.
My little expedition from Balaclava beach led me to Grand Baie to the upper northwest of Mauritius on a 15 Km bike trail. I stopped along the most popular beaches and witnessed the daily lives of the locals that were getting ready to start their day. The French windows flung open on the row houses lined along the beaches to let the morning light and the songs of the birds seep into the lives of the locals as I strolled by. The priests were performing their morning chants and offering their prayers to the deities in the many colourful Hindu temples that dotted the scenery. The colours of Gulmohar trees and Bougainvillea got more vividly orange and pink as the sun got brighter. I am not sure if I was experiencing a ‘De Ja Vu’ moment here but I felt like I had been in this moment here before. It was like a dream to experience paradise unfold in front of me.
Our itinerary included a day trip to the southwest part of the island on our fourth day, where we got to visit a few of the many beautiful locations in Mauritius. We started off with a quick pit stop at a sacred lake and then continued on the Black River Gorges. Our next stop was the famous Chamarel 7 earth coloured Geopark. After a busy morning, we had our lunch at the nearby highlands very close to Chamarel at the Domaine De St. Denis. I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone planning their visit to Mauritius. The restaurant sits on top of a mountain with a 360-degree view of huge hectares of lush greenery. We spotted deers roaming around freely not too far from where we were seated as well as some endemic plants of Mauritius.
‘Experience is a new luxury and this is what made my short stay at the Oberoi Mauritius even more special. We were fortunate to indulge ourselves in some of the incredible unique experiences that were handpicked and curated exclusively for us from the collection of ‘Touching Senses’ at the Oberoi Beach Resort which gave us an opportunity to connect and make memories. We shared some deeper conversations amongst ourselves as we sat painting palm trees during the painting classes and had a few laughs over the wine tasting session. We also enjoyed the silence during our meditation and yoga classes beholding the spectacular sights that lay in front of us.
The impressions that were created and the moments we shared through these experiences will remain with me forever. What are the destinations that you have been dreaming of taking off your wishlist this year?