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Mauritius Tourist Attractions – Not to Miss

Travel Destination - Shelia - May 17, 2015

For as long as we can remember, Mauritius has been synonymous with honeymoons spent lazing on ethereal beaches with powdery white sands and warm azure waters. While it does have some of the most gorgeous beaches in the world, there is no dearth of offbeat things to do in Mauritius – it isn’t called Paradise Island for nothing! Even though we had to tear ourselves away from our lovely honeymoon suite, we are glad we did. Hopefully this article will give you a peek into an oft-ignored, yet gorgeous side of Mauritius.

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Mauritius Botanical Garden

Mauritius Botanical Garden, also known as Pamplemousses Garden and SSR Botanical Garden, is one of the most popular tourist attraction in Mauritius, and is located near Port Louis. It is the oldest botanical garden in the Southern Hemisphere. The spectacular garden was built by Pierre Poivre in 1767, and covers an area of around 37 hectares. The botanical garden is most famous for its giant water lilies, spice garden and unique collection of 85 varieties of palms from Central America, Asia, Africa and the islands around the Indian Ocean.

Black River Gorges National Park

Black River Gorges National Park is a national park stretching on an area of 6,574 hectares in the hilly south-western part of Mauritius. It was construction in Mauritius Black River Gorges Nature Reserveorder to save the natural vegetation of the island and make it one of the most important Mauritius sightseeing. One can walk along the greenery and reach the highest point of the island, which is the Black River Peak. Facilities for visitors include two information centres, picnic areas and 60 kilometers of trails. The Black River Gorges National park protects most of the island’s remaining rainforest, and is home to many species of wild animals and birds. Many endemic plants and animals can be found in the park including the Mauritian flying fox, Mauritius kestrel, pink pigeon, Mauritius parakeet, Mauritius cuckoo-shrike, Mauritius bulbul, Mauritius olive white-eye, Mauritius grey white-eye and Mauritius fody.

Ile aux Cerfs Island

Île aux Cerfs Island, known in English as the deer island is an island near the east coast of Mauritius in the Flacq district. Ile Aux Cerfs is famous for its sandy beaches, beautiful lagoon and big selection of activities and facilities. In Ile Aux Cerfs you are sure to have a day of relaxation and fun on one of the picture-postcard beaches, and to enjoy a swim and snorkeling in the lagoon. This paradise island of Mauritius constitutes of around 100 hectares of land. Nowadays there are no more deers on the island, but you will find there some of the worlds beautiful beaches and as such it is one of the must place to visit and see in Mauritius.

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Port Louis

Port Louis is the capital city and main port of Mauritius, Port Louis was constructed in the year 1735 by the noted French governor, Mahe de Labourdonnais. Today Port Louis is the largest city in Mauritius. Port Louis is surrounded by a mountain range, called the Port Louis Moka Range which makes it worth watching.Mauritius Capital Port Louis Port Louis has conserved many historic and colonial buildings through the years. One of them is a fortification named Fort Adelaide or La Citadelle, built by the British in 1835.

The latter dominates the city. The main tourist attractions in Port Louis include the Caudan Waterfront, Port Louis Bazaar, Police Barracks, the Mauritian Chinatown and the old Port Louis theatre. The capital has also three museums which are: the Blue Penny Museum, the Mauritius Natural History Museum and the Mauritius Stamp Museum. Also, the biggest and oldest post office in Mauritius is found in Port Louis near the Caudan Waterfront. At the city center there are number of French styled buildings, which enhances the charm of Port Louis. Port Louis is definitely a must place to see and visit during your visit to Mauritius.

Grand Bassin

Grand Bassin, known also as Ganga Talao is a lake situated in a secluded mountain area in the district of Savanne, deep in the heart of Mauritius. It is about 600 meters above sea level. The Grand Bassin is a holy lake for Mauritian of Hindu faith. It is said that the water inside the lake communicates with the waters of the holy Ganges of India. The Hindus of Mauritius declared the Grand Bassin as a Holy lake.

The Hindu community performs there a pilgrimage every year on the Maha Sivaratri/“Siva’s Great Night”, on this day they honor the Lord Siva. Beside the lake there a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and other Gods including Hanuman and Lakshmi. Also, overlooking the lake is the statue of Mangal Mahadev (Shiva statue) which is of 33 meters, making it the highest statue in Mauritius.

Chamarel park – 7 colored earth & Chamarel falls

Chamarel park – 7 colored earth & Chamarel falls – The “seven-coloured earth” of Chamarel is a geological curiosity and a major tourist attraction of Mauritius. The landscape at Chamarel is truly unique, it is the only place in world where you can find a clay earth of 7 colors at one place. The colors of these unique dunes are red, brown, violet, green, blue, purple and yellow, purple and red are predominant. Also when visiting the park you get to see a great view of the neighboring falls and of the lush vegetation all around.The Chamrel park offers another attraction to be relished first, the Waterfall of Chamarel. It is a truly beautiful waterfall, some consider it as the best in Mauritius. Three distinct stream plunging down a free fall of nearly a 100 meters down into the gorge.

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New to Cruising: What Nervous First Timers Need to Know

Lazy Destinations - Shelia - May 16, 2015

cruisingThere is a reason why cruising continues to grow in popularity, it is a lot of fun, often good value, and offers the chance to visit numerous different destinations in one holiday.

If you are a cruising newbie and want to see what all the fuss is about, it is understandable that you will be a bit apprehensive about what to expect when you climb those steps and embark on a great adventure at sea.

Here are some pointers and tips to help you make the most of your first of what will hopefully be many cruise holidays, once you get the bug for travelling and seeing the world from different ports.

Plan ahead

All the dining facilities and shore excursion offers can seem a bit daunting if you are not used to cruising, which is why it pays to plan and book ahead of your trip where you can.

As with any good restaurant or facility, you often have to make a reservation in order to ensure that you get that romantic dinner you planned or the series of spa treatments that you promised yourself whilst on board.

It is also a good idea to take a look at the shore excursions being offered at an extra cost, so that you have already booked your intended trips well in advance of arriving at the port in question or even before you set sail at all.

Shore excursions offer you the chance to pay for a guided tour or visit to a particular place of interest, so if you want to visit Pompeii when you visit Naples for example, you can book an excursion that will take you there and bring you back to the ship in good time for sailing to your next destination.

Booking online

Most cruise lines such as P&O Cruises amongst others, offer you the chance to book some of your chosen shore excursions online in advance of your sailing date.

Once you have your booking confirmation number, you should be able to visit the cruise line website and make an online booking for the trips that you want to go on. This will save queuing during your time on the ship to book at their reservation desk and will ensure that you are not disappointed, as popular excursions do sell out and some passengers don’t always get what they want if they leave it to the last minute.

Dining

A major feature and attraction of cruising is the incredible array of food that you will be offered on board.
Most cruise ships have a main dining room which serves breakfast, lunch and dinner and you will also find a buffet restaurant elsewhere. The standard of food and culinary delights is often very high on most cruise ships and it is unlikely that you will ever go hungry on a cruise ship.

Although freestyle dining is more popular these days and there are more informal dining options on many ships, many still have a formal dining night such as Captain’s dinner, where everyone is encouraged to dress smartly and enjoy the top cuisine being served.

You can often choose between regular or flexible dining, so if you want the same table and same time for dinner, choose regular dining. You can always choose one of the speciality restaurants on board for a special night if you want to, and don’t have to go to the same restaurant every night.

Cruising holidays can often be as formal or informal as you want them to be and when you consider the excellent dining options, entertainment and facilities on offer, you will soon feel part of the cruising club.

Michael Wilson is the Managing Director at Bolsover Cruise Club, a company his parents founded in the late1960’s, originally known as Bolsover Travel. Michael is passionate about the business, taking interest in all aspects of it. When he’s not working, Michael enjoys spending holidays with his family, watching rugby and gardening.

Featured Courtesy by epSos.de under cc license

 

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Choose the Oceania as the Tourist Destination to Enjoy Your Holiday

Travel Tips - Shelia - May 13, 2015

Oceania is the beautiful island of the Pacific Ocean; Oceania includes Fiji, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Oceania Island is one of the popular as well as favorite tourist destinations, this place includes interesting tourist destination, and it provides a great experience to the visitors. It is the favorite places to gain more memories, because this place has beautiful sceneries. Oceania is the largest uninhabited islands, it is the suitable travel destination for the summer season, and here you may able to have the nice weather condition. Due to this, most of the people like to visit this island and it is the most attractive places across the world. Moreover, this island provides beautiful views, so it is the great tourist places to enjoy your vacation with your family and your loved ones. The tropical trees and green water of the sea are the great attractions. It is the panoramic as well as beautiful places. If you need to visit this place, you may consider the travel agencies. Because the travel agencies help to have the proper travelling experience which also used to visit all the surrounding places of the Oceania. In this place you may able to get different types of accommodation because vary popular hotels available in this place so you may able to get the affordable accommodation from the luxury hotels. These hotels offer Deluxe Ocean View rooms, Vista Suite, Inside Staterooms and Vista Suite. The travel agencies provide personalized attention so you may able to get enrich as well as delightful travelling experience. Here you may able to enjoy more activities.

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In order to improve the passenger comfort level the hotels provide various impressive options. Here you also able to enjoy sun deck, spa and swimming pool. This hotel also includes a fitness center, beauty salon, jogging track and some other. In order to enjoy the sceneries of the Oceania you must take the importance of the travelling packages, if you choose this options you no need to worry about anything because the travelling agencies takes care of all the aspects. Secondly, they arrange good accommodation, with the delicious food packages. They take responsibilities, and they properly make all the suitable arrangements.

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They also book both the up & down flight tickets they have also helped to enjoy the secured travel they take care of your luggage’s. If you are looking to have a nice experience, why then you may choose, the online travels services to enjoy your vacation trip. Besides the online sites help to book the great travelling packages along with the good accommodation facilities. In general, the online agencies reduce all the difficulties of the people because they take care of the whole package so you no need to worry about anything. Apart from that, the online sites help to book the affordable Oceania travelling packages. Therefore, try to choose the suitable traveling packages to enjoy the Oceania. It is the great options to spend your holidays in the Oceania.

Image by Houston Marsh, babau under CC License

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Travelling Around the Globe

Travel Stories - Shelia - May 7, 2015

Travelling Around the GlobeExploring new places makes your life worth living for. Every trip will give you a new experience, new adventure, thrill and lot more excitements. Travelling around the Globe gives you the feel of aliveness. Report says that travelling to new places will refresh our brains and it gives chances to forget our problems. One can learn different culture, food& activities and gives opportunity to get connected with peoples. Those experiences should be collected, recorded and cherished. We live only once, live it to its best.Travelling to new places will help you to come out of stress, work pressure.The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page. – St. Augustine. Well said lines – How do you read a book? By its cover? By its first page? Or the whole book? It’s all up to us. There are many ways that we can spend our time in doing sightseeing, trekking, rafting, paragliding and exploring the great outdoors. A vacation will be more exciting if you are really sure that you will be having fun to the place that you’re going to. It is more exciting if we could go to other places for new environment not only for relaxation but also for recreational activities we could do and discover new things. The feel of spending time with the Nature is the god’s paradise.

I have wonderful memories and stories of all these places. I dream of more places like those! They were all times of being with my family. However annoying and irritating they may be, its fun! When I am lying on my death bed, these are the things I hope to think off. You cannot say that you do not want to feel the way I do, about visiting these remarkable places. There are thousands more too. Near where you live and far far away in unknown lands. Some of the most astonishing places are the unexpected and hidden places.

Be brave and let loose your desires! Taste new foods even if you think you won’t like them. You may be surprised… Take photos. Explore and take more photos. The memories are treasures! The best thing to do is to go to a city for one day. You’ll feel a rush to go everywhere, but relax. It’s supposed to be fun. You’ll never forget those extravagant and eccentric landmarks, food or even the people. Save up your money now. Go with your family all around the world! Or you could go back-packing with friends for a few months – for a once in a lifetime opportunity!

As somebody once said, ‘the world is your oyster’. Accept all you have been given. Make the most of it and experience it to the max. This is our world; we have the right to see it all. Whether we’re nine or ninety years old. Take the time to enjoy yourself and be mesmerized by your findings. I will do everything in my power to see as much as I can. I therefore insist and beg you to do so too. Remember what somebody once said.

It’s time for you to reward yourself after hardship.

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Enjoy Lovely Travel

Lazy Destinations, Travel Stories - Shelia - May 6, 2015

travellerModern people are curious to explore and travel to various places. Everybody will get a new enthusiastic feeling when they hear the word travelling. Travelling provides more knowledge and experiences to people.

There are many reasons for travelling based upon the people. Some people go for travelling for the sake of pleasure. Some people go for travelling to relax themselves from their work stress. Some people go for travelling to spend time with family. Some people go for travelling to explore many places and things.

Nowadays many people choose travelling especially for weather change. During summer, they are travelling to hill regions. During winter, they are preferring some warm regions. People always feel excited to go for vacation especially kids.

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Archeologist people are spending their most of the living span for travelling to collect more knowledge about various things in various places. For them travelling is passion. They love to travel to know more historical values of art.

People travel from country to country to know more deep about the cultural value of that country. They will get more knowledge about the people and country when they interact with them. Such knowledge is a treasure and exists with them forever in their life.

Business people travel to many places to get customers and to improve their brand values in and around various places of the world. They can easily get into interaction with different kind of people and obviously travelling demands perfect communication skills. Travelling increases self-confidence for business people.

Travelling provides us an opportunity to spend time with our dear ones who is staying far away from us during festive seasons. Senior people take divine travelling to many places based on their religion. It makes them satisfied with their life.

Both natural and artificial places attracts people to travel. Many countries spend lots of money to develop natural or artificial tourist spots to attract the tourists. The Government make money from those visiting places. Mountains, beaches, temples, forts, palaces and monuments are some of the natural sightseeing places to travel. Artificial lakes, artificial snow falls, sand creatures, amusement parks, Art gallery, Exhibition are some of the manmade sightseeing places to travel.

Travel makes a place in a part of education also as it provides learning. Many school and college trips are enhanced as a part of education and learning. Advanced transport system makes people travel faster with affordable price. In our routine life, travelling gives a great change to get relieved from our stress .People derive immense gain and pleasure from travelling

Image by Moyan_Brenn Jocey K under cc license

 

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