5 goods reasons for not choosing Mauritius

Hi. From SA with a house in Mauritius. Cannot wait to move there permanently.
Glad you went back to where you came from. They deserve you, Mauritius does not.

All Mauritians are not from slave blood. A minority are.

I couldn't agree more.  I don't feel the country got a fair chance of showing all it has.  I've never lived there, though I plan to retire there, but it's going to take me more than a couple of days to form a permanent opinion.

Yes, i can only say that my opinion differs a lot from the creator of the thread. I havent spent so much time in Mauritius. 4 weeks divided on two occasions ten years appart.  My experience is the direct opposite.  I found the local population extremely friendly & helpful which is extra important for me,  being disabled & partly wheelchair bound after a stroke.  Of course i need to be able to take care of my self,  but i think you get the picture of the importance of a friendly population in my future home country.  I was so impressed by Mauritius in every way that me & my companion abandoned our plans for Thailand as our future home & aimed for Mauritius instead.  We completely agreed on this & there are many reasons for this & the top ones were a friendly population, safety,  good infrastructure & a civilized country in general.  I could actually move wherever i want where they will have me & i definitely chose Mauritius,  which has made a very good impression on me in every way.  Next year ill go to Mauritius a longer time & rent somewhere to live since i realize theres a big difference between living in Mauritius & staying for a few weeks in a hotel.  This way ill get a better impression of what its like to live in Mauritius as disabled,  which i think will work from what ive seen this  far.  Was there as disabled 2 019 & as far as i can see it should work out,  especially since warmth makes my functions better which makes me more independent. It makes me a little sad when someone says so bad things about Mauritius & its inhabitant.  I think both the country & its population deserves more respect.  This is my opinion & i have the utmost respect for Mauritius & its inhabitants & will try to learn mauritian creol,  not because i have to,  but because i respect the local population & will try to adapt as well as possible to  the country im hoping to call my new home country. Sorry for long text.  Just felt i had a lot to say about Mauritius (positive things).

I think moderators should get trolls deleted from the platform.

The only question is: who sent him? which country that is doing that?

These types of reaction come from people who have an agenda. Mauritius is not the best country in the world but it is surely not the worst country in the world.

Hello everyone,

Please note that some inappropriate posts have been removed from the thread.

Thanks,

Diksha
Expat.com team

Hello,

Please that we had to remove posts from this thread again. To clarify, comments which were deemed to be mean-spirited and insulting were the ones removed from this thread.

Kindly remain polite to one another.

Thank you for your understanding.

Diksha
Expat.com team

I found Mauritians generally helpful people and polite when I visited, although the service/complaints sector could be very much better--however French heritage is the same as France--rudeness in public or private service is  normal. I can't see why some people  on this forum are claiming to be generally mistreated in Mauritius - I think they must have some sort of agenda.

I am looking forward to visiting Mauritius again when the pandemic turns to an epidemic and life is more normal. In fact am considering coming to live here with my family!

i completely agree here. there are clearly people who are members of this community whose sole objective is to sow dischord and misinformation. if you do not like mauritius or you have nothing positive to say, then why be on here? that is not to say there should not be a debate or there
should be differences in opinion - but this is not a forum for putting out disinformation or sowing nasty seeds. these people (and they are repeat offenders i hasten to add), clearly have a sinister agenda and should be barred in my opinion. There should be a limit to the number of take downs that any one individual can be allowed - (eg a three strikes rule) and then they are shown the door.

Chers amis expats il est écrit que l'Île Maurice est un paradis, tout le monde il est beau tout le monde il est gentil.

doril wrote:

Chers amis expats il est écrit que l'Île Maurice est un paradis, tout le monde il est beau tout le monde il est gentil.

Only English, please.
If you prefer French, try HERE

This bloke is a troll, claiming to live in the Faroe Islands! He never went to Mauritius and never flew back after a few days.

Miserable and cold in one of the most foul weathers on earth ( Faroe Islands), he indigoes in nasty trolling with his jealousy of life in Mauritius.

What a complete loser.. Get a life.

standaman1967 wrote:

i completely agree here. there are clearly people who are members of this community whose sole objective is to sow dischord and misinformation. if you do not like mauritius or you have nothing positive to say, then why be on here? that is not to say there should not be a debate or there
should be differences in opinion - but this is not a forum for putting out disinformation or sowing nasty seeds. these people (and they are repeat offenders i hasten to add), clearly have a sinister agenda and should be barred in my opinion. There should be a limit to the number of take downs that any one individual can be allowed - (eg a three strikes rule) and then they are shown the door.

Where do you think we are .Pre-prep or nursery.   It is not 1950's anymore.

and just for clarity's sake, you would be one of those i was referring to.

Who are we gonna overcharge if expats stop come here 

This expat is from Kenya..we bargain like death-match. Wait till I hit Mauritius!    My wife is worse, she is Malagasy. They bargain till people weep blood!

I don't think you will be able to bargain for food, clothes and shelter

Really? You should see us, particularly the wife, in the local market! As for shelter, anyone who does not bargain for less than the sticker price will be disadvantaged....especially in a low prospect current economy. Never ever pay the sticker price..my grandmother taught me. Wise words! I think there are very many Mauritians who also follow this rule!

While i agree in a sense.

But regarding my first comment, this does not apply to you.

Can only find one, which wont prevent me from relocating to Mauritius,  no ice hockey league.  Well,  i Think i can live with that:)

@mrkevslayer well said.

Wow, I'm in the process of submitting my application for a retirement visa and found this thread interesting.

It seems many people didn't understand the assignment.

The topic was "5 good reasons for not choosing Mauritius". I mean, obviously, people are going to list what they don't like. But, as is usually the case, it rapidly degenerated because others took offence and it then became personal.

The primary reason for taking offence, aside from a lack of tolerance for alternative opinions, is because one loves one's country and/or culture. Hell, I'm migrating from Canada and I get upset when people rip into Canada. It is kind of like the old saying "I can complain about X but when you do then I get upset". We all do it to some degree.

Nonetheless, I have appreciated the comments because if you read between the lines you can see what the issues are. These are not dissimilar to other areas of the world. I could go on ad nauseum about how Canada rips off new immigrants. But I'm not going to make comparisons because it is irrelevant. Those denouncing other countries in some kind of futile attempt to level the playing field are misguided.

I appreciated this thread and am sure it is helpful for others doing their research.

Good comments buddy, but what's your point here?

Ok, I'm an Aussie who has just moved to Mauritius after 20 years in Hawaii, and here's the truth about this place. I've been here just over a month. It's filthy dirty... in many ways. The whole island seems to be a garbage dump, it took me a while to figure out why, it's because they don't cull the wild dogs and people place their garbage bags out on the streets and at night the wild dogs rip them open. The air quality is really poor and enough to make you sick. They have buses that are still operating from the 70s, and they put out thick black exhaust. It seems there are no mechanics on island because nearly every car and motorbike is in need of an oil change. The amount of pollution traffic puts out would be illegal in any other developed country. The beaches are dirty and polluted with dead coral, which what should be spectacular coral reefs, are now all dead and washed up on the sands making it uncomfortable to walk on. Those gorgeous blue waters you see in pictures are deceiving. The water is cloudy and you cant see through it and therefore not fun to jump in because you'll hurt your feet on broken coral. After some research I found a document that outlined all the pesticide run-off that goes into the ocean, so that's why coral is dead and also from boat oil refuse. I find myself having to wash my hair more often because of the oil in the ocean water. The pesticide use is scary. They use poisons that are banned in most countries on fruit and vegetables. Most of the produce is flown in from Africa and always looks like it was picked last year (organic farms have not happened here yet. They don't even have a health food shop). To make matters even worse, 99%of the population here are tobacco addicts. They still allow people to smoke in dining establishments, and bars. It's like walking back in time to the 1980s. So creating a healthy lifestyle has been my biggest challenge here. Noone has even heard of Kale! I do hope people who live here will rally for a higher standard of living. The beauty of the island has so many similarities to Maui Hawaii, it just has not been looked after at all. If the right checks and balances were put into place, it would be a paradise.

@Aussieben2

Apart from that, all good?

@Aussieben2 I actually wonder why you even moved to Mauritius?

@Aussieben2

Hey, I am Australian & Mauritian & a returnee. I moved back here because the good things outweigh the bad things.

With all DUE respect, a few of the things you say are true - granted. However, most of it is either a HUGE generalisation, your opinion or just plain crap.

If it is not suitable for you & you are going to stay here & complain without trying to help the situations that need help, then perhaps you should consider going back to Oz or somewhere else.

Well said, we love the buses they part of the character of living in Mauritius.

@Aussieben2 Nobody has heard of kale in Mauritius? Another reason to love the place. How can you tell if someone is a vegan? Don'y worry, they'll soon let you know (e.g. liking the taste of kale).

@mike102 LOL, unfortunately, I have seen imported kale in Super U. It looks like it has died three times - so obviously, not many people are into it.

Thanks. Are most veg imported from Africa? I'd have thought the soil and climate in Mauritius would be perfect for growing veg.

@mike102

Not sure where most things are imported from as they are not marked half the time. I just don't buy anything that is not marked with where it is from or their ingredients. Our soil is awesome for growing lots of stuff but sometimes the lack of water is the issue as I have found with my organic garden.

@AussieInMauritius Thanks!

In fairness having lived full time in Mauritius for past 10 years it would be very hard for me to really put my hand on my heart and come up with a list of 5 reasons why anyone should not come here. Possibly there are general reasons perhaps and I have had to live with them of course.

[1] Currency , the fact that the economic stataus of Mauritius is fragile with a quite high rate of inflation is borne out of the drop in value of the Mauritius Rupee . Over 5 years ago you would be lucky to get say 30 Rupees for one English Pound , however now it more like close to 60. This means imports are considerably more expensive now than before and with no visible sign that the trend is reversing.

[2] Social/Night life,  with the cultural aspect of the different races in Mauritius evenings become very quiet during the week as there are very little evening activities available which might be something of a shock to some. However some places such as Grand Bay and Flic-en-Flac are popular with a choice of restaurants and night-clubs and beaches which are popular with locals as well as ex-pats and tourists.

[3] Public Transport i.e. buses, there does seem to be a number of different bus companies operating the same route i.e. Port Louis to Flic-en-Flac (123) and often they are competing with each other so buses can be seen waiting at some bus stops for long periods of time for no reason. Also most bus services finish around 7pm so if you need to get home after that it may be more of a problem.

[4] Traffic , generally speaking most of the roads are reasonable for driving carefully on , the main issue is if you have to be in places like Port Louis at certain times of the day then you are in for a wait in many of the many traffic jams that are on all roads into and out of Port Louis. The roads in the capital were mainly laid down when there was little or no cars on the roads.

[5] Shopping,  I have been here long enough to experience both the little corner shops and the big shopping malls and  markets and can see one problem with shopping.  Many shops do not always put prices on the goods so you do not really know if the value is good or not and thus if you need to return an item it is very difficult as shops will say that they will not give refunds after a sale has been made. This may be compounded as sizes because of imports may be very different to what you are used to in your own country and availability for refunds if an item does not fit or is faulty,  That is why you see shops un=packing electrical items and making sure they are working in front of you.

Like I said these points I live with and accept them as part of living in Mauritius now but just wanted to make a few aware that Mauritius just like any other country in the world has its good things as well as problems. 

Perhaps to address the balance there should be a similar discussion of 5 things about your country that made you come to Mauritius !!!!!

@lesmar54  thank you for your informative answer. This is just a different way of life. None of this should  matter to those seeking a chilled out way of life. Every country is different and those who wish to live in Mauritius should embrace the island way of life; of course some things should improve. Now, I love the absence of Amazon,etc. and sincerely hope it does not arrive in Mauritius!!

@Tookays Thanks for this. I wholly agree, but for one thing. As a Brit hoping to emigrate to Mauritius in August, just about the only think I'll miss compared with the UK is Amazon!!!

@mike102 believe me, you won't miss it after a while. And you will not be spending money on things you don't need.

This thread has been going on for a long time and I wonder why the topic was framed as a "not choosing" statement rather than a positive statement which may elicit positive feedback - but it is what it is.

Background for my response - from Mauritius, left early, now visit the island often, and considered moving back many times over the years.  Today not considering.  In the future, who knows?

5 things for not choosing Mauritius

1. Economy - it's a small island with limited resources and hence - limited growth potential as compared to larger countries.  What is important for me may not be important for others.... What you are used to in other countries may not be available - just because it's either too expensive or just not available....  This even include jobs, services etc...
2. Currency - rupee depreciation is a fact of life as this attracts foreigners to spend and invest and Mauritius needs that.  Does it make it difficult to live in Mauritius?  Yes - because everyone suffers from rising prices.  Even when one's income is from a foreign currency, if the spending is in Rupees, then this price will rise as everything will become more expensive.
3. Politics - like in every country, there is politics and sometimes things do not make sense.  What is almost comical about politics in Mauritius is that motives for doing something are poorly concealed or not concealed at all.... I remember an old example a few decades ago when a minister or official was caught with drugs or cash in diplomatic baggage.  Diplomatic immunity - but made interesting stories at that time...
4. Inequality - there are have and have nots and it is very clear where the have nots are.  If you look for them, you can find them right outside the bustling cities and / or tourist areas.  It does not take long to find.  The country simply does not have resources to help everyone equally.
5. Traffic and transportation - the Port Louis rush hour traffic is so legendary that everyone should try it.  If you try and enjoy it, then you know that you are suitable for the island.  Realistically, there is no need to change anything there as roads and transportation is designed for average (not peak) use and on average roads and busses are good.  However, if you want to overcome all of the problems of traffic and transportation, there is always the helicopter route (see point 4 above).

5 reasons given - but if you look at those - those are all personal choices.  The people and culture are still wonderful, the institutions are what they are (improving or not), and the country is as unique and beautiful as can be.

At least Mauritius allows anyone to have personal choices - count your many blessings.

@mike102  Haha..actually my wife and I love kale as we ate tons of it in Africa, as one also does in USA southern cooking but certainly Maurtians do not grow it..we are trying to on our own. We are also carnivores!

@mike102 Agriculture is not a culturally preferred investment. Should be but is not.