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How is Mauritius for digital nomads?

in Mauritius by @wakkos | 4yr 4yr | 14 comments

Hello all,

I’m planning on spending a couple of month in Mauritius Island and even when I’ve been there for a week, never rented or worked there.

Does anyone here has tips or experience to share about Mauritius?

Cheers!

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@levelsio | 10mo 10mo

I’m hearing almost consistently negative stories from friends and people on here that went to Mauritius, dirty, expensive, homophobic etc.

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@veryfyodor | 10mo 10mo

In short: SEA is both cheaper and has better quality of life. Living in the city is quite nasty and that’s almost the only place with coworking spaces. Getting a sim was also quite hard for me. Getting good quality affordable food without a car was also a big challenge.

Nature and the beaches are amazing though and people seem to be nice as well

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@sergiosa_la | 10mo 10mo

@cbrwizard Care to share your thoughts? I’m interested on visiting the place next year for 2 weeks at least and document the ND lifestyle

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@veryfyodor | 1yr 1yr

Just returned from there, didn’t enjoy it. It’s just more expensive and lower quality than most of Asia.You can read my thoughts on the good and bad sides in my @cbrwizard instagram (can’t post links here sorry).

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@veryfyodor | 2yr 2yr

Guys, how’s the situation there now? Planning to land there in April 2019

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@nathanjones | 2yr 2yr

Following this too! Interested in a few weeks stay coming from SEA to Europe…

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@wakkos | 4yr 4yr

Thank you both!

Beatrice thanks for the PM and for the public reply and for your blog! I’ve read a lot so far xD

Something that I can’t find is monthly budget. How much do you spend in a month?

I want to go to Mauritius because I’m looking for a couple of month in a house just in the beach, like: 15 minutes break, go swimming, come back, keep working. So you can have an idea on the kind of house I’ll be looking for.

Cheers and thanks in advance!

Daniel

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@coralie | 4yr 4yr

Hi Daniel,

If you haven’t come to Mauritius yet, there’s a great airbnb place in Trou aux Biches, a few minutes walk from the beach. It has a nice terrace and even a little office space. I can PM you the details if you’re interested. The couple who live there are super nice and know a lot about the island (they have launched an online guide for responsible tourism called Mauritius Conscious). Also, my husband and I are building a coworking and coliving offer (http://dodoworkplay.com) - we will be hosting our second coliving popup early next year and we put on regular events for entrepreneurs and freelancers to meet and discover the island (Coworking On Tour).

Cheers and safe travels,
Coralie

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@srg_b | 4yr 4yr

Sounds cool Coralie - good luck, I hope to visit when you’re set up.

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@coralie | 4yr 4yr

Thanks Serge Hope to have you here in the future! Hopefully next time you come you’ll find that Mauritius has changed quite a lot! Finally some nice coffee shops popping up here and there, although we’re still far from the hipster vibe. And nice initiatives like the entrepreneurs’ retreat Project Getaway came here for the first time this winter… change definitely in the air

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@srg_b | 4yr 4yr

I lived in Mauritius for 10 months in 2012 and revisited for 3 weeks in 2013. I’d say it’s not nomad friendly - back then there weren’t any hipster cafe-s where you could drink spicy late and have a good wifi. it’s still mostly a vacation spot for the wealthy. I was spending ~2500-3000 Euro per month (I got a long term rent, weekly rates are MUCH more expensive) - I was paying I think 500 euro for a 1-bedroom appt in Flic en Flac. Toyota Yaris was about 500 Euro as well, food prices in supermarket and restaurants were European level, pork and beef were particularily expensive, since it’s imported from SA. I would it hard to live below 2000 p/m … I was lonely because there were no people who were living the same lifestyle as me … but enjoyed because beaches are amazing and so is the nature inside the island - forests and mountains. Locals are friendly, and it will be easier to mingle if you speak French. The place itself is safe, and developed.

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@giovanni | 4yr 4yr

I agree: Mauritius is not a nomad friendly destination: internet is shady in most rental places and there is no nomad community (some foreigners who moved to Mauritius, and opened a local business here, but no nomads).

Mauritius is a great holiday destination, but does not have to offer a lot if you are looking for a Nomad friendly destination: no nomads, lots of tourists - but not an international business vibe. Internet speeds often questionable, also in bars/restaurants. People come here for their honeymoon or to retire in the sun. Not much to do at night.

The pro’s are the friendly people, nice beaches and relaxed vibe.

Rent is pretty expensive for what you get. That’s due to the honeymoon - tourist destination prices. But it’s not crazy. Something decent, with 1, 2 bedrooms and a condominium pool will often go around 1200-1600 euro (close to the beach and shops). Studios will go cheaper of course. Make sure to check the internet speed. Everything, as always, depends on where you want to be, and the season.

All other prices are very ok. Lunches and dinners are lower vs European prices- if you skip the 5* resort restaurants. Food is ok as well and you have a nice range to chose from: creole - Indian - Chinese - European. No top cuisine and restaurants, but ok food for a good/correct price. People are very friendly, wherever you go.

I do enjoy my time here though- but I’m here with my girlfriend. We go for 1,2 dives everyday, get some work done, go for a walk on the beautiful beach, etc. If I would be alone on the island, I would probably take the first plane back - but I’m not good in being alone in a quiet place for long to begin with

In short: if you are looking for a nice island (nature and most beaches are beautiful here), spend some time on the beach, and mix that with work,- but do not care to meet other nomads, have just a bit of nightlife, want to do some shopping, etc - then you’ll be fine here. Some beaches are really beautiful, and the vibe is always very relaxed. Rentals in front of the beach tend to be very expensive though, especially during high season (think $500 a night and way more).

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@giovanni | 4yr 4yr

Ask me again in 2 weeks - just arrived in Mauritius and will stay for another 2 months.

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@lachicnomad | 4yr 4yr

Hi, I’ve sent you a personal message.

I am a digital nomad currently in Mauritius for a couple of months. My start here was very bad. My MacBook broke, I had difficulties finding someone to repair, then it took 2 weeks to wait for one part from Apple to reach the island… and cost me more or less the same price as buying a new one. Living, eating out is quite expensive (not the same type of island lifestyle as in Thailand) but the weather is fantastic and people are very nice (I am Mauritian myself so I might be biased hahaha).

Ive also written a few posts on my blog about life in Mauritius and recently we had the visit of Project Getaway which was awesome.

There are a few co-working spaces although only starting so they are great for remote workers but not exactly for the digital nomad group of people. It’s mostly locals who want to share an office space.

That said, there’s a pop-up co-working week with Fibre Optic internet in November. Let me know if you’re keen.

Cheers
Beatrice

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Hi, I would recommend to not spend too much time in Port Louis if you are in Mauritius. It is a less interesting place in Mauritius to stay or spend time. I would recommend either the North or the west coast of the Island. Trou aux Biches or Flic en Flac are two really good options. You will be at most 5 mins walk away from a postal card beach while still having very good working conditions (good wifi). What I love about Mauritius is the variety of things to do, even though it is quite a small Island, you have numerous amazing hikes (I would clearly recommend Le Morne Hike), lots of postal cards beaches, natural parks, all type of sea activities from submarine tube to perfect kiting conditions. Also, one thing I can't really agree is the racial tolerance score that Nomad List gave them because it is quite ironic in a country where 25% of people are Christians, 40% are Hindus and 15% are Muslims that there is no racial tolerance. Mauritius is one of the most peaceful countries I had the chance to visit where the mix of culture is the most unique. You can literally find a Church, a Mosque and a Temple 30 meters away from each other. It is also one of the most politically stable and the 2nd most developed country of Africa so they have that mix of modernity and Island vibes. If you are a digital nomad going to Mauritius, I would clearly recommend you to contact Island trotter (it is a kind of digital nomad consultant based there) and they will organize everything for you so that you get the best experience. Gael and Jean have been very very helpful during my visit there and they made my trip amazing.

1 year ago

Be careful of the many tourist traps. Restaurants have two menus, one for the locals and one for the tourists. Booze and cigarettes are very expensive and people are generally quite homophobic. The place is quite dirty with building rubble and half built homes all over the place. Lots of wonderful public beaches and the south has beautiful stretches with untouched flora.

⭐️ Overall Score	3.46/5 216 reviews
🎒 Nomad Score™	3.46/5
👍 Quality of life score	Okay
👶 Family score	Okay
💵 Cost	😙 Affordable: $1,989 / mo
📡 Internet	😡 Slow: 4Mbps (avg)
😝 Fun	Good
⛅️ Temperature (now)	🌞 Perfect: 24°C76°F (feels 24°C75°F)
💦 Humidity (now)	😊 Comfy: 74%
💨 Air quality (now)	🌱 Great: 18 US AQI
💨 Air quality (annual)	😐 Moderate: 82 US AQI
👌 Safety	Good
🎓 Education level	Okay
🙊 English speaking	Okay
😤 People density	🧘‍♀️ Low density: 3k ppl/km² (18x18m)
🚶 Walkability	Great
✌️ Peace	Good
🚦 Traffic safety	Okay
🏥 Healthcare	Good
😄 Happiness	Okay
🍸 Nightlife	Okay
📶 Free WiFi in city	Good
🖥 Places to work from	Great
❄️ A/C or heating	Bad
😁 Friendly to foreigners	Good
🗯 Freedom of speech	Good
🤚🏿🤚🏻 Racial tolerance	Bad
👩 Female friendly	Okay
🌈 LGBTQ+ friendly	Bad
🎅 Startup Score	Bad

🌍 Region	Africa
🚩 Country	Mauritius
⏱ Average trip duration	14 days
📡 Internet speed (avg)	4 Mbps
⛅️ Weather (now)	🌥 24°C 76°F + Humid (74%) = feels 24°C 75°F
💨 Air quality (now)	👍 18 US AQI 🍃 good
💨 Air quality (annual avg)	😐 82 US AQI = 🚬 / day
🔌 Power	230V 50Hz
🚑 Travel medical insurance	Safetywing
📱 Best wireless carrier	Mauritius Telecom
💸 100 MUR in USD	USD 2.50
🏧 Suggested ATM take out:	MUR 10,000 = USD 250
☕️ Best coffee place	Domaine Les Pailles
☕️ Best alt. coffee place	Côté Jasmin Jardin Bar
🏪 Best 24/7 coffee place	Coworking MU
🚰 Safe tap water	🚫 No, not drinkable
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Population	150,000 people
😤 Population density	🧘‍♀️ not busy: 18x18m (324m²) per person
👫 Gender ratio (overall)	👨 49% 👱‍♀️ 51%
👫 Gender ratio (young adults)	👨 51% 👱‍♀️ 49%
⛪️ Religious government	Religious
🏠 Apartment listings	Property Cloud
✈️ Best short-haul air carrier	KLM
✈️ Best int'l air carrier	KLM
🏥 Best hospital	Dr A. G. JEETOO HOSPITAL

💵 Cost of living for nomad	$1,989 / month
💵 Cost of living for expat	$1,061 / month
💵 Cost of living for family	$2,502 / month
💵 Cost of living for local	$715 / month
🏠 1br studio rent in center	$435 / month
🏢 Coworking	$198 / month
🏨 Hotel	$1,612 / month
🏨 Hotel	$76 / night
🏠 Airbnb (87 listings)	$1,200 / month
🏠 Airbnb	$39 / night
🍛 Dinner	$6
🥤 Coca-Cola (0.3L)	$1
🍺 Beer (0.5L)	$4
☕️ Coffee	$3

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