Mauritius · airport pick-up
Airport car rental in Mauritius
Pick up a rental car at Mauritius's airport terminals. Expedia Cars covers every major counter on arrivals — collect your key minutes after baggage claim, drop off at the same gate, no shuttle hassle.
- ✓On-airport counters at every Mauritius terminal
- ✓No off-site shuttles for the major brands
- ✓Flexible fare options shown per flight
- ✓One-way drop-off available · Powered by Expedia Cars
What first-timers get wrong in Mauritius
Driving is on the left and the roads are good, so hiring a car is the standard move; buses are cheap but stop running around six or seven in the evening. Southeast trade winds make the east coast windy year round, which matters when choosing where to sleep. Most resorts sit an hour from the airport. Tap water is treated, though many visitors still buy bottled.
What things cost in Mauritius
Dholl puri from a street cart costs roughly 25 to 40 rupees for two, making it the cheapest satisfying meal on the island. A Creole lunch in Port Louis runs 200 to 400 rupees. Buses cost about 25 to 45 rupees a journey and a day of car hire starts near 1,200. Aapravasi Ghat is free and the Blue Penny Museum a few hundred rupees.
Mauritius with kids, realistically
Casela Nature Parks near Flic en Flac combines a zoo, a bird park and ziplines on one site and takes a full day. Odysseo oceanarium in Port Louis is entirely indoors. The north and west lagoons sit inside a reef, so the water is flat and shallow. Buses are cheap but slow and rarely have room for a pram, and Chamarel and the gorges need a car.
What to eat in Mauritius
Street food here is Indo-Creole: dholl puri, two thin split-pea flatbreads wrapped around bean curry and rougaille, is the national snack and costs a handful of rupees from a cart. Gateaux piments and boulettes go alongside. Port Louis Central Market, feeding the city since 1844, is where to begin, with an alouda of milk and basil seed to wash it down.
Mauritius after dark
Grand Baie in the north carries most of it, around Banana Beach Club and the Royal Road bars, and it winds down well before dawn. Flic en Flac on the west coast stays quieter. Sega, the drum-and-dance form that came out of slavery, is performed at hotels on set evenings, a staged version of something still danced privately on beaches at weekends.
When to go to Mauritius
| Best months for airport-cars | Avg daily high | Rain days |
|---|---|---|
| September | 21°C / 70°F | 18 days |
| August | 20°C / 68°F | 19 days |
| May | 23°C / 73°F | 20 days |
The month to avoid is January — around 26°C (79°F) with roughly 28 rain days. Prices and crowds track the weather here: September is the sweet spot, January the month most people skip.
Pack for peak season: Layers — t-shirts under a light jacket or sweater, Rain gear is non-negotiable — expect rain on roughly 18 days, Comfortable walking shoes — every guide on this site assumes you'll use them.