Climate and Tourist Map
Mauritius is under the influence of the trade winds blowing south east mainly in winter. From December to April, heavy orographic rains sometimes associated with cyclones mark the summer season.
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The landscape of the island creates the microclimates as per the repartition of the rain therefore characterising the various types of indigenous and exotic vegetation. The west and the north are the most dry regions (less than 1 meter of rain per year). On the other hand, the elevated region of the central plateau have a considerable rain fall (with more than 5 meters of rain per year). Furthermore the cyclonic periods of summer sometimes bring heavy rain.
Regarding temperature, it varies from 23,3 °C at sea level to 19,4 °C at highest altitudes. The relative humidity varies between 70% on the coast to 90-100% on the high regions.
Even if now the climate is quite pleasant, Mauritius has known quite long period of drought even during the periods when the forests were covering the island.
Depending on the oceanic regime, the ambient climate did not have a drastic change with urbanisation and the deforestation due to agriculture, but it should not be ignored that the water streaming has considerably been reduced and drank up by the superficial roots of trees and other vegetation of the undergrowth.
Studies made by the MSIRI and the Meteorological services of Mauritius have helped to draw an agroclimatic map of the island in 1967.
Tourist Map
mauritius-islander.com (General Info site)
Mauritius is situated in the south-west of the Indian Ocean about 800 km east of Madagascar. Together with Réunion and Rodrigues it belongs to the Mascarene Islands. It has an area of 1.865 km ² and