La Val Nature Park

This small zoo and handbag factory is 2km south of the hill town of Riviere des Anguilles on the road to Britannia. Nile crocodile were imported here from Madagascar in 1985 and have been joined by giant land crab, lizard and other wildlife. It’s a pleasant spot to ramble through thick, steamy forest and enjoy the local fauna and flora. The park is open daily from 9:30 am to 5pm. Admission costs Rs60/30 for an adult/child during the week and Rs 50/25 on weekends.

More like a small municipal park than actual gardens, the Telfair Gardens are hardly an outstanding sight. But they are conveniently opposite the Bus Park in Soullic, on the road to the Robert Edward Hart Museum and Gris Gris. The gardens were named after Sir Charles Telfair, secretary to the English governor, sugar baron and superintendent of Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolan Botanical Gardens. You get a good view across the bay from Telfair to the graveyard at Cemetery Point, where Hart is buried.

Behind Casela Bird Park stands Mauritius' 'Matterhorn' the Montagne du Rempart. You can drive up to the base and park at Tamarin Pumping Station, just off the beginning of road to Magenta. The climb is steep and difficult by Mauritian standards, although it should only take three hours up and two hours down. Trois Mamelles, east of Montagne du Rempart, has three peaks to scale. The approach is better from Quatre Bornes than from Tamarin.

The reef, which nearly surrounds Mauritius, has a major break in it on the south-east coast. Instead of beach and calm lagoon, the sea rushes up against lava rocks and cliffs, carving out a variety of stacks and other coastline sculptures, the best known of which is Le Souffleur. If you walk for about 20 minutes along the cliffs east from Le Souffleur, you will come to a spectacular natural bridge formed when the roof of a sea cave collapsed. To get there take the Plaine Mahebourg to Souillac.