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Place D’Armes

Place D’Armes (Port Louis) – this is the capital’s main palm tree-lined boulevard. It links the capital’s port to the Government House. It also acts as a major artery for the country’s business community (with a concentration of banks located here – from the Bank of Mauritius to HSBC Bank, and Barclays Bank), and has been labeled the “Champs Elysees of Port Louis.

National History Museum of Mauritius

National History Museum of Mauritius (Royal Road, Mahébourg) — located an hour’s drive (45 km.) southeast of Port Louis, this museum (located at Mahébourg on the bank of La Chaux River amidst a luxuriant park of pine trees) is housed in the Gheude Castle, a magnificent French colonial mansion built around 1770. Various facets of the island’s rich history can be seen here, including paintings illustrating the Naval Battle of Grand Port in 1810 between the French and British squadrons, along with tabloids narrating the different phases of the battle. Also, relics from the country’s slavery and indentured (Indian) labor periods are also on display. The Dutch section of the museum was inaugurated by His Highness Prince Maurits of Orange-Nassau on 20 September 1998. It was a ceremony to mark the 400th anniversary of the first Dutch landing in Mauritius.

Admission: free. Hours: 9:00 am – 4:00 pm (Monday-Saturday), 9:00 am – 12:00 pm (Sunday & public holidays). Closed on Tuesdays.

Museum of Indian Immigration

Museum of Indian Immigration (Mahatma Gandhi Institute, Mahatma Gandhi Avenue, Moka) – located 30 minutes (13 km.) south of Port Louis, this museum highlights the history and culture of the Indian immigrants. It has panoply of artifacts pertaining to the Indian immigration period in its custody. The permanent displays of the museum are set up on two floors.

On the ground floor are found sections on immigration of Indentured Laborers, on agriculture and on social and cultural life of Indian immigrants. The section on immigration displays artifacts pertaining to the Immigration Depot (known locally as the “Aapravasi Ghat”): items ranging from documents (such as marriage certificates), to photos, eating utensils, and even a ship model. The section on agriculture presents a diorama showing the different tasks performed by the laborers in the sugarcane field. Several displays contain Agricultural tools and implements: hoe, sickle, fork, scraper, billhook, watering can, pick-axe. The permanent exhibition on the upper floor depicts Indian festivals along with traditional clothing, musical instruments and jewelry. Admission: free. Hours: 9:00 am – 4:00 pm (Monday-Friday). Closed on weekends and public holidays.

Mauritius Photography Museum

Mauritius Photography Museum (La rue du Vieux Conseil, Port Louis) – this museum is located across from the theater of Port-Louis. It is a small private museum which houses all sorts of artifacts and documents about Mauritian photography and the early days of cinematography. Among the objects that you will see there are: old cameras and lenses, old books about photography, some of the first daguerreotype pictures on metal or on ceramic, projection equipment, printing equipment and even old stereoscopic pictures that will allow you to see how Mauritius looked like in 3D, among other things. Admission: Rs. 150. Hours: 10:00 am – 3:00 pm (weekdays only).

Mauritius Natural History Museum

Mauritius Natural History Museum (Mauritius Institute Building, Chaussée, Port Louis) — exhibits collections comprised of marine fauna and birds of Mauritius and the Mascarene Islands. It also has an Insects, Meteorology and Giant Tortoise gallery – presenting the last 500 years of the island’s natural history.. The World of the Dodo section is an interesting place to learn more about this extinct bird which was endemic to Mauritius. Admission: free. Hours: 9:00 am – 4:00 pm (Monday – Friday), 9:00 – 12:00 pm (Saturday). Closed on Wednesdays, Sundays, and public holidays.

Maison Eureka

Maison Eureka (La Maison Créole, Euréka , Moka) — The créole house Euréka, at Moka, in the center on the island, is one of the best preserved period residences still in good condition. Its ancient architecture is of a rare beauty, but it is interesting for more than one reason. Today, Euréka reflects the past of Mauritius through the prism of an old aristocratic family. The museum harbors real treasures, such as a collection of antique furniture, old photographs, chinaware, old books, rugs, etc. A visit inside the house takes you back to the Mauritian colonial life style in the past century. All the rooms evoke a feeling of the old days, magnificent furniture with intricate carvings in ebony, mahogany and ‘pallissandre’. Admission: 300 Rs. (rupees). Hours: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm (Monday – Saturday), 9:00 am – 3:30 pm (Sunday).

Le Caudan Waterfront

Le Caudan Waterfront (Marina Quay, Caudan, Port Louis) — Le Caudan Waterfront offers a unique shopping, leisure and work hub, in the capital, on the water’s edge. Since its opening in 1996, it has shown undeniable know-how and expertise in commercial activities and entertainment. On top of being an undeniable must for shopping, Le Caudan Waterfront is also a business center, a melting pot for local artists and the favorite meeting place for gastronomes, tourists and locals looking for leisure and entertainment.

Blue Penny Museum

Blue Penny Museum (Caudan Waterfront, Block A, Port Louis) – this is an art and history museum that is wholly devoted to Mauritius. It houses some prestigious collections, which are true testimony of the historical and cultural wealth and diversity of Mauritius, in a stunning layout. The museum was inaugurated in 2001 and has been designed with unyielding attention to quality in the selection of the works on display, the written descriptions, the layout and the development of interpretation aids.

To begin with, visitors will take a step back into the era of great maritime explorations in the Indian Ocean before moving on to an overview of the three colonial periods in the history of Mauritius. Your journey into the past continues with a foray into the Port Louis of the 18th and 19th centuries. What unfolds next is the tale of the history of postal services, namely with the very first postage stamps to be issued in Mauritius, the world-renowned Post Office stamps. Local coins from various historic periods are also on display. The Blue Penny Museum is one of those rare places providing visitors with a captivating glimpse of the art and history of Mauritius. It is therefore a must-stop for anyone who is curious about discovering the country in depth.
Admission: Rs. 245 (tourist adult), Rs. 120 (tourist children/students), Rs. 580 (tourist family: 2 adults + 2 children). Rs. 50 (local residents of all ages). Hours: 10:00 am – 5:00 pm (daily except Sundays and public holidays).