8 THINGS TO LOVE ABOUT THE RESIDENCE
#1 The Accommodation…
… is ultra-spacious and superbly comfortable. The very sight of our magnificent Colonial Senior Garden Suite (106 square metres) instantly cheered up Roy, my grumpy yet magnificent colonial senior husband.
Though it’s slightly set back in a U-shaped wing that surrounds a palmy garden, you still have a fine view of the ocean from the loungers on your own big terrace. For once, I actually made good use of this private outdoor space. I should also confess to feeding walnuts and bits of dried mango to the visiting red-whiskered bulbuls – though the noisy mynahs, being less cute, got short shrift.
However, you won’t go wrong with one of the 135 standard rooms. They’re generously sized (at least 54 square metres), they all have terraces and they’re just as luxuriously furnished.
#2 The Service…
… is outstanding. Let’s just say I’m not yet quite ready to have a butler unpack my suitcase for me – but I’m working on it.
Butler service is included in every category of room. Apart from the packing-unpacking business, he’ll also see to your laundry and ironing, if you like, draw your bath for you and so on.
Overall, we found the staff delightful. From the guest services managers to the chefs, from the cleaners to the gardeners to the entertainment team, everyone had a look-you-in-the-eyes smile and a genuine desire to please.
#3 The Dining Room…
… overlooks both the pools and the beach, and is where you’ll have your breakfast and most dinners.
A buffet is not usually my first choice, but it can be a great way to try a little – or even a lot – of a huge range of deliciousness. Breakfast here offers an outstanding selection of fresh fruit, smoothies and customisable juices, the usual cereals, eggs, pastries, waffles and so on, plus a variety of Asian fare. Fancy a bowl of tarka dahl with a fresh paratha? No problem! What’s more, breakfast is served until 10.30am, making the half-board option a good one.
I’d asked our airport transfer driver what Mauritian dish was the most famous, and he’d emphatically replied “Seafood!” Well, Mauritian cuisine was the theme of our first night’s buffet, and it proved him right. Highlights were the piles of tiny local oysters, seafood salads, kebabs grilled à la minute, the local prawn vindye curry, and a fiery and instantly addictive green chilli paste.
Every night featured a different buffet theme: Mediterranean, Indian, Chinese and a memorably hedonistic European spread where I didn’t get much further than the pan-seared foie gras.
#4 The Bar…
… is presided over by barmen who know their stuff, shaking up some of the best margaritas and Manhattans that we’ve had for ages – not to mention a local rum and tonic that became my new favourite. After dinner, a variety of different musicians and singers entertained us from the baby grand – new voices every night, and all very good.
#5 The Sanctuary…
… is the hotel’s superb subterranean spa, with at least nine treatment rooms, a big steam room and a smaller sauna, both kept at just the temperatures I like. We’d arrived from Paris at silly o’clock in the morning, but a fabulous massage that first afternoon rubbed away most of the travel-weariness and some of the jetlag.
#6 Free Water Activities…
… can be booked at the concierge each morning. These include snorkelling and glass-bottomed boat expeditions, sailing lessons on a hobie cat or laser, plus windsurfing, SUP-boarding, pedal boats and aqua-bikes. It’s all free for guests. You pay extra only for scuba diving from the resort’s PADI-certified dive team.
#7 Yoga with Mala…
… took place under palm trees on a secluded grassy lawn next to the beach. Every day should start this way.
#8 The Plantation…
... is the resort’s fine-dining à la carte restaurant, housed in a colonial plantationstyle dwelling a couple of hundred metres down the beach. This was also where I came for a cooking lesson – local fish curry with fresh parathas, which got the Roy-al seal of approval when we had it for lunch.