Where to Base Yourself in Mauritius as a Digital Nomad

The north coast’s main town wraps around a sheltered bay, with the island’s busiest strip of restaurants, bars, supermarkets and shopping centres, and most of its coworking spaces. It has the biggest choice of furnished monthly rentals and the largest group of foreign long-stayers. Pereybère, just to the north, has a small public beach and a quieter feel, and villages such as Trou aux Biches and Mont Choisy to the west have long beaches. The north is dry and sunny, the lagoon is calm for swimming, and boat trips leave for the northern islets. Traffic through the town is slow in the evenings and prices are higher in December and January. See the Grand Baie digital nomad guide.

A long public beach on the west coast, backed by apartment blocks, restaurants and supermarkets, with the sunniest weather on the island and sunsets over the sea. It is one of the few places in Mauritius where you can manage on foot and by bus, and Quatre Bornes and Ebène are about half an hour inland. Weekends are busy with Mauritian families. Healthcare means a drive inland, and nightlife is low-key.

A village on a surf bay at the mouth of the Tamarin river, close to Black River, the salt pans and Le Morne. It has a strong outdoor community: surfers, kitesurfers at Le Morne, dolphin trips, and hikes in the Black River Gorges National Park and up Le Morne Brabant. The area around Tamarin and Rivière Noire has modern residential developments, international schools and lifestyle centres, so it suits families. You need a car, and rents are among the highest on the island.

The inland area south of Port Louis is the island’s business centre, with Ebène‘s office towers, the University of Mauritius at Réduit, private hospitals such as Wellkin Hospital, and the Metro Express. Moka itself is green and residential, with sugar estates and mountains around it. It suits nomads who want services and transport over beaches: the coast is half an hour or more away by car. The central plateau is cooler and much wetter than the coast, with cloud and drizzle much of the year.

The capital is busy and characterful by day, with the central market, the Chinatown quarter, the racecourse and the Caudan Waterfront on the harbour, and it is where you deal with the Passport and Immigration Office and other government offices. Most of the centre empties after office hours, it is hot and humid in summer, and rush-hour traffic in and out is heavy. Few nomads live in the centre; more live inland in Moka or Quatre Bornes and come in by metro.

A historic town on the south-east coast, on a wide lagoon near Blue Bay marine park and about 15 minutes from the airport. It is more local and cheaper than the north and west, with a weekly market, a waterfront promenade and good kitesurfing nearby. The south-east is windier and wetter than the west, there are few rentals aimed at foreigners and little nightlife, and you’ll want a car.

• Try the north or west first. Grand Baie and Flic en Flac are the easiest places to arrive, find a rental and meet people.
• Decide on a car early. Outside Grand Baie and Flic en Flac, life without one is slow.
• Pick your coast by season. The west is driest all year; the east and south catch more wind and rain in winter.
• Check the internet and ask whether fibre is installed before you sign a lease, especially in villas and newer developments.
• Avoid the December and January peak for your first booking, when rents and car hire cost the most.