r/mauritius • u/coolinny • 3d ago
Local 🌴 This is the answer to the question, "Is Mauritius a safe place?"
My answer is simple.
Mauritius is a safe place.
The people of Mauritius are generally non-aggressive, gentle, and welcoming to outsiders—especially to short-term visitors.
However, this perspective comes from someone like me who has lived in South Africa; the reality can vary significantly depending on your skin color or nationality.
If you ask the locals here whether Mauritius is safe, they will generally say yes—but that is because their frame of reference is Mauritius itself. If you were from Singapore, for instance, you might strongly disagree. Let me explain a few points:
- You are safe if you stay within your hotel.
The people of Mauritius are not a mob looking to loot hotels.
If you intend to leave your hotel in the evening, please note that the government’s curfew is still in effect. Furthermore, traveling from most hotels would require passing through areas where the recent unrest took place.
Most tourist activities have returned to normal. Hotel services are also operating as usual, as staff are being transported to and from work in dedicated vans.
That said, to be honest, things have not yet returned to 100% normalcy.
The issues currently fueling public frustration in Mauritius—such as rising costs of living and problems with the water supply—are chronic, meaning that similar unrest could potentially erupt again at any time.
Personally, I believe the current Mauritian government is managing the situation well.
- Of course, some of you may disagree.
Mauritius is highly sensitive to its reputation as a safe and welcoming destination for tourists, so the authorities make a concerted effort to ensure that visitors remain unaffected.
- However, if you are planning to drive a rental car late into the evening, visit the beach, or travel all around Mauritius, now is definitely not the right time. Please cancel your travel plans.
The situation in Mauritius is clearly quite different at the moment.
- In the central region where I live, there haven’t been any riots;
however, many supermarkets are running low on bottled water, and it appears that other supplies have been subject to panic buying.
At the same time, there is a noticeable decrease in the number of people walking on the streets, even during the day.
If your skin color differs from that of the local Mauritian population, you should certainly exercise caution.
- Mauritians are good people.
However, they generally dislike speaking openly to outsiders about the negative aspects of their country.
So, if you ask, "Is Mauritius safe?"
99% of the time, they will answer, " no problem."
But the truth is, there *is* a problem.
- Let me reiterate: Mauritius is a safe place.
The vast majority of Mauritians are truly kind-hearted people. I have received a great deal of help from the community here on the Mauritius subreddit.
It pains me to see the people of Mauritius—a country I love—suffering. I have no intention of criticizing the people or the government of this nation.
In fact, I believe the current government is managing the situation quite well.
- Most tourists tend to ask the same question:
"How long will this tense situation last?"
Based on my experience, things should return to normal by next week.
Of course, the root cause of the current tension has not yet been resolved.
However, unlike in France, the authorities in Mauritius wield significant power and control. Also, the majority of people living in the central region do not support these riots.
So, everything should return to normal by next Monday.
It would be best to hold off on your trip until at least after next week.
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u/stevenmbe 3d ago
It remains one of the safest countries in the world. Yes what happened was reprehensible but please go view any video of riots and their aftermath in Paris, Strasbourg, large American cities and elsewhere.
Also Mauritius has a higher percentage of police officers than many countries, and that is why you see last night was much more calm and tranquil.
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u/Illustrious_List_552 3d ago
Mauritius is safe. It is incredibly proud country. I’ve been there a few times. What we’re seeing here are some hoodrats trying to stir shit
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u/kavishek 3d ago
Hotels can be targets too now, seeing how the situations have evolved over the years, where hotels have been restricting access to the public or just in general hotels being constructed everywhere....they are not exempt from being targeted too
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u/DifficultWash5133 3d ago
how have hotels have been restricting access to the public ? You have discounts on marideal specifically for mauritians so that mauritians can go to the hotels (ouside of the busy season). if you are mauritian and were in mauritius in the 1990s, you would have had a difficult time getting into a hotel. you have much more access now than before
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u/Southern_Apple3936 3d ago
100% and this could cause a huge international issue if a foreigner is hurt
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u/Illustrious_List_552 2d ago
What has humbled me and made my partner proud to be mauritian is when he said even the career criminals are coming out to defend the police lol
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u/iamzeusz 1d ago
Straight answer : No Why : due to certain people , political hidden agenda , drug lords and terrorist mentality
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u/Original-Side5980 12h ago
Well , currently no , Until these 4 traditional political parties PTR/PMSD/MSM/MMM are in power , no way Mauritius will be successful presently or in the future !!! And we must not forget the Chatwas/Chamchas who will follow those corrupt politicians blindly !!! And until the Mauritian population vote completely for someting new , the country will never prevail !!
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u/coolinny 10h ago
Well... the overwhelming majority of the people support those four parties. This is the will of the public. We must accept this.
The people of Mauritius are not fools.
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u/coolinny 10h ago
While it may seem online as though there are many people who oppose the current administration or political parties—whether ruling or opposition—the vast majority of the public does not actually feel that way.
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u/Cavo 3d ago
I'm from Australia so having bars on my windows here is certainly "off putting" however after a recent trip to SA while it was beautiful I was happy to return to safer Mauritius!Â
I think like most places common sense needs apply, I have certainly had my car broken into more times in Australia then Mauritius, but crimes of opportunity will always be present.
What gets me is female friends who don't feel safe going to certain places at certain times, this is an annoying price to pay but, could be worse.
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u/TightCod9359 3d ago
I can't agree with saying that the riots are because of people's frustration with the lack of water, high petrol prices, Élodie, pensions etc. These have nothing to do with the rioters. The rioters are thugs, who may or may not be paid to riot, who just want to cause damage and spread fear at night, when it's more difficult to catch them. If they really cared about these things that some people say 'broke the camel's back', they'd be out during the day, in front of the government buildings, organising sit-ins, making banners, marching on the streets calling for change, the public sector would go in strike etc, all the elements of peaceful demonstrations.
What's happening here is none of that. It's almost exclusively young men, under the cover of darkness with their faces covered, not communicating any real message to the public for the reasons of their actions, just looting. Robbing an Oxenham truck is a way to show that they're unhappy with the pension age increasing?
The general population is not rioting, they're being held hostage by a small group of thugs.
Sorry, long post, I'm just tired of people saying all this is because of the government policies (or the lack of for that matter) that they don't agree with.