Charm & Flavors

OVERVIEW

Immerse yourself in the world of Mauritian tea and wildlife on this illuminating tour. Relax on a leisurely coach ride to Le Domaine des Aubineaux, a 19th-century colonial house that boasts authentic period furniture and paintings and welcome a refreshing tea break. You’ll drive through tea fields to the Bois Chéri Tea Factory and Tea Museum, where you’ll learn the history of tea and savor a tea-tasting session in a chalet featuring outstanding panoramic views of the southern part of the island. After an approximately 30-minute drive to Le Saint Aubin, an 1819 plantation, you’ll explore the Vanilla House, the rum distillery and a greenhouse bursting with anthuriums intermingled with vanilla pods. Sit for a tasty lunch prepared from the estate’s produce in a Creole dining room before continuing to the La Vanille Réserve des Mascareignes, a farm harboring Nile crocodiles, geckos, monkeys, Aldabra giant tortoises and an insectarium holding more than 20,000 species.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Sip an invigorating cup of tea at a traditional 19th-century colonial house, Le Domaine des Aubineaux.
• Tour the Bois Chéri Tea Factory and Tea Museum and relish a sampling of teas.
• Experience the Vanilla House, a rum distillery, an anthurium-filled greenhouse and a delicious lunch at Le Saint Aubin plantation.
• Visit La Vanille Réserve des Mascareignes, home of Nile crocodiles, Aldabra giant tortoises and an impressive insectarium.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.