Fond of Opera and Bel Canto? Rent a villa in Mauritius Part - 3

The next day, I could not wait for the time I thought acceptable for me to call the contacts from my new friend from last evening. I waited until nine to ring; as I wanted to have time to meet and discuss with them and visit a villa before leaving.

I got hold of Bernard only at 10'ish, and he came to meet me at the hotel before 11.00 (I understood later that he practices sports almost every morning, enjoying the natural setting of Poste Lafayette before getting to work; lucky him!)

We went straight to the point after a very short introduction as I was short of time.

-We met … yesterday.. the villa was wonderful... I'd like to come back here with my 3 kids and rent a villa, how do we proceed?

-O.K. When?

-December this year

-(Laughing out loud)

-December is the very peak period and there are fewer villas offered for rent. Many are booked well in advance for repeaters. It is also the most expensive period, both for rentals and airfare...

When I informed him about my budget 3,000-Pound budget for the 10 nights I wanted to stay, he suggested I should come at Easter next year... Over a year of waiting ahead...

Disappointed but determined, we decided to keep dreaming and flip through his website, asking for thorough details and... about the rates of each of them. I was pleased to note that for my 300 GBP / night, we had a few villas to choose from as this seems to be the average rate for mid to high seasons.

It was difficult to get decided on one but all seemed of high standards. On the beach-front, with a swimming pool, 3 to 4 bedrooms and as many bathrooms. Ideally, we should visit them all but this was not at all a realizable plan but were proposed to be taken quickly to the beach where 2 or 3 we had short-listed were found. Jumped in the car and stopped... right next-door to where we'd been the evening before. I could not believe that this luxurious villa could be rented for just 300 Pounds a night just because we were off season... and I was right.

We were shown the villa right next to it, which I had not noticed the day before as I had stopped before it and especially because it is “concealed” behind endemic bushes, like a gift getting unwrapped. It looked darkish with natural stone-walls and thatch roof; not at all the house you'd see on the cover of a magazine but it had charm.

Noticing that the maids were still there, Bernard asked whether we could quickly get in for a visit. We were served the legendary phrase of Mauritius: “No Problem”!

As we stepped onto the deck around the swimming pool and peeked inside, looked-up at the high thatch roof, the smell of and wood, I had a feeling of peace and comfort; as if I had lived there all my life. Contrasting with the authenticity, the hyper clean and equipped kitchen with it American fridge, ice-maker, espresso machine, modern oven, wonderful cookware and glassware. I understood it had just been renovated. It was luxury villas in Mauritius on the beach dressed in its casual, low-profile stone walls.

The room upstairs was very similar to the one we had seen next-door, with more warmth and charm. The bathroom was a bit tight but great. The maid who was with us was polite and well-dressed, everything had been carefully set, organised, thought-about. The owners of both these Villas in Mauritius had an obvious attachment to details and to having things well-done.

The closed the deal. There was no way I would let this one slip away from me. We would temporarily book it for the UK Easter holiday period and upon coming back home, would fix the exact dates and send the 30 % down-payment required.

Those who are old enough to have watched the “Inspector Colombo” series on T.V. will  better visualize my turning around, forefinger up;

- One last thing! - I like listening to Opera, is this villa equipped with a real Hi-Fi set?

-You like Opera too? Then be my guest for an afternoon session next year. We will play it loud on the beach at my place; there are no neighbors close enough to complain. And as regards to the Hi-Fi set, I'll make a special request; there is one next-door which...

Just back and already looking forward to my next trip to Mauritius...

Fond of Opera and Bel Canto? Rent a villa in Mauritius Part- 2

I was impressed by the overall quality and luxury of this house and before this encounter, I was far from imagining that such holiday accommodation was available in Mauritius. One conviction was settling in my head: I had to rent one like this too one day no matter how hard I had to work for it. So I started investigating to find out from my spontaneous host, how did he manage to rent such a luxury villas in Mauritius.

Obviously, my question surprised him; he smiled. “I come to Mauritius every single year since 7 years and rent villas for the last 5 years,” he said. “I always use the same agent who manages to keep the best villas available for me... although I must admit, I tend to book them very much in advance, sometimes a year in advance so as to be sure I have a choice.”

He explained that by then he knew all the tourist places of Mauritius very well and although he likes the country very much, his homeland, (South-Africa) could easily compete in terms of sceneries and natural wonders but what kept him coming to Mauritius for yearly holidays was the way of life he was experiencing when renting villas, the devoted service, the personal and kind attention of the agents, Bernard Cayeux Sophie and, the way they had to make every look possible and easy. 

- “Sure, you can have their particulars, here is Bernard's phone number, they live a few houses away and if you tell him it's me who referred you to him it might help.” “Their website's name was easy to remember: Bookmauritius-villas.com”

- “I wish I could afford renting a Villas in Mauritius like this...” I risked as a deviated way of finding out about rates without mentioning money as, from the wine we were offered, I guessed my host was anything but poor 

- “You'd be surprised about the rates” he said. “If you are 4 or more, renting a villa of this standard can be cheaper than staying at a hotel, especially if you are a frequent traveler with miles credits.”

We thanked him, exchanged contact details and we parted as we had the constrain of being in time for the buffet at the hotel which was, I must admit, not the most exciting prospect I had during those short holidays in Mauritius.

As I was leaving the house, accompanied by a magnificent moon rise, with the music fading out again, I decided to make use of our last day prospecting for next time because yes, this short hour I just spent was enough to have me convinced; I will be back sooner than later, in that very same villa or at least in Poste Lafayette, this time with the kids and, why not, another couple of friends and... our Opera collection.

Fond of Opera and Bel Canto? Rent a villa in Mauritius Part-1

I imagine that very few people in the world had the chance to listen to Opera on a wonderful beach. At least 

I like to think that I have been one of these lucky persons.

It was my first time in Mauritius, an overdue winter break for my wife and myself. We had seen an advert for Mauritius, boasting a heavenly white beach and happy people relaxing on the beach; exactly what I was longing. We stepped inside the travel agency and 40 minutes later had our flights and hotel booked for a 7 night all-inclusive package. The kids would stay at their grand parents, no matter how much they will hate us for leaving them behind...

Here I was, three weeks later, enjoying my rest but getting slightly bored, with that strong feeling that Mauritius must have much more to offer. So I decided to go for a walk along the beach.

The beach in Poste Lafayette was, by the way, not exactly like on the posters; it was more natural, it was interrupted in some places by black stones but the sand was always fine and white. I remember having felt very well at that moment, probably the smell of sea, the call of wild, pure nature. What surprised me too, was the fact that around the hotel, there were only cottage-type houses and mauritius villas. Some very simple, others apparently new, modern and grandiose. Very few were open, adding to that great feeling of being alone on the planet; for sure, the whole beach was all mine on that day, that afternoon.

Surprises come in pairs I was told! And this was a great one. Fading in and out of the ocean murmur, I could hear my favorite  pieces of Opera: Mozart's “The marriage of Figaro.” I just could not believe it but kept walking, happy to note that it was getting louder and clearer, to the point that it was filling the whole beach space.

Peeking towards the source of music I could see from the beach, a couple on deck chairs, glass in hand, relaxing in what I imagined was a poolside deck. The house looked new, was nothing fussy but just very nicely designed. It had wide openings making it inviting and attractive. I thought I'd waive at the couple, just in case they were looking in my direction. Bingo! They waived back.  So, I dared a few steps towards them; the overall atmosphere was so relaxed, friendly and easy that every good thing could happen.

We met, we talked, we shared we drank, ate and laughed and my wife and I were invited to visit the villa. Made mostly of noble / natural material such as wood, cement, a thatched roof, it offered the perfect blend of modernism and traditional “at home” feeling. The American-type kitchen opening on the dining room, itself opening wide on the pool-deck and kiosk, all overlooking the beach and sea... No fairy tale offered such great setting. The master-bedroom upstairs was in the roof, yet fully air-conditioned, with its modern, tastefully-designed bathroom. A wide opening allowed an ocean-view from the bed. The other bedrooms were air-conditioned too and all very comfortable.