Mauritius, Heritage - A paradise for golfers

Far, far away, exactly where paradise should be, there is an island that produces excellent rum and magnificent golf courses – Mauritius.

Mauritius - how wonderful it must have been.
But where is it?

I encountered that comment several times after returning from my January visit to Mauritius. There is a strong "far-away-feeling" coming to this coral-enclosed volcanic island well out in the Indian Ocean. The first people who came to the then uninhabited island were Portuguese sailors in the beginning of the 16the century. Mauritius’ area, about 2,000 square metres, was at the time mostly covered with rainforest. Today people live all over, and with 1.2 million inhabitants, the country is one of the world's most densely populated.

Mauritius is today largely covered with sugarcane plantations. Sugarcane came to Mauritius in the middle of the seventeenth century through the Dutch who were on their way from Indonesia. Since colonial times sugar has constituted a large proportion of Mauritian exports. Unfortunately, the profitability of the sugar growers has declined sharply in recent decades. Good for golfers because golf courses are an option. The newest course on Mauritius, which lies on the southern part of the island at Bel Ombre, Golf du Château as it is called, is precisely such a large sugar estate under transformation.

Golf de Château is an investment made by Bel Ombre Sugar Estate and is jointly-owned by the company along with two nearby hotels, Heritage Golf & Spa Resort and Telfair. This is explained by Steven Shearer, director of the Club. Steven, who is South African, has been at Golf du Châteauf for 18 months and has seen the course completed and made ready for use. The complete 18-hole course was inaugurated in April 2005. Course designer, Peter Matkovich, also South African, has sketched a number of well-known courses at home, including the Arabella in Western Cape Province.

The course is both tough and demanding, but it should be that way when it’s intended for championships. On the other hand, there are many tee placements to choose from so those who do not choose the professional course can play a much nicer variant. In addition, there is a really nice short-hole course to practice your short game on, and otherwise very good training facilities.

Heritage Golf & Spa Resort is a partner of the golf course and is part of a local Mauritian hotel chain called Veranda Resorts, which has a total of 6 different hotel facilities on the island. Heritage is completely new and with its African style,  it fantastically situated on the beach. The hotel's numerous openings toward the sea and pools in between make the water always feel present, but you should watch out; not all of the pools are intended for swimming, some are only to embellish the architecture.

Everything is beautifully arranged and, not least,   much has been invested in an incredibly spectacular lighting design.

In addition, there is the opportunity for another type of pleasure until nine o'clock at night, the Seven Colour Spa. For the winter weary golfer a relaxing massage after the first round of the year can be quite necessary and at the Heritage there is a well thought out selection of different types of treatments and the spa itself is very tastefully designed.

All prerequisites for a good golf vacation can be found on Mauritius - a great year-round climate, great beaches, excellent golf courses without congestion and a people who really show that they love having you as a guest. It’s for that reason that I believe that there will be an increasingly steady stream of golfers from Europe and other continents who will be attracted to visit this heavenly but "far-distant island."

Text: Mattias Bäckman