Comparing Thailand and Mauritius

Old Apr 9th, 2004, 12:23 PM
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Comparing Thailand and Mauritius

We are planning our honeymoon in early November and have been debating about Mauritius/Seychelles or Thailand. Both sound great, but we can't decide! We really want a nice beach vacation with snorkeling and possibly golf. We also like nature and historical/cultural sites. Please help us decide which place we should visit for our honeymoon!
Thanks!
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Old Apr 9th, 2004, 03:54 PM
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You don't mention from where you're traveling, nor your budget. But, you will find Mauritius/Seychelles more expensive than Thailand as far as airfare, accommodations and food.

Thailand is relatively inexpensive, even if staying at 5* hotels. And you will find a new and different culture in Thailand, where you can combine city, history, culture, beach and golf.

The Mauritius/Seychelles is a beach holiday and is an awful long way to go for "a beach" - depending, of course, from where you're traveling. We loved our time in the Seychelles, but it was an extension from a Kenyan/Tanzanian safari. Otherwise, we wouldn't have traveled that far for "a beach," regardless how lovely these islands were.


 
Old Apr 9th, 2004, 04:54 PM
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We are traveling from the US. We have friends in Paris, so we were thinking we would divide the trip up by staying in France for a few days. I can't say money isn't a consideration, but we do have a fairly generous budget (due to the fact that we won't have to pay for airfare). We are regarding this trip as "once in a lifetime" and have up to three weeks to dedicate to travel. I guess that's why we want to go so far. Thanks for any and all suggestions about which destination we should pick. (We are still really debating)
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Old Apr 9th, 2004, 08:13 PM
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Not really an answer to your question but if you do visit Thailand I would like to recommend the following golf courses which are near to the beach.

The best course in my opinion are:

1. Santiburi Samui(very new and the best course I've played in Thailand).

2. Blue Canyon Phuket second best.

I've visited Mauritius a few times and I find that the hotel, resort, services, golf courses and especially the food much nicer in Thailand.
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Old Apr 9th, 2004, 08:56 PM
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I actually know both quite well and spent several years there. Mauritius is firstly a beautiful island, even the 'sky' is amazing! The endless sugar cane fields, beaches and nice resorts like Trou aux Biches, the area at le Morne Brabant, all great. Port Louis is an interesting town. The resorts are good, service pleasant.
Ok, now having said that, you might find that you could find pretty much the same on Guadeloupe or Martinique in the Caribbean, language, styles, atmosphere. Although up north at Grande Baie there is 'some' limited nightlife and most resorts put on some special evenings, apart from a trip around the island there is little else to do. Resort prices are 'sky high' compared with Thailand.
Also you are on a single island. Things also are expensive, same applies to the Syechelles as so much is bought in from overseas and much by air freight, hence the costs are very high.

The benefit of Thailand is a far greater cultural experience, far cheaper hotels and resorts, cheap shopping and a great choice of different places to go. You can experience Northern Thailand, mountains and river, plus the vibrant excitement of Bangkok, you then have a wide range of idlands from commercial places such as Koh Samui and Phuket so less developed such as Koh Chang to quiet and remote places. Restaurants, places for a drink and entertainment are far more in Thailand.

I think if you are having a Safari trip in East or Southern Africa then adding a week on Mauritius is a superb idea, also if you were doing a round the world including Africa plus mauritius and then flying on to Australia also a great idea. But for a 'one point' destination after Paris I think you would find a great more choices and variety in Thailand, being a large country you can mix your travel time with different experiences.

If from the U.S I would say you could 'find Mauritius' on Guadeloupe or Martinique, but you could find nothing like Thailand anywhere!
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Old Apr 9th, 2004, 09:00 PM
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Worded that badly, meant spent several years on Mauritius. I actually now live in Thailand.

Seychelles I did not comment on as have not been. However it is quieter than Mauritius and I believe the resort rates are even higher, when I have looked into it in the past the prices seemed way up there.

The flying time to both Thailand and Mauritius are about the same.
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Old Apr 10th, 2004, 05:05 AM
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ms_katydid - JamesA is a great resource for travel in/around Thailand. And I personally think even with the stop in Paris - Thailand will provide you with a wonderful all-around honeymoon.

You can even go over to Siem Reap, Cambodia (Angkor Wat) - only a 1-hr flight - to see the temples for a few days, then return and spend about 4-days in Bangkok, fly north to Chiang Mai for a day, then further north to the Golden Triangle area for a few days, then fly down to Phuket for the beaches and golf and relaxation before heading home.

I can refer you to a tour operator who did our trip, and also for a few other honeymooners on these boards; he's very competitive price-wise and well worth a phone call:
Contact: Gregg at InnovAsian at 800-553-4665, or
his website:
www.InnovAsian.com ,or
email:
[email protected]

Gregg can design anything you want, you don't have to go with those itineraries on his site (they're just suggestions)

If you decide on Thailand, do stay at the Peninsula in BKK, it's 5*, but with great rates, and in Angkor, the Sofitel is a beauty with excellent rates for 5*. And the money you spend on extras - meals, souvenirs, activities are much more reasonable than The Seychelles or Mauritius. Your USDollars will go much further.
 
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