Golf first, the king sport of Mauritian tourism: a dozen 18-hole courses, several ranked among the world's most beautiful. The Ile aux Cerfs Golf Club (designed by Bernhard Langer) is literally played on an island, the Heritage Golf Club at Bel Ombre hosts the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open, and Mont Choisy Le Golf serves the north. Expect Rs 4,500 – 8,000 for a green fee with buggy depending on season and course; most rent clubs and shoes (Rs 1,500 – 2,500). Book morning tee times: at noon the wind picks up and scores take off.
Runners have their grail: the Mauritian trails. The mythical Dodo Trail (July) scales the Black River ridges, the UTRB (Ultra Trail Raidlight Beachcomber) strings the summits together, and year-round, the trails of the gorges, Le Pouce and Le Morne offer a free, spectacular training ground. Outings start early: at 6 am the ridges are cool; at 11 am they're furnaces. Local clubs (Mauritius Trail Riders, the « Trail Addicts » Facebook pages) happily welcome visitors for Sunday morning group runs.
Big game fishing wrote the legend of Black River: blue marlin, yellowfin tuna and mahi-mahi cruise off Le Morne, where the seabed plunges to 700 metres within shouting distance of the coast. Marlin season runs November to April; expect Rs 15,000 – 20,000 for a half-day and Rs 25,000 – 35,000 for a full day for a whole boat (up to 6 anglers, gear and crew included). « No kill » tag-and-release trips are growing — ask for them, they're the sport's future.
The rest of the catalogue is endless: canyoning at Tamarind Falls and its seven waterfalls (Rs 3,500 – 4,500 for a guided half-day), wreck and drop-off diving (Rs 1,800 – 2,500 per dive, PADI certification everywhere), mountain biking in the eastern estates (Étoile, Ferney), road cycling on the Chamarel hairpins, and even paragliding over the wild South on good days. Local tip: many hotels sell their sports activities to non-residents — call the sports desk directly, it's often 20% cheaper than the platforms.