Nature Trails – Explore the hidden beauty of Mauritius!

Dear Guest,

We quite often have guests asking us which excursion they can book, from which operator to book an excursion and whether the operator is reliable and registered.

The licence (see picture) granted to us by the Mauritius Tourism Authority guarantees that Nature Trails Ltd is a company recognised by the Ministry of Tourism of Mauritius and is legally registered to offer tours and excursions to our guests.

This licence must be renewed every year and will only be renewed on presentation of documents showing that the company is duly registered by the Companies Division and valid insurance papers certifying that Nature Trails Ltd, our 4x4 and our guests are fully covered by an insurance.

In 2004 & 2005, it took us nearly 16 months to obtain all the legal papers, documents, authorisations and permits to operate.

In Internet and on various travel recommendation websites can anyone write nearly what he wants and these websites will never ask if the operator offering such services is legally registered or has the relevant permits and authorisations.

To this effect, it is of utmost importance for us to openly advertise our company and products. Should you have any questions about us and our excursion, we will gladly help you.

Dear Guest,

We quite often have guests asking us which excursion they can book, from which operator to book an excursion and whether the operator is reliable and registered.

The licence (see picture) granted to us by the Mauritius Tourism Authority guarantees that Nature Trails Ltd is a company recognised by the Ministry of Tourism of Mauritius and is legally registered to offer tours and excursions to our guests.

This licence must be renewed every year and will only be renewed on presentation of documents showing that the company is duly registered by the Companies Division and valid insurance papers certifying that Nature Trails Ltd, our 4x4 and our guests are fully covered by an insurance.

In 2004 & 2005, it took us nearly 16 months to obtain all the legal papers, documents, authorisations and permits to operate.

In Internet and on various travel recommendation websites can anyone write nearly what he wants and these websites will never ask if the operator offering such services is legally registered or has the relevant permits and authorisations.

To this effect, it is of utmost importance for us to openly advertise our company and products. Should you have any questions about us and our excursion, we will gladly help you.

Nature Trails is part of the program "Zwischen Hamburg und Haiti", broadcasted on radio channel NDR 2 on Sunday, 13.3.2016. During the emission our scout Alain provides interesting glimpses into the unique nature of our island. If you do not want to listen to the entire 30-minutes program about Mauritius you just select the program segment about Nature Trails which starts at minute 13.20. Cindy, our passionate cook, who takes care of the physical well-being of our guests by serving a delicious mix of Creole-Indian kitchen is praised as well at minute 18.24. It is said that she is the best cook far and wide. We are absolutely pleased that our idea to serve lunch at a private Mauritian home instead of a public restaurant is so well received by our guests and even Mr. Schlueter from the ARD Studio. We are very happy and grateful that NDR has chosen Nature Trails - Exploring Mauritius for its magnificent travel program. A big "Thank You" to Mr. Schlueter and ARD German Radio.  

Show NDR Video

"A very individual trip"

The excursion with Alain was varied and exciting.

He knows his island like the back of his hand and has answers to all upcoming questions. His German language skills are simply perfect and the humorous way of sharing his profound knowledge made this day absolutely stunning. We discovered places which we certainly would never have discovered and the isolated and scenery view-points were ideal. Our lunch served by Mr. Lindsay was delicious and Mr. Lindsay himself turned out to be a fantastic host. The booking online is easy to handle and our enquiry has been answered promptly and competently. Everything around this excursion was surprisingly well organized. Overall we absolutely recommend Nature Trails - Exploring Mauritius .

Holidays in Mauritius in February 2016  

"Away from the normal sightseeing tours"

We say thank you to Fabian an his exellent assessment in tripadvisor!

The following words can much better describe the Nature Trails excursion:

Unbelievable

Unique

But this would still not be enough to give credit to the Nature Trails team.

The booking and the organisation:

Booking the tour from Germany was uncomplicated and very quick with all relevent details about the tour and what to expect.

One day before the planned excursion date, the Nature Trails team still phoned us at the hotel for a final confirmation.

The tour:

Alain was right on time to meet us directly in the hotel lobby. We picked up two other guests and we were straight on our war to discover "Mauritius from above". His driving style through sugarcane fields or forests was very defensive and very comfortable for the fellow passengers while constantly explaining different aspects of the life on his island. Just by sitting with him, one could already see his easy going and relaxing way of doing things. We saw stunning viewpoints and we experienced the island in a manner that normal tourists doing the classical tours would definitely never see.

The lunch at Cindy's place was a treat. Even our special request for a vegan meal was meticulously respected!!!

The tour lasted about 8-9 hours and we were back at the hotel around 16:15pm.

For someone looking to experience the real Mauritius in a completely different way away from the crowds, Nature Trails is the perfect option.

The price is very acceptable and the excursion is definitely worth it.

The team offers an extremely high service level that should also be taken into account.

December 2015

https://www.tripadvisor.de/ShowUserReviews-g954041-d2042216-r333480008-Nature_Trails_Mauritius-Quatre_Bornes.html#

Expect anything to happen anytime during our excursion.

Today, we had the surprise to see the rare Mauritius Kestrel. Thanks to Martina Brenneke's instant reaction, she could catch that moment when this extremely rare bird of prey sat there to watch out for small birds, geckos to feed on.

In 1973, the Kestrel was on the brink of extinction with only 9 birds left in the wild. Thanks to the tremendous efforts of the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation and other dedicated people the number of birds increased to 350 in 2000.

It's to be noted that the kestrel doesn't build its own nest but prefers to nest on cliffwalls or nests fron other birds.

Today, we're celebrating Divali, the festival of light.

This festival always takes place with new moon around end October and beginning of November. It's a festive period which reminds me very much of our Christmas; the houses are thoroughly cleaned and decorated with lamps of different colours. The Hindus prepare different types of sweet cakes which are then wrapped in small parcels and then distributed to friends, neighbours and other relatives.

The story behind Divali is quite interesting:

The God Rama, his wife Sita and his brother Lakshmana returned from exile to their hometown Ayodhya. As it was new moon on that particular night and the way through the jungle was quite dark, the people placed oil lamps all along the way. Nowadays, small electric lights have replaced the oil lamps but one can still find the traditional oil lamps decorating the houses.

Divali is also the occasion to celebrate the Goddess Lakshmi. She will not go inside a house which has not properly cleaned and people place the oil lamps to greet her inside the house. Divali is also the celebration of good upon the evil, the truth upon the lies, the light upon the darkness and life upon death.

Happy Divali to you.

Our Toyota Prado is a very good worker in every situation!

Great experience and moment's in Mauritius with Alain (Nature Trails)".

Evaluation October 2015

We are a family of four and booked 2 excursions with Nature Trails.

We saw the hidden side of the island that only Alain, our tour guide can show to his guests.

His knowledge for the facts about the island and small details about the nature made us wanting to know more about Mauritius. We learnt so much about the culture, people, history and nature of this island. Everything single aspect of the excursion was perfectly organised not to mention the lunch which was a real highlight.

If we ever visit the island again, we will not fail to book Nature Trails again.

http://www.tripadvisor.de/ShowUserReviews-g954041-d2042216-r315572032-Nature_Trails_Mauritius-Quatre_Bornes.html#

There's sometimes a nice surprise along the way on our excursion. While driving through green sugarcane fields, Alain and our guests spotted those colourful Amaryllis flowers. That's Nature Trails!!! There's often something new to show to our guests.

We really enjoyed reading such a nice comment regarding our Nature Trails excursion.

An excursion full of emotions.

A comment posted in TripAdvisor on 16th July 2015 by Daisy and Micha.

One has different ways to discover the island but, for anybody who would like to see a completely different aspect of Mauritius, we can recommend that you let Alain show you his island. The day that we spent with him was just unforgettable.

Alain arrived right on time at our hotel to meet us and he guided us the whole day through "his island". We took small tracks which took us to breathtaking viewpoints. We've never had such a guide like Alain. He knows his subject and his guiding style was a pleasure to experience. We learned so much about the island and the people. Alain had his own ways to explain the nature and the pros and cons about living on the island. The lunch at a local family was a highlight...

We recommend that you spend a bit more money and be alone with Alain in the vehicle. It's definitely worth it. Alain is then more flexible to satisfy your own wishes and special requests.

Thank you, Alain. We will for sure book him again the next time we visit Mauritius.

Thank you, Hannelore for your professionalism when it comes to bookings.

http://www.tripadvisor.de/ShowUserReviews-g954041-d2042216-r297918820-Nature_Trails_Mauritius-Quatre_Bornes.html#

The Hidden Rainbow

Mauritius is known as the rainbow island because of the different cultures that co-exist peacefully. But it's not the only reason...

Specially in winter, the nature does its show for a very short time. Today, Alain was lucky to catch one of those special moments on our excursion when a beautiful rainbow just appeared.

That's what I call paradise...

Dear Guest,

We quite often have guests asking us which excursion they can book, from which operator to book an excursion and whether the operator is reliable and registered.

The licence (see picture) granted to us by the Mauritius Tourism Authority guarantees that Nature Trails Ltd is a company recognised by the Ministry of Tourism of Mauritius and is legally registered to offer tours and excursions to our guests.

This licence must be renewed every year and will only be renewed on presentation of documents showing that the company is duly registered by the Companies Division and valid insurance papers certifying that Nature Trails Ltd, our 4x4 and our guests are fully covered by an insurance.

In 2004 & 2005, it took us nearly 16 months to obtain all the legal papers, documents, authorisations and permits to operate.

In Internet and on various travel recommendation websites can anyone write nearly what he wants and these websites will never ask if the operator offering such services is legally registered or has the relevant permits and authorisations.

To this effect, it is of utmost importance for us to openly advertise our company and products. Should you have any questions about us and our excursion, we will gladly help you.

Two unforgettable excursions with Alain from Nature Trails.

We booked two excursions with Nature Trails; The land and nature excursion and another tour driving round the island along the coastal road.

The first contact with Hannelore was already very easy and professional. The excursions went exactly as planned and as we expected. We got so many infos about the island, the people, the plants and animals.

Alain is certainly a very nice guide, careful driver and knows a lot about the island. On top, he speaks very good German!

The lunch with a local family was one of the highlights. Cindy prepared a delicious creole lunch which we very much enjoyed and we had the posibility to see how the Mauritians live and how their house looks like.

We had such a nice day that we are still impressed with what we saw and experienced. We have no hesitations to highly recommend this excursions to those who want to discover Mauritius from a different perspective.

Anne & Wolfgang from Germany

The story of the Dodo bird from Mauritius.

Today, we'll talk about the famous Dodo bird which is unfortunately extinct.

300 years ago disappeared the Dodo bird thanks to the stupidity and ignorance of the European settlers. In 1598 landed the Dutch Admiral Van Neck on the island and discovered a flightless bird which they named "Dodo". It was strangely big and heavy; about 1 meter high and weighed about 20Kgs. It had a red spot on the beak and his wings were far too small for his weight and thus could not fly. It laid a yellowish colour egg in a nest on the ground. As it knew no predators, it did not even have to hide its nest.

During the rainy season, it found plenty of food which helped it to survive the dry season with little food.

The last sighting of a Dodo was in the year 1690 and since then, it has never been observed again and was declared an extinct species. The introduced mammals like pigs, rats and monkeys contributed largely to the rapid decline of the Dodo population. Even if the Dodo meat and eggs were not very tasty, the seafarers welcomed this abundance of fresh meat and eggs.

It took only 100 years for the Europeans to decimate a species of bird that took thousands of years to evolve into a flightless bird which knew no predators and wasn't afraid of humans.

Today, the Dodo bird is still a kind of Superstar and everybody know about it. As it could only be found on Mauritius, it's even represented on the emblem of Mauritius.

We wish we could show the Dodo bird to our guests and we are sure it wouldn't have run away!

This nice comment from our excursion, you can read also in holidaycheck.

Being born on Mauritius, Alain knows the island like no one else.

As he speaks fluent French, English, German (and Creole of course!), everybody can clearly understand all the explanations about the plants, people, lifestyle and tips that he gives all day long as he quietly and slowly drives the guests around in a very comfortable SUV. The spots that he showed us were far from the normal touristic routes where all the taxis, busses and agencies bring their clients.

Alain brought us deeper inside the island than we could ever have imagined. That's what we did the past few years; driving through private grounds to stunning viewpoints from which we could see the island from above. The hill from which we could see both sides of the island was just great! We even drove round the island in one day!

One time we also had a picnic at a quiet beach and another time a home made lunch with a local family.

If you think it's not possible, then, you've not yet met Alain and you've not yet asked Hannelore. We just can't wait to do another tour with them and let us be surprised by what they come up with!

Best regards Claus

Another great email from our clients!

Hallo Hannelore,

We are now back home but wish we could get away again. Anyhow, we would like to thank you once more for such an unforgettable experience which we had driving around the island with Alain.

The excursion around the island was just great fun. We made short stops in Le Morne, Gris Gris and a small beach near Mahebourg. During this trip, we had the chance to make a stop at the southern tip and the northen tip of the island. The rough sea in the south was a sharp contrast to the quiet lagoon in the north.

Alain stopped to show us wonderful and quiet beaches and the picnic at one of the beaches was a real highlight. Thank you for having prepared such a wonderful picnic basket!

It's our 3rd visit to Mauritius but thanks to Alain's knowledge of the island, we had the possibility to discover new things that we had previously not experienced.

Our first trip with Alain inside the island was more nature, flora and fauna oriented. We had the possibility to discuss with Alain about the people of Mauritius, their past and present way of living. Their problems and behaviour. And of course, the viewpoints were just amazing. The local lunch in a private house was another highlight and we got the possibility to taste what the Mauritians really eat.

We've been three times to Mauritius but Alain somehow always arranges that we discover something new and interesting.

Many thanks once more.

Kathrin and Thomas from Germany.

This very nice commet from our client, you can also read in tripadvisor.

"The very best of Mauritius"

If after that very long flight to get there, you still think that Mauritius is only sandy beaches, Watersports, Eating and drinking, then, you got it all wrong.

To discover the island as it really is and to learn much more about the island and it's people, there's nothing better than with Nature Trails and their guide, Alain.

Just at the beginning of our holidays, we straight away booked two tours with Nature Trails and wanted to have Alain as our guide. One tour was to discover the inside of the island and the second tour was a round the island trip.

Alain was right on time to meet us at the hotel to start the island tour. We drove in a very comfortable and pleasantly airconditioned four wheel drive vehicle or made short walks through sugarcane fields and private land where only Nature Trails had special access to some breathtaking viewpoints. The views were spectacular and Alain always had a map of the island handy and immediately explained where we were, some plants around us and what we could see. We saw waterfalls, deers, plants which Alain explained and we even saw the rare Pink Pigeaon of Mauritius. The lunch at Cindy's place was a real highlight. We tasted real, homemade Mauritian cuisine at its best. Cindy was a nice hostess and had a very pleasant personality. She explained the different spices she used and how she prepared the food.

During our round the island tour, Alain showed us some quiet beaches that make Mauritius so unique, the famous red church of Cap Malheureux and of course, he also drove us to his "private" breathtaking viewpoints. With both tours combined together, we managed to see the whole of Mauritius from above.

Alain is Mauritian and knows his island like nobody else. 13 years ago, we also did a tour with him and this time again, we really enjoyed his company and presonality. He is an excellent and very careful driver. He gladly shares all the ins and outs of the island and it was also a pleasure to discuss various subjects with him.

This excursion is a must for people who want to learn more about the island and discover the quiet side of the island and how the people really live. Please book well in advance as this excursion is very regularly fully booked.

Thank you Hannelore for the perfect organisation and precious advice and thank you Alain for the unforgettable moments.

February 2015

Mr. Dorfer took our tour by land in February 2015. He liked it so much, so he wrote a great review about our trip on his Blog "fernwehblog" in german language.

His highlights are - beneath others - the Java Deer and the magnificient view from Simonet mountain. Have a look on his page and his review.

Our clients today had already done an excursion with us but still wanted to do another tour and had specific requests. As they stay in the south, they wanted a mix of our North tour and their own wishes on a individual exclusiv tour. No problem at all!

We started at 7:30 sharp and headed towards Mahebourg. It was just a little drive around the village before slowly driving (with frequent photo stops of course! ) along the East Coast Road towards Cap Malheureux where they wanted to take some pictures of the famous red church and the islands. After a short picnic stop at a small and quiet beach, we headed towards the centre of the Island and stopped at some viewpoints which are normally included in our North tours. At 17:00, we were back at the hotel and the clients were happy that they managed to see some more viewpoints and also had their own wishes fulfilled. It was also something new for us!

Happy! Today, I received a notice from tripadvisor that a guest had written comments concerning our excursion.

I took this opportunity to check at which place we were and it was a great and nice surprise for me to see that under the item "Nature & Parks", out of 43 entries, we are at the very first place and under the item "Places to see", out of 89 entries, we are at the third place. We wish to warmly thank all our guests who took the time to send their comments on our excursion in general and specially the lunch and the viewpoints. We very much appreciate it. Our German clients are specially pleased that Alain speak their language and they can ask questions and easily follow all his explanations concerning the flora, fauna and the island in general. We enjoy our work in the nature from Mauritius :-) :-)!

Alain took this photo of a beach in the north this morning.