Kite Jam Surf Festival, Mauritius

For anyone looking for a great holiday, Mauritius is one of the iconic ‘holiday of a lifetime’ venues and it would be hard to imagine how it could possibly be improved. But between the 28 October and the 10 of November, the Kite Jam festival is in town and it will be spectacular! Watching expert surfers is amazing enough, but watching kite surfers is out of this world and this year the line-up is truly international, with riders from Australia, Germany, Spain and many other countries.

Based in Le Morne, the festival isn’t only about watching the kite surfers perform seemingly impossible feats on the waves. There are also parties, tea ceremonies, master classes in yoga and some fabulous DJ sets. If you fancy your chances, there are amateur races, so anyone can become involved.

How to get there

Because Mauritius is in the Indian Ocean many people think it might be hard to get to, expensive and involve a ridiculously long flight, but this is just not so. There are flights from most of the major UK airports and they average out at between 11 and 15 hours, depending on stop-overs and connections. There are some direct flights available as well and with at least one flight daily from London, scheduling is not hard either.

If you are unsure of the best places to look for holiday packages check out travel sites like Travelsupermarket , First Choice or even Thomsons The newly completed Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport is up to the very highest standards. Once there, the trip from the airport to Le Morne is a very simple one, taking less than an hour along the southern coast of the island so not only do you get to go to a fabulous event, you have some unforgettable scenery to look at while you are on the way.

Check out a video of last year’s event:

What to do

The Kite Surfing Festival itself has a busy schedule arranged for anyone attending, with spectacular international stars such as the windsurfing legend Jason Polakow and the twice world champion kiteboarder Keahi de Aboitiz of Australia, who will be giving some master classes in his sport, so that is not to be missed. If you are travelling in a party and some people are not so kite surf crazy, then the island of Mauritius is a magical place to explore.

Golf courses abound and whether you enjoy a friendly knock round a course or are a serious golfer, you will find one that suits you. Riding is also a popular pastime in Mauritius and you can hack to your heart’s content through some stunning scenery. If wildlife is your passion, you can certainly indulge it in Mauritius.

There are wildlife parks but if you take a taxi tour, you can see everything in its native habitat, which is in many ways far more fun. Because Mauritius is now such a popular tourist destination there are loads of restaurants and clubs to explore and whether you like to eat the local food or have a bit of a splash-out on gourmet dining, there is something on the island for you.