Lonely Planet Mauritius Reunion & Seychelles (Multi Country Travel Guide) Paperback – December 1, 2010

**Disclaimer: my trip unfortunately did not take me to the Seychelles**Despite the fact that I am a big fan of guidebooks and buy one for every trip I go on, I had never used a Lonely Planet guide until my recent trip to the Indian Ocean. Though I was curious about the brand, I will admit that my purchase was made mainly due to the fact that they're the only major company that publishes a guide for these islands. You, dear reader, are probably in the same boat: if you're reading this review with any seriousness, you'll probably end up buying the guide. However, before you land in the Southern hemisphere, there are a couple things I would like you to know about your purchase.The first thing you need to know about this guide is that it absolutely, will not, help much when it comes to getting around Mauritius. The maps and directions it provides are utterly inadequate for navigating around the island, which can be very tricky. Mauritian roads have numbers, but they're rarely used, and street names are even less useful outside the main cities. Additionally, the guide is pitched towards people who plan on taking buses, not driving themselves around, and as such the "Getting There and Around" sections have next to no information about driving to and from different areas. All in all it made for a very frustrating first day on the island. I expect a guidebook to help me get around, and this one didn't. If you plan on doing any driving on Mauritius that involves leaving the motorway, go to Google Maps and plot out your journey by the towns you will be passing through. Mauritian road signs may not list names or numbers, but they do almost always have the next town of significance down the line. In Reunion this is less significant, as roads are better notated.Other than this (major) flaw, the guidebook is a success. The information is presented in a largely logical manner, the authors are good writers, with occasional humorous touches, and a lot of information about the island is prevented. I feel that the Lonely Planet guide largely enhanced my trip, and I am happy to recommend it. I just want you to know going in that you will have a much easier time of it if you don't expect the guide to get you around.

After wanting to visit Mauritius for years, I bit the bullet and purchased a ticket for a 2-week vacation with a friend. We are both independent budget travelers who prefer to support local businesses rather than forking our dough over to tour companies and resorts to hold our hands. Quite simply, it would have been impossible to plan the trip without Lonely Planet. We were fortunate that the LP guide was recently updated: we found all the information for guesthouses, restaurants, entry fees, operating hours, and transportation (both public transportation and taxis) to be right on the money...and quite literally when it came to prices listed in the guide! Perhaps the one exception was lodging in Port Louis, in which the most economical hotel (Hotel St. Georges) was actually not-as-economical as advertised - and it seemed that there were other newer, more competitively-priced hotels had opened up, too.That said, this is another terrific, well-researched Lonely Planet that is well-worth its pricetag. My friend and I would not have met so many terrific people and seen the beautiful sights of Mauritius without it. On the logistical side, it would have been impossible to stick to our budget and timeline without it! If the information for Mauritius was any indication, I suspect that the sections on Reunion and the Seychelles are similarly great. If you're headed to this part of the world, buy this book! It'll improve your trip experience in many ways and make your vacation an even more memorable one.

I just had the chance to use the section on Mauritius. It's okay and it gets you seeing the basics. The best suggestion which is not found in any other guidebook I saw was about the Rault biscuit factory...it's a gem! Other than that, I was a little disappointed about the lack of detail but there isn't much out there on Mauritius.

But I was hoping for something with info on flora and fauna.

Well explained and good guide. It seems that it's quite actualized, but I won't really know until october, when my trip is planned :)

Bought this for my husband for Christmas. We plan to go to Mauritius in summer. There are not a great deal of guidebooks about Mauritius but the section in this is comprehensive enough and I would recommend if you are a fan of the Lonely Planet Guidebooks.

Just what was required. Very informative and inexpensive compared to the book shops. Would recommend to other people visiting Mauritius.

having seen this in my local book shop at alot more money, ordered it on amazon,the information in the book is excellent, lots of ideas, on the islands mentioned, ideal for taking to maurtitus or seychelles.an overrall good guide.

good

came in very handy on our holiday. had some great ideas for days out and places to visit.