The Republic of Mauritius officially reopened its borders as it lifted restrictions for fully vaccinated travelers. Visitors will be able to freely explore the paradise island’s beaches, mountains, waterfalls, and lagoons from the moment they land. The paradise island is now seeing huge demand from international travelers who are choosing Mauritius for its stunning scenery, safety, and security.
Starting 1st July 2022 and with the great connectivity that Air Mauritius offers to multiple cities across India (via codeshare with Vistara Airlines), it is all set to welcome over around 80,000 Indian travelers in 2022 and 1,00,000 in 2023. The country has seen a 55% recovery from the Indian market, post-pandemic.
Arvind Bundhun, Director, Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA) said, “This reopening has been very successful for us especially when it comes to safety and security as Mauritius ticks all the right boxes. As of today, 90% of our population is vaccinated, and we are now vaccinating school children and teenagers too. But the real success of Mauritius comes from a close collaboration between MTPA and the private sector. Our reopening strategy was closely crafted along with our tour operators and airlines. We welcomed over 500,000 tourists since opening our borders and our guests still come to us for the gorgeous beaches, for our excellent service, for food and to explore like never before!”
Tourism is crucial to the Mauritius economy, but so is the safety and security of its citizens, and it is thanks to the world-leading response to the coronavirus pandemic that we are able to reopen our borders as planned.
Mauritius responded quickly and effectively to the threat of Covid-19 right at the start of the pandemic. By implementing an early lockdown and strict quarantine measures the country was able to keep infection rates incredibly low and, by prioritizing the vaccination of its tourism workers alongside healthcare staff, they were able to put the phased reopening in place right on schedule.
Tourism accounts for more than 25 percent of the nation’s GDP and employs many thousands of people directly and indirectly.
Hotel and airline bookings for Mauritius have soared in recent weeks, and additional international flights have been added to keep up with demand. Many major airlines from around the world fly to Mauritius, including British Airways, Emirates, Air France, South African Airways, Air Austral, Air Seychelles, Turkish Airlines, Kenya Airways, Edelweiss, Austrian Airlines, and Mauritius’s flagship carrier Air Mauritius.
Mauritius’ hospitality industry has recently invested millions of dollars in its hotels, infrastructure, and visitor attractions, including refurbishing luxury hotels, spas and wellness centres, to provide holidaymakers and business travelers with the very best in accommodation and amenities.
Aiming to position Mauritius as a destination beyond its beaches, MTPA launched the ‘Where else but Mauritius?’ campaign in India, earlier this year. The campaign highlights the less-explored parts of the country, which includes land activities like adventure sports, gastronomy experiences, and cultural and religious tourism.
