I traveled to 13 countries in 2025. This small island nation surprised me the most.

One of my dream trips had always been to island hop from Madagascar to the Seychelles to Mauritius. I pretty much made a pact with myself that whenever I had the opportunity to go to any of those countries, I would pair the three of them together since the journey was so far. So, when I signed up to road trip Madagascar for 15 days, I knew I wanted to hop over to the Seychelles and Mauritius afterward to decompress from what I could only imagine would be a wild adventure.

The island nation I thought I'd love didn't quite hit home

I was looking the most forward to the Seychelles, but surprisingly, I found myself slightly bored there. Don't get me wrong; the Seychelles has some of the best beaches I've ever seen on the planet, especially Petite Anse, the beach at Four Seasons Resort Seychelles. But overall, as an adventure-fueled traveler, the Seychelles took paradise on earth a hair too far for me. I know, what a problem to have.

Mauritius is the sweet spot between relaxing and adventure

When I got to Mauritius, however, I had the best of both worlds: adventure beyond belief with world-class snorkeling and diving, the "seven-colored earth," interesting food and wine like wine made from lychee and a stinky fruit (noni) that could give durian a run for its money, and an underwater waterfall. Plus, the beach onsite of my hotel. Anantara Iko Mauritius Resort & Villas, had a beach parallel to the unblemished ones of the Seychelles.

Bottom Line

If you're looking for a place to relax along sandy shores, with the option to see some wonders like an underwater waterfall or a geological formation that's naturally seven different colors, all without breaking the bank, Mauritius needs to be added to your radar.