Guesthouses from €25, buses from 30 MUR, street food from €2 and free public beaches: six practical ways to see Mauritius on a tight budget, wherever you're flying in from. Real figures, checked price ranges and no tourist traps.
Mention Mauritius and most people picture luxury spa hotels and private villas with pools on the lagoon. That's true, but it isn't the whole picture. The island also has a real local economy, a dense, affordable public transport network, lively markets, free public beaches and dirt-cheap street food. Whether you're hopping over on the 45-minute flight from Reunion Island or arriving long-haul on a tight budget, you can travel around Mauritius for €30-60 a night.
The secret comes down to six things: skip the resorts, stay in family guesthouses, eat at local eateries, take the bus, travel in the low season and make the most of free beaches and natural sites. This guide covers each one with real figures, a budget table by travel style, and practical advice on transport and accommodation.
Where the prices come from: 2026 figures from French guidebooks (Routard, Petit Futé), travel blogs (visiterilemaurice.com, secretoo, fairmoove) and my own regular trips from Reunion Island. Prices are given in Mauritian rupees (MUR) and euros at a rough rate of €1 ≈ 50 MUR in 2026.
Three typical profiles for a 7-night stay for two, excluding flights. The long-haul flight is usually the biggest cost: from mainland France, €700 to €1,800 per person depending on the season and how far ahead you book.
| Profile | Accommodation | Meals | Transport | Activities | Total, 7 nights / 2 people |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backpack | Guesthouse €25-35/night | Street food + markets, €8-12/day | Public bus, 30-80 MUR/trip | Public beaches + 2 paid visits | ≈€350-600 (2 people) |
| Mid-range | 3-star hotel or villa, €60-100/night | A mix of local restaurants and street food, €25/day | A hire car, €25-40/day | Catamaran + Île aux Cerfs + Chamarel | ≈€1,200-1,800 (2 people) |
| Comfort | 4-star all-inclusive hotel, €200/night | Included in the all-inclusive | A car plus private transfers | Spa + diving + premium excursions | ≈€3,000-5,000 (2 people) |
Rough 2026 prices, outside the European holiday season (May-June and September-October). In high season (July-August, December-January), add 25-40% to accommodation and flight costs. On the mid-range budget, the hire car line depends on which rental company you go with, so check car hire prices for your own dates.
Each one on its own saves 10-30%. Combined, they can keep a 7-night stay for two under €600, excluding flights.
Mauritian guesthouses (often called a 'table d'hôte' when a Creole meal is included) run between €25 and €60 a night for two. You can usually add a Creole breakfast, and you get local tips and a real connection with a Mauritian family. Start your search in Pereybère, Mahébourg, Tamarin and Trou d'Eau Douce.
Mauritius's buses cover almost the whole island at unbeatable prices: 30 to 80 MUR a trip depending on distance. They're not air-conditioned and can be crowded, but they're reliable and frequent on the Port Louis-Grand Baie, Port Louis-Mahébourg and Curepipe-Flic en Flac routes.
Every Mauritian beach is public, including in front of luxury hotels. Pereybère, Mont Choisy, Belle Mare, Flic en Flac and Tamarin all offer white sand and a turquoise lagoon for free. Just bring a towel, a parasol and a picnic.
The central market in Port Louis and the Monday market in Mahébourg are packed with dirt-cheap street food. A dholl puri at 30 MUR, fried noodles at 150 MUR, biryani at 200 MUR: a full meal for under €4, compared with €25-30 at a touristy beachfront restaurant.
A hike at Le Morne on your own (a guide at €25-40 is recommended if you want to reach the summit), Trou aux Cerfs crater in Curepipe (free, with views over the island), a stroll along Caudan Waterfront and the Pointe d'Esny trail. The best-value paid visits: the Seven Coloured Earths (≈€4) and the Pamplemousses garden (≈€5).
May, June, September and October offer great weather for the price. Flights from Europe (the figures here are for mainland France) are often 20-40% cheaper than in the July-August and December-January peaks, and Mauritian hotels charge low-season rates at the same time.
A guesthouse is Mauritius's answer to a B&B: a family rents out 1 to 4 rooms in their home, usually with a fan or air conditioning, a private or shared bathroom, and the option of a Creole dinner. Getting to know your hosts is worth as much as the room itself: local tips on buses, markets, the least crowded public beaches, the best nearby eateries.
Rough 2026 prices: €25-40 a night for two in a simple room with a fan, €40-60 with air conditioning and a Creole breakfast, €60-90 for a room-plus-evening-meal package. The best-stocked areas are Pereybère and Grand Baie in the north, Flic en Flac in the west, Mahébourg in the south-east, Tamarin and Black River in the south-west.
Booking: directly by email or phone (often cheaper than platforms) or via Booking, Airbnb, Hostelworld. For travellers on a very tight budget, several hostels in Pereybère and Grand Baie offer dorm beds at €12-18 per person.
Three major operators share the public network: United Bus Service (UBS), Triolet Bus Service (TBS) and Mauritian Bus Transport (MBT). Lots of private companies run the smaller routes. Altogether, the network is dense enough to reach almost every beach, market and town without hiring a car.
Stops are marked by a blue sign, sometimes just a plain pole. Wave the bus down, board at the front and pay the conductor in cash (bring small notes: they won't have change for 500 MUR). The first buses run around 5.30am, the last around 8pm-9pm depending on the line. No night service. For places the bus doesn't reach (Chamarel, Le Morne, Black River Gorges), hire a taxi for the day (1,800-3,500 MUR shared between 4-6 people, or €6-14 each).
Mauritian street food is among the cheapest and tastiest in the Indian Ocean. Thanks to the island's multicultural heritage, you'll find Creole, Indian, Chinese and Tamil food, sometimes on the same street. The classics to know:
The best street food spots: the Port Louis market (central, open every day except Sunday), the Monday market in Mahébourg, small canteens around the bus stops of Quatre Bornes and Curepipe. Avoid the touristy beachfront restaurants, which charge 5 to 8 times more for the same dishes.
2026 prices in Mauritian rupees and euros (at roughly €1 ≈ 50 MUR). Check the current exchange rate when you travel.
| Item / service | Price (MUR) | Price (EUR) |
|---|---|---|
| Black coffee at a bar | 30-50 MUR | 0.60-1.00 € |
| 1.5L bottle of water | 30-50 MUR | 0.60-1.00 € |
| A short bus trip | 30-50 MUR | 0.60-1.00 € |
| A long bus trip (Port Louis to Mahébourg) | 60-80 MUR | 1.20-1.60 € |
| Dholl puri (street food) | 20-40 MUR | 0.40-0.80 € |
| A full meal at a local eatery (fried noodles, biryani) | 100-200 MUR | 2.00-4.00 € |
| A mid-range local restaurant meal | 400-700 MUR | 8-14 € |
| A touristy beachfront restaurant meal | 800-1,500 MUR | 16-30 € |
| A local Phoenix beer (50cl) at a bar | 80-150 MUR | 1.60-3.00 € |
| Entry to Chamarel's Seven Coloured Earths | ≈200 MUR | ≈4 € |
| Entry to the Pamplemousses botanical garden | ≈250 MUR | ≈5 € |
| An Île aux Cerfs excursion by shared boat | 1,200-2,000 MUR | 24-40 € |
Here's a practical itinerary, tried in 2026 by several travellers from France and Reunion Island, for a backpacker-to-mid-range week for two, excluding flights.
A €35/night guesthouse. Pereybère and Mont Choisy public beach, snorkelling at Coin de Mire, a catamaran trip to the northern islands (a shared excursion at 1,500-2,000 MUR per person). Grand Baie markets and seafront restaurants.
A bus from Pereybère via Port Louis (3h, 100 MUR). A €30/night guesthouse. The Monday market in Mahébourg, the Pamplemousses garden (a shared taxi at 250 MUR/pers.), Pointe d'Esny and Blue Bay by bus plus a self-guided trail.
A shared taxi Mahébourg → Chamarel (1,800 MUR for 4 people). A €45/night Chamarel guesthouse. The Seven Coloured Earths (200 MUR), Chamarel waterfall, a self-guided hike at the foot of Le Morne. Return to the airport by bus plus taxi on day 8.
Estimated total on the ground, excluding flights: 7 nights' accommodation ≈€240, 7 days of eating at local eateries ≈€100 per person, a mix of bus and shared taxi transport ≈€80, paid activities ≈€100 per person. That's around €700 for 2 people in economy mode, up to €1,200 if you add 2-3 restaurant dinners plus a premium catamaran outing.
The long-haul flight is the biggest single cost of any Indian Ocean trip (€700-1,800 per person from mainland France, depending on the season). Combining both islands spreads that cost over 14 days instead of 7.
The Mauritius ↔ Reunion Island hop takes 45 minutes and costs between €100 and €250 return depending on how far ahead you book (Air Mauritius, Air Austral and Corsair serve the route several times a day). It's well worth it if you're adding an extra week.
A winning combo: 7 days in Reunion Island (the volcano, the cirques, hiking, a helicopter flight, L'Hermitage lagoon) for the outdoor and nature side, then 7 days in Mauritius (the lagoon, beaches, markets, relaxing) to unwind before the return flight. Total trip cost for two, excluding the long-haul flight: €1,500-2,500 in mid-range mode.
Article updated on 6 November 2026.