Le Morne Peninsula

Le Morne Peninsula is primarily hilly, with its main attraction being a gigantic rugged monolithic mountain that juts out into the Indian Ocean. Located in the south-western part of Mauritius, the entire Le Morne peninsula takes the appearance of a hammerhead shark when viewed from a bird’s eye viewpoint.

The coastline along the whole peninsula is home to some of the most beautiful beaches on the entire island with a plethora of luxury hotels scattered all over the area, the peninsula is an extremely tourist-friendly place, with exotic flora and fauna all around, and gorgeous tropical weather all through the year to boot, making it one of the must-visit tourist destinations while on a trip to Mauritius.

History of Le Morne Peninsula 
The peninsula used to be the camp for refugee slaves back in the late 18th and early 19th century. The prominent monolith that stands as the main icon of the peninsula today was used in colonial times as a fortress to protect the slave from the soldiers, and even today, the tale regarding how the slaves hurled themselves off the cliff when caught by the soldiers can be heard amongst the locals. Today, aside from being a prominent tourist attraction, the Le Morne peninsula stands as a testament to the struggles and suffering of the slaves and their fight for freedom.

Slave Route Monument
Standing testimony to this is the International Slave Route Monument, which was built in 2009, in commemoration to the abolition of slavery on the island. Built at the foot of the Le Morne Brabant mountain, the monument is a small enclosure with various sculptures built around the premises that depict the lives of the slaves, and the art surrounding the sculptures denotes the various countries from where the slaves were brought to Mauritius. Today, the monument stands as a symbol of peace and freedom and is a very important historical site on the south-western coast of the island.

Le Morne Brabant Mountain 
A giant monolithic rocky structure that extends into the lagoon off the coast of the peninsula. With a towering height of over 550 metres above sea level, the Le Morne Brabant Mountain has a few spectacular trekking and hiking trails that are famous among tourists. The Le Morne Brabant Mountain was declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO back in 2008, and if you trek to the very top of the mountain, you will be greeted with some of the most amazing views of the entire island of Mauritius. 

There are various caves on different sides of the mountain that may come across while you’re hiking to the top, and the entire landscape abounds in lush greenery and a vast variety of exotic plants that you will not see anywhere else on the island, including the Boucle d'Oreille and the Mandrinette.

Crystal Rock
Another renowned natural geological formation in the Le Morne peninsula is the Crystal Rock, which, as you can probably decipher from the name, is a small islet of a rocky outcrop, and is a hotbed of tourist activities such as scuba diving, snorkelling and even glass-bottom boat riding. Dolphins are often spotted near the crystal rock, and if you’re lucky, you can actually get to swim alongside the dolphins! Located around 200 metres off the south-west coast of the island, you will need to book a boat tour to reach the rock.

Underwater Waterfall
Le Morne has been blessed with an exceptionally large number of unique natural geological formations, and the world-famous underwater waterfall is another such example. This subaquatic waterfall is actually an illusion, caused by a combination of underwater currents and the movement of silt and sand on the ocean bed. The entire illusion is extremely realistic and incredibly spectacular and is one of the most-visited tourist attractions in Mauritius. Since the dramatic illusion is visible only if you have a bird’s eye view of the entire landscape, special guided helicopter tours are arranged that lets you witness the miraculous spectacle in all its jaw-dropping beauty and magnificence.

How to Reach Le Morne Brabant
Since the Le Morne peninsula is situated a little away from the main roads of Mauritius along which buses ply, even if you do take a bus that stops at the designated Le Morne peninsula stop, you will have to walk a long way to reach the actual town. The best option to reach the place is to hire a taxi from either the airport itself or from Port Louis. If you’re driving down on your own, you will have to take the B9, and then look out for either of the two entrance roads to the Le Morne peninsula.