Port Louis, Mauritius

Two contrasting hubs anchor a visit to Port Louis. The Caudan Waterfront is the modern, polished face of the city — a regenerated section of the old harbour with shopping arcades, restaurants and cafés overlooking the marina, craft and souvenir stalls, a casino, cinemas and the small but fascinating Blue Penny Museum, which displays the legendary 'Post Office' Mauritian stamps of 1847, among the most valuable in the world, alongside the island's art and history. A short walk inland brings the complete opposite: the Central Market (Bazaar de Port Louis), a covered, century-old market that is the bustling heart of everyday Mauritius — stalls piled with spices, chillies, tropical fruit and vegetables, herbal-remedy and craft sellers, and street-food counters where you can try the island's snacks. Together they show the city's two sides, the waterfront polish and the market chaos, within a few minutes' walk of each other.

Port Louis is one of the most strikingly multicultural cities of its size anywhere, and its compact centre wears that diversity openly. Within a short walk you pass the grand Jummah Mosque, one of the most beautiful in the Indian Ocean; a busy Chinatown with its pagodas, restaurants and gateway arches; colourful Hindu and Tamil temples; colonial-era Catholic churches; and the heart of the old French town around the leafy Place d'Armes, leading up to the white colonnaded Government House and the Municipal Theatre. Nearby, the Aapravasi Ghat — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — preserves the stone steps and depot buildings where, from the 1830s, hundreds of thousands of indentured labourers from India and beyond first set foot in Mauritius, a place of deep significance to the island's identity. The Champ de Mars racecourse, the oldest in the southern hemisphere, adds another layer to a centre best explored slowly on foot, ideally in the cooler morning.

For the big picture, climb to the Citadel (Fort Adelaide), a 19th-century British fortress on a hill above the centre, for panoramic views over the rooftops, the harbour and the surrounding mountains — best in the late afternoon. Back at street level, the food is a highlight: Port Louis has some of the best street food in the Indian Ocean, a delicious fusion of the island's cultures — dholl puri (a soft split-pea flatbread wrapped around curry and chutney, the national favourite), gateaux piments (fried chilli-and-lentil cakes), bol renversé, fresh-fruit stalls and the noodle and dim-sum dishes of Chinatown, all best sampled at the market and the city's casual eateries. Port Louis is also the gateway to the rest of Mauritius: the beach resorts and nightlife of Grand Baie and the north coast, the dramatic Black River Gorges National Park and its forests, the famous seven-coloured earths and waterfall of Chamarel, the sacred crater lake of Grand Bassin and the lagoon beaches that ring the island are all within easy reach by road. A day in the capital pairs perfectly with a beach-and-nature island stay.