My wife and two of my children, aged 17 and 21, have just returned from a week at the Prince Maurice. Overall we had a fantastic time and couldn’t find anything to really fault the hotel on.

Usually (at least for me), the greatest stress and anxiety about a holiday is whether you got the overall quality you thought you had paid for. So often we find a four star priced hotel we think looks like a five star but turns out to be a three star! The PM is a 'six star' hotel and while really dislike the ‘grading inflation’ that has permeated hotel star systems, it is fully justified in this case.
Make no mistake the hotel is expensive but I think it is easily justified.

We went shortly after a the reopening following a major refurb. I guess we got a bit of deal with two better ‘junior suites’ and half board. The rooms were very well appointed and spacious. All sports were included in our package – tennis, waterskiing, golf at the two good courses at the nearby sister hotel Belle Mare Plage (I’m a 4 handicap golfer), sailing, gym etc.
The food was really high quality and being a French hotel chain, clearly biased towards that cuisine. (It is a rather French experience which might be negative for some people). The Chef’s menu of the day was exciting and varied and the extensive a la carte options (with very few ‘supplement’ courses) was also great. There is none of the common con of rubbish buffets every night.

We particularly enjoyed chatting each day with the Head Sommelier, Jérôme Carlier who was great fun, genuinely engaging and gave us great tour of his new cellar. The wine list is impressive but prices are steep including a large mark up on the extensive range of South African wines. However Jérôme was as enthusiastic in recommending a ‘cheap’ wine (£35 equiv) as the more serious stuff. He and his attentive team really elevate the dining experience at the hotel.
All of the staff (reception, cleaning, grounds, restaurant, spa, gym and waterfront) at the hotel were outstanding, clearly well trained and motivated. It was amazing how many learnt your name within 24 hours!

If there is one caveat I would raise is that any extras are pretty expensive BUT not out of line with the quality of the experience. My suggestion is that if you are going half board (and are not tee totallers) then you should expect to spend an additional 15 – 20% on top of what you have paid to get there.

I am a cynic and not someone who is lavishes praise easily for people ‘doing their jobs’ but although expensive I found this holiday to be virtually faultless – as did my daughters who are a pretty hard to please!

PS: We also stayed at the Constance Lemuria in the Seychelles a few years ago, also after a re-opening and really enjoyed that – although this was a big notch up from that. It seems to me that the Constance Group is well named and can be relied on.

Recently, early October, we returned to celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary at this hotel. It was excellent 10 years ago but it is even better now - just perfect. Opening out the restaurant, to create many more tables overlooking the pool/ocean, has eliminated the unseemly rush for or annoying advanced booking of the best tables, the new pool is useful for swimming lengths and the new decor in the rooms gives a much lighter and brighter effect. The excellent Food & Beverages Manager and the new Chef have also made a big difference. The staff are wonderful - extremely well trained and managed.

There seemed to be more younger couples, most on honeymoon, and fewer older retired couples which produced a rather nice mix of the age groups. There were one or two families with very young children but they were well behaved and did not spoil the peaceful ambiance.

We had wonderful holiday and will certainly visit again - if we are not put off by memories of the uncomfortable and tiring 12 hour flights.

The only complaint we can make about our honeymoon stay at Constance Le Prince Maurice is that our 12-day stay was not long enough. The hotel is exceptionally beautiful. With 88-suites and villas, it manages to achieve the perfect balance between intimacy and privacy.

We had a first floor junior suite with a beach view. The suites are stunningly appointed – they are large and airy, the beds are very comfortable, the bathrooms are bigger than some hotel rooms we have stayed in and the balconies are spacious with relaxing seating. Being on the first floor also meant that we benefited from a high ceiling in the bedroom and a stunning thatched roof coverage to our balcony.

The main communal areas of the hotel (reception areas, Archipel Restaurant, Lounge Bar, Laguna Bar, Asian Bar and the main infinity pool) are breathtaking in appearance and so cleverly designed to provide relaxation during the day and so very many different spectacular and romantic seating areas for dinner and drinks. The evening music entertainment permeates all areas without being oppressive or interfering. The musicians were all exceptionally proficient and added to the intimate, calm, romantic ambience. We could also hear the music when sat on our balcony and, unlike one previous reviewer, we considered this to be a plus point to our suite’s location (suite number 35).

Speaking of food and drink, having read the many reviews that complained about the cost of meals and drinks, we came to Mauritius in a state of some concern about cost and were relieved to find that the prices were more reasonable than we had anticipated. The impressive wine list has choices for most budgets (there are a decent number of choices at up to £35), the cocktails were only a touch over £10 (no more than you’d expect to pay at most cocktail bars in London) and soft drinks and beers were generally around £4-6. As for food, we were booked half board, ate a hearty breakfast each morning and felt absolutely no need for lunch (which would have cost us about £15 per head including soft drinks).

The food, by the way, was delicious. We were unrepentantly gluttonous. Everything was beautifully presented and beautifully cooked. The restaurant staff also deserve huge praise. We have some awkward dietary requirements. Our travel agent notified the hotel before our arrival. At our first meal in the restaurant, the front of house manager, Samuel, introduced himself to us, reassured us of all of the research into our dietary requirements that he and the chefs had undertaken and invited us to raise any issues or requests at any time. It was clear to us from this very first moment that this was a hotel where the staff went above and beyond the call of duty.

The highlight of our dining experience was undoubtedly dinner at Le Barachois. It provides for an incredibly romantic setting and will live long in our memory. Incidentally, the hotel’s set menu for Le Barachois did not accord with our dietary requirements, so we asked at reception for an alternative to be provided. Within 5 minutes of the request, the sous chef came to meet with us to put together an alternative menu suitable for our needs. Within seconds he came up with wonderful suggestions, which proved outstandingly delicious on the night.

Another food tip is to try out the sushi bar. The food there was exquisite and the seating area intimate and romantic. As with the chefs in the main restaurant, the sushi chef was more than happy to create dishes off-menu to provide us with more choice fitting our dietary requirements.

The standard of service from the restaurant staff was also shown by staff at every level, from the reception, to the sun butlers, concierges, porters and cleaners. All were so friendly, delighted to meet the guest’s every need, always keen to go the extra mile and always striving to make each guest feel special. Standards are incredibly high and every member of staff takes such pride in their role in maintaining those standards. Apart from Samuel, special mention should go to Cindy and Maneesh, whose personal greetings and attention made us feel as if we’d been regulars at the hotel for years rather than first-timers.

What else is there to say to persuade you to book this hotel? When sunbathing, you’re given free bottles of water, fruit kebabs and afternoon sorbets as well as the sunglasses cleaning service. The beach is filled with gorgeous sand and comfortable loungers not packed too closely together. The two swimming pools are stunningly beautiful. Most watersports are free (we explored the nearby water on some relaxing pedalo rides and less relaxing kayaks) and we played tennis each evening without charge for use of the court or equipment.

We really do have no complaints about the hotel. We wish we were back there now as it was the best holiday experience we have ever had and are ever likely to have (until we go back there at some future point in time).

Most top world class hotels pride themselves with their perfect location, chic designed suites and ranges of facilities. But what makes a great hotel, one who would gave their guests a prefect experience, is the people themselves.
Good management does not happened by chance. It takes a good leader and a team of dedicated staffs, hard working and with a true interest of their guests at heart to succeed. The GM Christophe is a pleasant, neat, polite and down to earth guy. And unlike other GM of other hotels, he mingles with guests, he was there everyday to attend to the guests need, and oversee the operation of hotel. He works in an in-conspicuous yet efficient ways. He is truly a “people’s general manager”.
Marjoola and Franchelte of the guest relation are great. They are just like a couple of terrific mother goose, attentive and knowledgeable, and very friendly.
I stayed in the Le Prince Maurice Hotel from the 12th October 2012 for 3 nights. It is an impressive hotel with a bright, high ceiling foyer reception, and a post card perfect view of the bay and islands across. The rooms are spacious, the foods in the restaurants are great, and the ranges of water sports are wide. They offered complimentary Golf, and shuttle to the golf courses are also free.
The hotel is great in every way, and in my opinion, the reason why Le Prince Maurice stands out from the Rest is their staffs, the people who run this huge complex from day to day. We felt like we are in a palace yet not feel intimidated. We have our privacy yet we are well look after. The staffs are efficient and respond to our need immediately. But most of all, we are not just serving us; they are really have our interests at heart.
And, that’s what makes a winner.