Mauritius is a great island for a family vacation, and there are plenty of fantastic hotels but check out the Beau Rivage for a great family vacation

Mauritius, and great family vacation are synonymous, always providing you have the money. The Beau Rivage Hotel is a very good example of what is meant by that. This is a very beautiful hotel, almost better than the photographs which isn't something that can be said very often.

The whole place is quite beautiful, the beach is as good as it looks, and the staff extraordinarily helpful, polite, and the service is immaculate.

If you have never gone east from the UK to the Indian Ocean or the far East you will be staggered at how lovely the hotels are, even when they aren't absolutely top five star palaces, and how brilliant the service is.

The Beau Rivage makes for a great family vacation because it caters for children of all ages, from an excellent Kids Club with inside and outside accommodation and qualified hostesses, so that younger children can be cared for all day.

Kids have their own early supper, and babysitting can be arranged.

A great family vacation needs activities for all age groups and not just mums and Dads. There is also a Teens Club for those children over the age of 12, with a number of activities during the school holidays.

There is plenty for the active to do with a gymnasium, table tennis, beach volleyball, petanque, mini golf, exercise classes with Yoga, Tai-Chai. There are three championship golf courses closeby, mountain bikes to hire, and many free water sports including waterskiing, and sailing. For the adventurous there is baig game fishing, and there are dive sites only ten minutes from the hotel.

In the evening there is some form of entertainment every night, from pianist to bands, which are great to listen to, if the bar prices weren't so extortionate

The Beau Rivage has much more to it than just activity and things for the children to do, and it has a number of plus points that make it a great choice for a great family vacation, and they are as follows.

The rooms are very well presented, and roomy with a large bathroom, very comfortable beds, and a good selection of TV Channels.

The restaurants and food are excellent most of the time, but you need to be aware of what food and drink costs.

Take half board, but realize that you will need to pay for lunch, and with everything priced in Euros, and with Sterling not good value against the Euro, you could expect to pay around 70 for a family of four, for what is essentially a snack. Soft drinks, and water are extortionate at about 3 for a bottle of water, and more for a coke.

Breakfasts whilst buffet style do have crepes, and eggs cooked for you, but beware of scavenging birds which are fun on the first morning, but a nuisance thereafter.

The best advice is to have your room fridge emptied on your first day, and then fill up with drinks bought outside locally.

Be warned that shops close to the hotel are wise to this, and they have marked up their prices, so it's worth going a little away from the hotel area to shop for a better price.

All in all the Beau Rivage will give you a great family vacation in Mauritius, at a price. It can call itself a luxury hotel, and you will enjoy your holiday there.

What is important that you do your research first to make sure you get the best possible price, because recent studies have shown a price difference of over 2000 sterling for an identical holiday in Mauritius at the Beau Rivage.