Moving to Mauritius

Hi All,

My husband and I are considering moving to Mauritius with our 3 year old son in November. I am South African but have been living in Scotland for 9 years. This is a huge move for us, but we want to be closer to family in SA. We thought that Mauritius would, potentially, be a good place for our family to live. We are both planning on starting our own businesses and would hope to - in a small way - provide employment and contribute to the economy.
What concerns me are some of the scary crime statistics I have seen and read about. Having lived in South Africa for most of my life I am no stranger to crime but I was under the impression that Mauritius was much safer. Would this be a fair statement? What can I expect?
Thanks for any help

Hi Catinthehat, and welcome on board,

of course you'll always hear about horrible stories, but frankly, Mauritius is safe. Just don't leave your windows open when you're sleeping and these kind of things, but that's common sense.

Hi Catinthehat,

good decision on moving to mauritius.

I have traveled and lived in many countries around the glob and in my book mauritius is one of the safest.

Like in any place you should walk around with your eyes and ears open.

If you have any specific questions just send me a mail.

I think this is a excellent new year resolution. 

Happy new year

Tolga

Hi Catinthehat,

Welcome to Mauritius.

Are you looking for partners in Mauritius? which type of business are you going to start?

we are a small company dealing in renewable energy since Apr 2013, and we are looking for partners to expand the business, please let us know if you are interested.

thanks & regards
Gan.

Thank you Julien. It is reassuring to hear that. We are planning to come to Mauritius for a few weeks in April/May to get a feel for the different areas and check out schools. I look forward to meeting the people of Mauritius.
Cheers!

Thank you Tolga for your encouraging reply!! As you say, being aware of your surroundings and being sensible are key.
Expat.com has been brilliant with the responses! Thanks!

Hi Gan,
Renewable energy is not our field, but thanks :-)

Hi Mauritius is very safe and the economy is very good.

Isle of Man much more safer place then Mauritius, hard to belief it is so close to UK. But climate there is very depressing.

I think there no such thing as safe or unsafe places. It all depend on people, for certain kind of people it is not safe anywhere.

Stay safe.

Hi Catinthehat

Mauritius, like all countries (with the exception of Singapore maybe) rich or poor, developed or developing has its good and bad sides.. However it is still very safe as compared to many others. It all depends on the areas you are venturing into and the people you are hanging out with, same as for any other country you might be living in or visiting.

Locking your house at night, not walking into isolated neighbourhoods alone, not flaunting huge amount of wealth when you are in the company of people you know very little about or you have just met, keeping your belongings safe when you are in crowded areas, etc are some of the small and regular tips that will make you avoid undesired situations.

Wish you a great time in Mauritius if you happen to land here ultimately!

Hi Julien I spoke to you before and I have made my decision. I will be landing in Mauritius on the 8 Th of Feb.

I thank you Kaviraj, you have been very helpful, that all makes a lot of sense. I shall have to readjust my mindset (we live in a particularly safe part of Scotland) and be more aware. I believe that living in a beautiful place like Mauritius is worth adapting for. I am very excited about the move, and have started looking for a new 5mm wetsuit! :-)

I think the only dangerous thing in Mauritius is road traffic :D. But if you drive slowly, keep calm and in doubt let others go then you are quite safe. At least, I assume, you already used to drive on the wrong side. But even this was not a big issue for me.  :lol:
Beside this there might be some places you should not go to or through at night, but this you probably have everywhere in the world. I also cannot recall something like this from my region in Germany but there might be avoidable places in Frankfurt, Cologne or Hamburg.

Wäller wrote:

I think the only dangerous thing in Mauritius is road traffic :D. But if you drive slowly, keep calm and in doubt let others go then you are quite safe. At least, I assume, you already used to drive on the wrong side. But even this was not a big issue for me.  :lol:
Beside this there might be some places you should not go to or through at night, but this you probably have everywhere in the world. I also cannot recall something like this from my region in Germany but there might be avoidable places in Frankfurt, Cologne or Hamburg.


My God !! if you think, Mauritius traffic is dangerous, you definitely may need something to compare. How about Delhi  or Agra traffic. Compared to it: - THERE IS NO TRAFFIC in Mauritius at all.

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As a Glaswegian I would say Glasgow is far more dangerous than Mauritius.  There is a bit of petty crime here but nothing like the problems there are in Scotland and as the guys on this have said you take care at night in Mauritius but then I took care in Glasgow at night and I lived in a good area.

Francesm. So good to hear from you!! That is so good to hear. Castlemilk  and Govanhill would make Mauritius look like a tropical paradise...oh wait...so it is! I live in Blackhall, but I know there are some areas in Scotland that make me very nervous - day or night, and I grew up in South Africa. I feel very reassured and very excited about some sunshine! Everyone on this message board, has been really wonderful and informative, thank you!

@Ivan:
Well you might be right that those places in India are more dangerous but this doesn't mean that the roads here are not dangerous.
A lorry coming high speed on a narrow road having a car parking in his way flashing his way on the other side of the lane into upcoming traffic has for me a serious potential of danger.
A bus coming down hill (no need to say to way to fast) not really using the breaks before a dangerous corner making others hear his tyres squealing in the corner. If he had lost it there he'd pushed and squeesed me in the ditch on the side of the road, probably leaving me dead. This not even danger anymore, I consider these people's actions as what is called attempted murder. (Even if they bring their common stupid answer: I didn't know)
And I don't start to count how many passengers have been murdered by the reckless driving of these van drivers or neglective maintenances of NTC buses.
And now thinking about your point again: It is said that these type of NTC buses (like the one crashed last year at Soreze killing 10 people) were bought from India. There these buses were sorted out because they were not safe anymore.

@Wäller

such thing as safety in general does not exist. it is all relative, what is safe for one person, can be dangerous enterprise for another.

At present thread OP asking very general question, regarding safety of life in Mauritius. In such case I would think in long terms rather focusing at current situation.  In my assessment Mauritius prospects on remaining safe in long term very good.

Is there any people moving out because of safety concerns?

I just move to a new apartment in flic en flac

Hello all, in relation to this thread and some of the answers that were given, are there any really bad neighborhoods to avoid?  :/
When looking at places to rent, from abroad, should I be concerned about certain areas?

Coming from Rome, Italy I see Mauritius as an idyllic place (when it comes to traffic & crime) but I suppose I'm being too naive.
Any advice?
thank you in advance  :cheers:

I was thinking to move to Mauritius. ..but after seeing here so many complications and problems i am not sure it is the best choice to take!!
Is it olso difficult to buy a house here? And please where is the best aeria to live?
Thanks

naddura wrote:

I was thinking to move to Mauritius. ..but after seeing here so many complications and problems i am not sure it is the best choice to take!!
Is it olso difficult to buy a house here? And please where is the best aeria to live?
Thanks


If the negatives outweigh the positives when it comes to assessing the move,then do not move.

naddura wrote:

I was thinking to move to Mauritius. ..but after seeing here so many complications and problems i am not sure it is the best choice to take!!
Is it olso difficult to buy a house here? And please where is the best aeria to live?
Thanks


I didn't see too many complications listed.  Why the move from the Canary Islands?

VivieRod wrote:

URGENT Bonjour, je recherche un professeur de chinois pour ma fille en Terminale au Lycée Francais Labourdonnais. Donnez vous des cours ou connaissez vous une personne qui pourrait l'aider dans l'apprentissage de cette langue? Merci par avance. Bonne journée.


As this is an Anglophone forum could you please post in ENGLISH so that others can understand your post
Thank you.

Mauritius is pretty safe just petty crimes really. I felt safe walking around like a real tourist (taking pictures of everything with my phone).

I think any violent crime will make the front page since it is rare.