Chamarel 7 Coloured Earth tour: private guide, 8 stops

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/9

Duration8h

GroupPrivate

PickupAt your hotel

A dormant volcano, a sacred crater lake, and millions of years of geology in one afternoon.

A private guided tour of Chamarel and Mauritius' south coast with hotel pickup, covering the Seven Coloured Earth Geopark, Trou aux Cerfs volcano, Grand Bassin temple, Alexandra Falls, Black River Gorges National Park and Gorge Viewpoint. The tour runs 8 hours with a certified guide and air-conditioned vehicle; you choose the departure time and the guide handles the route, timing and stops. Infants and small children can travel in a pram or stroller.

Step-by-step itinerary

South Coast Scenic and Cultural Tour

Hotel pick-up and meet guide
Visit Trou Aux Cerfs volcanic crater
Stop at Mare Aux Vacoas reservoir
Explore Ganga Talao (Grand Bassin) lake and temple
Admire Alexandra Falls and cloud forest
Enjoy panoramic view at Gorge Viewpoint
Discover Chamarel Seven Coloured Earth Geopark
Visit Le Port Ship Model Factory and Showroom

The Experience

The tour begins with pickup from your hotel anywhere in Mauritius. Your certified guide meets you, and you head southwest toward Trou aux Cerfs, a dormant volcanic crater 605 meters above sea level with a diameter of 350 meters and a depth of around 100 meters. The crater sits inside a vast forest of indigenous plants and giant green pines, and from the rim you get a 360-degree view of Curepipe, Rempart Mountain, Trois Mamelles and the Port-Louis–Moka mountain range. The volcano last erupted 700,000 years ago and has remained dormant since.

From there the route moves through Mare aux Vacoas, the island's largest reservoir at nearly 26 million cubic meters, then to Grand Bassin (Ganga Talao), a crater lake 550 meters up in the mountainous southwest. A 33-meter-tall statue of Lord Shiva stands on the shoreline next to a temple and shrines; the lake itself is about 18 meters deep and holds fish and eels. The guide takes you to Alexandra Falls, hidden in the Black River Gorges jungle, where you stand among cloud forest and falling water with a panoramic view down to the turquoise south coast. Next is Gorge Viewpoint, where you look out over 17,000 acres of rolling hills, deep valleys and rainforest in the Black River Gorges National Park—on clear days you can see a waterfall from the viewing area, and monkeys sometimes cross the path.

The final stop is Chamarel's Seven Coloured Earth Geopark, where the geology itself is the draw. The geopark's focus is connecting visitors with the island's formation and millions of years of history through the landscape itself. You walk through the site at your own pace, following paths lined with coffee trees and vetivers through the colored earth formations. The whole tour covers eight hours; the vehicle is air-conditioned and the guide sets the pace at each stop.

What’s included

Your tour includes hotel pickup anywhere in Mauritius and return.
a certified guide for the full eight hours.
an air-conditioned vehicle.
and entry to all eight stops—Trou aux Cerfs volcano, Mare aux Vacoas reservoir, Grand Bassin temple and crater lake, Alexandra Falls, Gorge Viewpoint, and the Seven Coloured Earth Geopark.

Good to know

Easy physical levelStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePublic transport nearby

Operated by Gratitude Vacations

Is this one for you?This is a private tour with one guide and one vehicle, so the pace and stops are yours to shape—ideal if you want to linger at a waterfall or move quickly through a viewpoint without waiting for a group. The certified guide handles the route and timing, which means you spend eight hours seeing the south coast without navigating or deciding what comes next.