The ‘secluded’ island that’s a new favourite among Love Islanders with snorkel trips, dolphin cruises and wild monkeys

“NAME, where else in the world can you do that?” Kai Fagan asks me with a grin.

The former “Love Island” contestant recounts his dreamy day on a yacht, snorkeling among tropical fish, feeding wild monkeys and watching dolphins gliding through the sea while the sun set in the background.

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This trip took place on the island Mauritiuswhich he has just returned from with his partner and fellow Love Islander Sanam Harrinanan.

It’s not the usual holiday destination for former participants, admit both Kai and Sanam.

“Mauritius is beautiful though – it’s a small remote island,” says Kai.

“I usually like to do a few activities when I go away but this was a relaxing resort holiday – exactly what Mauritius is made for.”

This was the couple’s first getaway together, celebrating Sanam’s birthday with Travel Republic and Le Meridien Ile Maurice on the north coast of the island is the perfect place to spend it, they tell me.

“Our hotel was stunning,” says Sanam. “Five restaurants, entertainment, everything.”

Although there was one clear favorite when it came to dining during the day, the couple told me: Le Méridien’s beach club bar.

“We went back about three times because [Kai] I loved it so much – it was the beef wagyu burger that he kept ordering,” Sanam laughs.

It’s not just the food that caught the couple’s eye.

“One night we had cocktails from a mixologist they had flown in from Italy, then we had wine tasting with a guy who had traveled the world – they had all these experts in one place,” says Kai.

For something a little stiffer?

Go for a rum tasting, the couple suggests, because the island grows rows of sugar cane plants that produce the dark, sweet alcohol.

Aside from a room with a beach view and sliding doors leading into a luxurious bathroom, for Kai and Sanam the standout feature of the resort was the long jetty that led from the hotel’s beach straight into the sea, where fishermen sat and went on their daily routine Fang waited.

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And if hospitality is an important factor when choosing your holiday destination, then Mauritius comes first.

“They were there for anything we needed,” says Sanam. “You went out for a drink and they told you to sit down and relax on vacation and make it for you.”

If you like getting out there, there’s paddling – it’s harder than you think, admits Kai, who’s had quite a few waves out at sea in his attempts.

There are also boat trips to even smaller islands off the coast of Mauritius.

Would you like to follow in Kai’s and Sanam’s footsteps?

You can book one 7 day short break in the same hotell with Travel Republic for £2,089 per person, half board, including flights from Gatwick on 5 October.

Prices correct at time of going to press.

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