Trou Aux Biches Beachcomber Golf Resort & Spa

Past a manned gate on the main coastal road and down a long drive, Trou aux Biches Beachcomber makes its first dramatic appearance. Its driveway wraps around a shallow, shimmering pool, where a triangular opening provides a peek-a-boo glimpse of the tropical grounds and turquoise ocean beyond the lobby. The lobby itself is a wide and open U-shaped space, with sloping thatch overhead and chichi clothing and jewelry boutiques lining the back wall. The reception area curls around yet another reflecting pool, this one dotted with little islands of palms and rushing toward the restaurants (all following the lobby's open-air and ocean-facing template), the main swimming pool, and the beach.

The vibe here is certainly high-end and romantic (exemplified by the fact there was a wedding held on-site every day in May 2017, when Oyster visited), but it stops short of feeling pretentious. Guests are a mix of families, couples, and groups, most on a week-long vacation from France, Germany, the U.K., Italy, and South Africa. Why Trou aux Biches calls itself a golf resort, however, is a bit of a mystery. The hotel offers no golf facilities and there is no course nearby.

Trou aux Biches is a lively beach town that is well-positioned for seeing some of the best sights in northern Mauritius. Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Garden and the red chapel at Cap Malheureux are both under a 20-minute drive away. The tourist center of Grand Baie, to the north, takes about 14 minutes to get to by car, while the capital city of Port Louis, to the south, takes about 25 minutes. The drive to Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam (SSR) International Airport is a little over an hour.

The 333 suites and villas at Trou aux Biches Beachcomber are some of the most sleek and contemporary in the area -- there's not a trace of cheesy beach decor to be seen. Instead, room decor skews subdued and almost business-like; the only ornamental concessions to the tropical setting are framed black-and-white photographs of local fishermen and fish sculptures hovering by the headboards.

The majority (306) of Beachcomber's rooms are suites, and there are five subdivisions within the suite category. Suites start with the 680-square-foot Junior Suites and go up to Beachfront Senior Suites, which encompass 1,750 square feet of total space. (The 44 Beachfront Suites and 22 Beachfront Senior Suites all have private pools.) Suites are housed in three-unit bungalows, with two suites on the ground floor, one on the top. There are six distinct clusters of bungalows, each one circling a garden with a small pool dedicated to that grouping. All suites have individually controlled air-conditioners and ceilings fans, as well as satellite flat-screen TVs and minibars with free coffee and tea (beachfront suites have Nespresso machines). There are separate rainfall showers, soaking tubs, and toilet vestibules in every bathroom, plus many suites have outdoor showers.

The remainder (27) of Beachcomber's rooms are the pool villas -- 10 two-bedroom units and 17 three-bedroom units. These are tucked into a rear corner of the property, away from the beach and the restaurants. Their position within the resort and their layout are geared toward privacy. Each villa has a walled-in terrace with a private pool, outdoor living room, barbecue grill, and dining area. All villas also have outdoor showers and bathtubs set under gazebos. Inside, they have full kitchens with Nespresso coffee machines and wine fridges. Villas come with daily butler service (24-hour service costs extra), and personal chefs are available on request. Occupants can choose to have their breakfast in their villa or at the restaurant. Fresh fruit is delivered to the villas daily, plus their kitchens are stocked with free and unlimited sodas and water.

Guests with young children can request things like high chairs, bottle sterilizers and warmers, baby tubs and changing tables, baby monitors, and pool fences. Room service is available from early in the morning until late at night. Laundry and dry-cleaning services are available for a fee. And all rooms have free Wi-Fi.

Trou aux Biches Beachcomber has one main pool; the others are the six gardens pools set among the clusters of bungalows, the large spa pool, and the various reflecting pools not meant for swimming. The main pool, right by the beach, is epically vast and beautifully designed. It has a curving shape similar to a kidney bean and several sections, depths, and tiers. It's dotted with palm-tree islands and bordered by an arching wood pool deck, where wood-framed cloth sun loungers and canvas umbrellas are nicely spaced out.

The fitness center looks like it took a page from a ritzy health club, the kind with sky-high membership fees. It has three separate studios, each one dedicated to cardio, spinning, and aerobics and yoga (private and group classes are available). There are free steam rooms in the mens' and women's locker rooms. In addition, guests have free use of six floodlit tennis courts (racquets are free to borrow but tennis balls must be purchased); there are also ping-pong tables, bocce ball, and beach volley courts around the gym. Bike rentals and tennis lessons cost extra.

Beachcomber's kids' club is free for children ages 3 to 12. The facility has its own pool and restaurant, as well as a play space for activities like painting and collaging. Babysitting is available for a fee with advance notice, though the club does offer free babysitting for a few hours on weekday afternoons. Older kids between 13 and 17 can hit up the teens' club for snorkeling outings and tennis tournaments.

The hotel has a 24-hour business center and a conference room that can accommodate up to 80 people classroom-style, and up to 150 people theater-style. The air-conditioned event space has Wi-Fi, an LCD projector, and a Blu-ray player. Wi-Fi is free throughout.

In an area filled with lovely hotel beaches, Beachcomber's stands out for its length, width, and abundance of shade (courtesy of palm trees and palapa umbrellas). Its teal waters are as calm as a lake, thanks to an outer reef, and its white sand is actually pretty soft, for Mauritius standards. (Mauritian sand is generally pretty rough and coral-y.) At the boathouse, guests can borrow water-sports equipment for exploring the lagoon. Glass-bottom boats, pedal boats, Hobie cats, sail boats, kayaks, stand-up paddleboards, and snorkel gear are all free. Water-skiing and windsurfing are free, and scuba-diving, catamaran outings, and deep-sea fishing (through a third-party operator) cost extra.

Trou aux Biches Beachcomber features six total restaurants. The main restaurant is L'Oasis, a buffet near reception and overlooking the pool and ocean. L'Oasis serves breakfast, lunch, and themed dinner buffets daily (Mauritian buffet once a week), plus afternoon pancakes. Its bar opens right after breakfast service and stays open until early in the morning. Down the beach, away from the lobby, pool, and main restaurant area, is Beachcomber's second buffet restaurant, La Caravelle. La Caravelle -- which is closer to the waves than L'Oasis -- serves buffet breakfast, buffet or a la carte lunch, and a la carte dinner six nights a week by reservation only. Breakfast at La Caravelle is American, while lunch and dinner are Mediterranean. La Caravelle's bar is open from mid-morning until late at night. Mauritian musicians perform most nights at L'Oasis and La Caravelle.

Back near L'Oasis, close to the boathouse, is Le Deck, a seafood restaurant with a la carte lunch and dinner. Dinners at Le Deck require reservations. La Caravelle and Le Deck are both by the beach, not set back from it, like L'Oasis. Blue Ginger, Mahiya, and Il Corallo are Thai, Indian, and Italian restaurants, respectively. All three are open six nights a week for dinner; reservations are required. Blue Ginger and Mahiya are close to reception (set back from the beach), while Il Corallo, adjacent to La Caravelle, is closer to the beach. Il Corallo has an antipasti buffet, and a la carte entrees and dessert. The Indian and Thai restaurants serve family-style dishes (some items, like lobster, cost a supplemental fee), and their menus change every three nights.

Most guests are on the half-board plan. (There is no full all-inclusive plan.) Dress code is casual, but men must wear pants and close-toed shoes to dinner.

Like the villas, Beachcomber's spa is hidden away in the rear of the resort, far from the restaurants, bars, and beach. Spa Beachcomber is one of the largest spa facilities on the island, with 17 treatment rooms, two saunas and two steam rooms (spa guests get free access to both), a sizable pool, and a hair and nail salon. Most of the treatment areas are set in open-air, thatch-roof huts around the pool, but four are indoors (i.e. air-conditioned). Six of the 17 rooms are double capacity and two are specifically dedicated to Thai/shiatsu massages, with large floor beds. There are also two Vichy shower rooms and one balneotherapy (bathing therapy) room. The service menu is proportionate to Spa Beachcomber's size; its full menu includes massages, facials, water rituals (like massages under a light mist), and body wraps. All spa services use Clarins products, and kids' treatments are available on request for guests at least 8 years old.