One of my dream trips had always been to island hop from Madagascar to the Seychelles to Mauritius. I pretty much made a pact with myself that whenever I had the opportunity to go to any of those countries, I would pair the three of them together since the journey was so far. So, when I signed up to road trip Madagascar for 15 days, I knew I wanted to hop over to the Seychelles and Mauritius afterward to decompress from what I could only imagine would be a wild adventure.

The island nation I thought I'd love didn't quite hit home

I was looking the most forward to the Seychelles, but surprisingly, I found myself slightly bored there. Don't get me wrong; the Seychelles has some of the best beaches I've ever seen on the planet, especially Petite Anse, the beach at Four Seasons Resort Seychelles. But overall, as an adventure-fueled traveler, the Seychelles took paradise on earth a hair too far for me. I know, what a problem to have.

Mauritius is the sweet spot between relaxing and adventure

When I got to Mauritius, however, I had the best of both worlds: adventure beyond belief with world-class snorkeling and diving, the "seven-colored earth," interesting food and wine like wine made from lychee and a stinky fruit (noni) that could give durian a run for its money, and an underwater waterfall. Plus, the beach onsite of my hotel. Anantara Iko Mauritius Resort & Villas, had a beach parallel to the unblemished ones of the Seychelles.

Bottom Line

If you're looking for a place to relax along sandy shores, with the option to see some wonders like an underwater waterfall or a geological formation that's naturally seven different colors, all without breaking the bank, Mauritius needs to be added to your radar.