Grand River South East (GRSE) gets lumped into generic “adventure sports” listicles that mention ziplines, suspension bridges and whitewater rapids. None of that exists on this stretch of Mauritius’s east coast. What actually exists is better suited to the place: a tidal river gorge, a reef-sheltered lagoon and reliable trade winds, which point toward paddling, kiting and fishing rather than anything you would find in a mountain adventure park. Kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding to the waterfall The signature adventure sport at GRSE is paddling your own kayak or SUP board upstream along the estuary, past mangrove edges and basalt cliffs, to the spray of the GRSE waterfall itself.

Every brochure for this stretch of Mauritius’s east coast points you toward the same postcard: a private pool villa at the Four Seasons Resort Mauritius at Anahita in Beau Champ, 64 acres of garden and an overwater spa pavilion. It is a genuinely excellent hotel. It is also not the most romantic night available at Grand River South East (GRSE), and it isn’t close. The better bet is forty minutes down the road in Deux Frères, at the Otentic Eco Tent Experience.