November or March? Choosing a departure

The question we are asked most often is not which course is best. It is when to go. The answer depends on what you are willing to trade away.

Two seasons, not four

Mauritius really has two seasons. November to April is warmer and wetter. May to November is drier and a few degrees cooler. Because the island is in the southern hemisphere it runs opposite to home: January is midsummer.

In figures, as we give them on the home page: December–February 26–33 °C, March–May 24–30 °C, June–August 18–24 °C, September–November 20–27 °C.

Mars

March sits at the end of the warm season. It is still hot and humid, and it rains more — but tropical rain is not northern rain. It arrives as short, heavy showers and passes. The golf carries on between them, and anyone who has never played in it is surprised how little time it actually costs.

The drawback is the humidity. A midday round in March is physically demanding in a way a round in September is not. It tells from the 15th onwards, and it tells most on whoever has not drunk enough.

March also falls inside the cyclone season, which peaks between January and March. We write about that risk in a piece of its own — the short version is that direct hits are uncommon, roughly every three to five years, but they do happen.

November

November is the other end of the season. Drier, cooler, and statistically — with April — the month with the lowest weather risk. The greens are firm, the afternoon wind is more predictable, and a midday round is perfectly possible without becoming an ordeal.

The drawback is that the sea is cooler, and anyone travelling to lie by the pool between rounds gets a slightly less tropical week. That is a real objection if the party includes people who are not playing.

What we would choose

For a party travelling for the golf: November. Lowest weather risk, most predictable conditions, and the best combination of playability and comfort. April is the next best choice for the same reasons.

For a party where half the group does not play: March. A warmer sea, longer evenings and a more distinctly tropical week — against a higher weather risk and a few hours lost to showers.

There is no bad choice. But there is a choice that suits the party better than the other, and that question is worth asking before dates are booked.