Mauritius from an outsider’s perspective: Tea Time in Cool Climes

A wise person once said, “It can never be too late in the day for a cup of tea”. So for a “camelliaphile” (“tea lover” in layman’s terms) like me, visiting the Bois Chéri tea estate was definitely on the travel checklist. The factory offers a guided tour of the tea production and packaging process and if you arrive early enough, a live demonstration as well. Next to the factory lies the Tea Museum where you learn about the history of the Bois Chéri plantation dated around 1892 and the origins of the tea culture in Mauritius, and which also has on display some antique equipment and tea artifacts as exhibits.

At the end of the tour, visitors are also allowed to taste the different kinds of this famous Mauritian tea. As we drove down south towards Bois Chéri, I soon found myself surrounded by the refreshing greenery of the sprawling acres of tea plants. It was a wintry morning interspersed with light showers- the perfect weather to be sipping a hot cup of fine flavoured tea.

On arriving at the factory, we were led to the reception where an entrance fee had to be paid. Visitors can choose whether they want to just have a tour of the factory or visit the museum and then head to the restaurant for the tea tasting or a combination of them all. The fare varies accordingly and, although, we were a little late to see the live demonstration of the process, we opted for all three. The tour began with a quick look around the museum, which I felt required some attention to be paid to by the department of tourism. There was insufficient information provided about the exhibits and no one to consult regarding it.

After having looked at all that there was to see and read whatever little was written about the site’s history, we carried on with the tour of the rest of the factory this time with a guide. It was fascinating to learn about the “tea story” and the amount of time and labour it requires to produce those little tea bags that most of the world’s population need to start their day with. The Bois Chéri Company is a manufacturer of two kinds of tea- black and green. The black tea is produced in different flavours with the most popular being the vanilla flavoured tea while an assortment of herbal teas are imported from South Africa and packaged and sold here. 

At the end of the tour, we exited the factory, as more informed consumers and were eager to finally sample this prized commodity we had learnt so much about. The Bois Chéri Restaurant is some distance away from the factory, further within the estate in a charming quaint spot, where tourists can also choose to dine after the tea tasting experience. A couple of hours easily slipped by in admiring the plantation that the restaurant overlooked while sampling 13 different kinds of tea. The caramel and vanilla flavoured black teas were our personal favourites and we left the restaurant having bought some of it to enjoy back at home.

On our way back, we made a pit stop at the sacred site of Ganga Talao in Grand Bassin district that we had passed en route to Bois Chéri. With the afternoon sun shimmering over the pond encircled by several Hindu temples, we just had to stop to capture the serenity of this divine locale. Further on, we took a slight detour to head to the Gorges Viewpoint and Alexandra Falls near the Black River Gorges National Park. The gorgeous view of the waterfall and the deep green ravine made the whole trip worth it.

Tanushree Basuroy

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