In Mauritius, one can indulge in shopping from shopping centres, duty free shops, streets, markets and hawkers on the beach. In this island country, one can purchase textile products. Also available are custom made wears, African drums, sculptures, arts and handmade products in Mauritius.
Tourists can also purchase cashmere, pashmina, colourful baskets and rack of spices in the country. On the other hand, a wide array of duty free items are also available that include watches, clocks, cellular phones, paintings, engravings, sunglasses, binoculars, photographic and cinematographic equipment.
Mauritius is also famous for Anthurium, which is a heart shaped flower and can last up to 7 to 10 days in water. These are available in different colours varying from satin white to bright orange, morning dew pink to frosted pink and crimson red.
Jewellery is also one of the most popular items available in this island country. The jewellery tradition of the country comes from Indian and Arabian immigrants. Some of the other jewelled items available in the country include diamonds and high-quality watches.
Tourists can shop at arcades, shopping centres, duty free shops, jewellery shops and art and craft boutiques. Some of the places in the island, where one can find shopping centres and arcades are Curepipe, Phoenix, Quatre Bornes, Pamplemousses and Grand Bay.
In addition, Black River Tamarin, Rose Hill, Port Louis, Floréal and Le Morne are some of the other locations, where shopping centres and arcades are located. Jewellery shops are located at Floréal, Port Louis and Vacoas.
Apart from markets and shopping centres, beach hawkers are also common in this island, which are present at most of the beaches like Belle Mare. Some of the items that one can purchase from these beach hawkers include paréos (sarongs), Ralph Lauren shirts, souvenir products, oysters, beach towels, pineapples and shells.
Most of the shops located in the country operate from Monday to Saturday from 9:30 am to 8 pm. Some shops are also open until 12 pm on Sundays and public holidays. Shops located in Rose-Hill, Curepipe and Quatre Bornes are closed on Thursday afternoons. Markets in the country are closed around 4 pm in the afternoon.
The VAT rate in the country is 15% and travellers can avail VAT refund. The Mauritius Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) has a counter at the international airport of for refund of duty and VAT levied on the purchase made by tourists.
The refund is available in all the major currencies, namely Euro, US Dollars, British Pounds and South African Rand. However, only those purchases are entitled for refunds, which are purchased from the shops authorised by Mauritius Revenue Authority. Travellers need to carry the purchased goods as hand luggage, unless they are required to be checked-in by the airline or are oversized.
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