VANILLA NATURE PARK

Created in 1985, it is one of the most popular parks in Mauritius. It breeds and raises several thousand crocodiles(Crocodylus niloticus) imported from Madagascar, half of which are devoted to conservation projects and the preservation of the species. They come in all sizes: from babies just a few centimetres long in the nursery to the monsters in the breeding pens, some of which are over 5 metres long. The setting, too, is remarkable: a dense, well-preserved tropical forest criss-crossed by a myriad of paths. Here, in the shade of giant bamboos and exotic and indigenous trees, slumber a few freshwater ponds, fed by springs that never dry up, even in extreme drought. Bullfrogs, Japanese carp, eels, softshell turtles and Indian and common carp are raised here. The park is also home, in no particular order, to monkeys, brown pigs, bats, deer, mongooses, geckos... and some less local species - lemurs, caimans, iguanas...

Another curiosity: the turtle savannah, a vast enclosure reproducing the ancient vegetation of northern Mauritius and home to hundreds of Seychelles Aldabra turtles - babies and adults. This area is open to the general public, much to the delight of children who can get up close to the behemoths. The local star is Domino, a male over 100 years old weighing some 275 kg. The park also boasts one of the world's largest colonies of captive Madagascar star tortoises.

Meanwhile, the Vanille Nature Park boasts an impressive collection of insects (butterflies and beetles), the fruit of 30 years' hunting around the world, and its Fossil Museum displays a collection of ammonite fossils, sperm whale bones, whale bones and other marine animals, both present and extinct. The interpretation center Le Monde perdu du Dodo (The Lost World of the Dodo) focuses on the extinct fauna and flora of the Mascarene Islands, while also presenting the park's conservation projects.

For children (and adults too), there are opportunities to interact with several species of animal, for atypical souvenir photos with baby crocodiles, bats, iguanas... The park also has a mini-farm where you can enjoy pony rides and get up close to domestic animals.

On-site: large playground, Le Crocodile Affamé restaurant, souvenir store and high-end crocodile products by Elisa May.