Villa Soleil, Large new villa close to the lagoon

This was a brilliant property for our family group of five adults and a toddler. The house itself is great for relaxing with its clean spacious rooms, pool, and an open-walled 'room' facing the pool which can be enclosed with the expanding sliders to keep small children from wandering out. There is a small shared gym just across the private road. Security is good. The surroundings are residential, back two or three streets from the busier Coast Road. Thierry, the owner, Jeeten the manager, and Yogeeta the daily housekeeper were all friendly and really helpful. We were really pleased we selected this place.

My immediate impression when first approaching the villa was one of impressed. The surrounding area is clean, nice, and quiet. The villa is one of 6 similar style villas on a small gated road. When you drive through the automated gate my first thought was, this is nice. That impression continued into the villa. What I had in my head from the photos, was confirmed by what I seen in front of me……there was no feeling of disappointment. The downstairs area is open plan and spacious. The outside area, around the pool, is beautiful and it’s easy to chill out and relax. The covered outside area, with the large wooden table, was my favourite area to chill. I had breakfast there every morning. During the day it provided good shade from the sometimes very hot Mauritian winter sun (well, I am Irish ?), while still being able to feel connected to everyone around the pool. We spent many an evening/night around that table, having a few drinks and laughs. The property manager Jeeten, and the cleaner Yogita, were both very friendly and helpful…..with Jeeten checking in by phone or message regularly to make sure everything was ok. Yogita was also do ironing and cooking (for a small charge). The location is great, a few minutes walk from the sea with a couple of restaurants/bars and street food vendors…..definitely try the noodle bar and dholl puri/roti stall. Another 5 minutes takes you to the local supermarket, Chez Popo. Overall, the property was great for me and my family. We felt safe, secured, and relaxed. The neighbourhood felt safe and unthreatening. We had our 2 small grandchildren with us (as well as our 2 daughters and their husbands). We did have to make sure we kept an eye on the children around the pool….but that wasn’t a problem as you can see the pool from the interior of the house and of course from the outside seating areas. If there was any complaint I could make it would be about the lighting in the downstairs bedroom……it was very dim, and sometimes when looking for something at night, it could be difficult to see……maybe I’m just used to brighter lighting at home. This was a minor irritation….nothing major. Also, the toilet seats in the downstairs bedroom and front hall toilet, could do with being replaced…….again, not a problem, just an observation. To sum up…..beautiful property, beautiful location, ideal for families or groups.