LUX* Belle Mare is a magnificent transformation of the former Beau Rivage in Belle Mare, on the east coast of Mauritius. It is the first resort from the new brand conceived by LUX* CEO Paul Jones, long-time COO of One&Only, with the help of South Africa-based consultant Piers Schmidt (who, not coincidentally, also ‘made’ the One&Only brand look). This 174-room resort is grown-up fun. No more front desk – it has been converted to a coffee corner and the back office behind it is now a real working coffee roaster (a Giesen coffee machine blends and roasts 45 percent Guatemalan, 45 percent Brazilian and 10 percent Ethiopian). The aroma is magnificent. Cult London-based designer Kelly Hoppen has redone rooms to be almost Nantucket-like – white with natural linens and, say, a display of seven real top hats above your dining-for-two table. Room 1212, a 1,800 sq ft Beach Suite, comes with a deep plunge pool and outdoor shower, and a library of covetable Taschen books, plus Hoppen’s own book, ‘Creating a home for the way you live’. Honestly healthy is chef Vikram’s food philosophy, and try Stephen Price’s ‘Functional Movement System’ workout. GM is Parisian 
Pascal Bertrand.www.luxislandresorts.com

Le Touessrok, in Trou d’Eau on the east coast, was built as a family home in 1978 and named after an island off Brittany, Tu es Roc. It has dispensed with its One&Only affiliation and is now an independent hotel, part of Leading Hotels of the World. There is actually little noticeable change, although Vineet Bhatia’s former restaurant is replaced by Safran, with Bangalore-born Ramesh Bundi at the stove. The spa is still Givenchy, though with Bastien Gonzalez’s footcare. Villa 500, at the farthest extent of what is now a 168-room property, is great for a family. Its 4,300 sq ft total space gives you three bedrooms and a 320 sq ft private pool above what is effectively your own private beach. For erudition, your bookshelf includes Homer’s Iliad – fortunately in English. Golfers go for the 18-hole Bernhard Langer on Ile aux Cerfs, reached by a five-minute boat shuttle, and everyone adores Crusoe’s Restaurant on the otherwise deserted Ilot Mangénie. I loved my cycling trip around local villages escorted by a butler. Hotel GM is Dutch-German former chef, Sjefke Jansen. www.letouessrok.com

Shanti Maurice, a Nira Resort, on the southwest of the island, near St Felix, started life as Shanti Ananda. Now one of three Nira hotels, it too is a member of Leading Hotels. Stay here for unspoiled local scenery, horse riding along the beach, and such creative enticements as adult finger-painting. Explore the entire 36 acres, designed by Bill Bensley, on one of the hotel’s bicycles. Villa 216, about 700 sq ft, has, like the other two resorts, an outdoor shower – as well as a proper indoor bathroom – and your private pool here is 40 feet, which is fine for quick laps. You look out over a polo field-sized all-purpose lawn area and across to the beach, and its deliberately rustic Fish & Rhum Shack restaurant. The main restaurant offers proper, or diet, food (many guests come here to detox after hard partying elsewhere). The significant spa, with Ayurvedic, has 25 treatment rooms and a watsu pool, and if you must shop, there are Liz Hurley swimsuits in the boutique. GM is Duarte Correla, from Madeira. www.shantimaurice.com