We had the most incredible time at the Maritim Resort and Spa Mauritius. We stayed for 15nights/16 days flying direct with BA from Gatwick (flights were great too and direct so an added bonus).

On arrival, the hotel had that immediate wow factor with a view through reception straight through to the Indian Ocean and Turtle Bay. The rooms were very clean, very spacious and well equipped and the bed was HUGE. A nice touch here is every room faces the sea! The hotel has just around 250 rooms so it feels intimate.

First full day, we went to the infinite pool and found it very easy to find a bed (though as the holiday went on, we found more and more people rising early to reserve beds again which was annoying). The Pool Staff straight away came around at 9.30am or so with bottles of water for everyone around the pool - a small touch of customer service that went a long way.

We spent the rest of the holiday on the beach. We found it pristine - the waters, crystal clear, and wonderfully warm. But you NEED sea shoes to not only protect your feet from shards of coral but to protect the coral reef too.

The beach staff were attentive and always friendly. They remembered your orders every day which impressed us and if you chose to walk up to the bar for a drink instead of putting in the Service flag at your bed, they would insist in bringing the drink over for you anyway.

There was not a single piece of seaweed (like your get in the Caribbean now). The beach was very very nice. The beach vendors are all licensed, do not bother you but are very friendly and more than happy to just talk to you and talk about their love for Mauritius!

The one issue we had on the beach was wasps. When we visited they had all come out of hibernation I think and were swarming every day in the beach parasols - when I looked closely I found most parasols were being used as nests by the wasps and they were swarming as they were building bigger nests.

The beach restaurant was our frequent hit for lunch. Most days I had the most amazing Swordfish, with fresh salads, soups, pizzas all available.

The most frustrating thing here is at the restaurants and bars, even though you pay All Inclusive - half the menu (sometimes for meals 90% of the menu) is still a chargeable additional fee. This should not happen. Thankfully we found didn't find ourselves paying extra for any chargeable meals and the staff helpfully would remind you not to pay extra too (they obviously disagree with this greedy policy!)

The buffet restaurant was amazing every night we visited there - always plenty of choice that rotated well. I don't think we had the same meal in there twice. The curry night was AMAZING - that is a must.

There was always plenty of fresh fruit available and lots of healthy options for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The fruit was always properly fresh - and carved up in front of you too.

The watersports were very good - we went on a kayak a few times in the sea but also up the River that runs up the side of the resort.

** We booked a Private Beach Gazebo 'Maritim Moments' meal for two.** The reason for this was because we got engaged that night so I had it all pre-planned for a dinner after I proposed... It was PERFECT. Very romantic, very private and the service was amazing and very friendly. We had the most incredible meal, and even got personalised menus that we kept to serve as a momento. It's worth it though it is expensive.**

We had a meal in Le Banyan - the Asian fusion restaurant. We had flies in our Jasmine Tea served at the start (and other couples stated they had the same on other days they visited). The food was lacking here and we chose to only visit the once and never return to that restaurant... It wasn't good.

The Ruins and the Waterfall within the hotel grounds are worth a visit - quite picturesque.

The animal farm. If you visit this hotel you MUST visit the animal farm. They have an equestrian centre there, some giant turtles but more importantly stray dogs that the hotel has taken on as pets. In Mauritius they have similar animal welfare laws to that in the UK so they have to take care of them. When we visited, having seen photos of people walking the dogs in promo material from the hotel, we were horrified. There were around 11 dogs and most looked quite ill with open injuries on their ears and sides of their legs.

It appears no-one really bothers to visit the hotels pet dogs so they get put out of the way a little. If you visit here you must visit the dogs to ensure they get looked after.

My fiancé raised concerns with the hotel quite strongly and they were pushed to meeting with her to discuss the plan for getting the dogs better, the medication they had been given etc etc and then pushed for her to remove the comment about it off their facebook page. The dogs were treated after this push so my fiancé edited the comment to reflect this but still holding them to account.

Sunsets - breathtaking. Make sure you see them most nights - I've never seen anything like it!

All in all, this place is pure paradise. Every member of staff was extremely helpful, friendly and courteous as well as attentive. The sunsets are to die for and the food is second to none for all the holidays we have gone on. It totally tramples all over the Caribbean and both my fiancé and I both stated we couldn't return to the Caribbean now because this was a whole other higher level.

We will DEFINITELY be returning in the near future.

We visited Maritim in September for our honeymoon and loved it! From the greeting and drink on arrival right up to the moment we left we couldn't have asked for more.

We had a standard room which was beautiful with a view over the sea. For a standard room it was still luxurious and very spacious.

The food was incredible; so much choice and we only experienced them running out of something on one or two occasions. We managed to eat in the 3 included restaurants (the beach bbq, seafood and Asian restaurants) twice each while we were there as we booked them all on the day we arrived.

The activities and facilities are great, it was really easy to book anything and there is a really good selection of free activities (paddle-boarding, canoeing, snorkelling).I would definitely recommend eating at The Chateau and booking a treatment at the Spa, they were both incredible.

Staff are incredibly friendly and can't do enough for you. They are a credit to the hotel.

Some people on here moan about the extras which aren't included on the all inclusive. We didn't find this a problem at all; there are plenty of options within the all inclusive and the charges to upgrade if you want to are really reasonable (I think it cost about £2 to upgrade a desert one night).

The only slight negatives if I'm being really picky were the evening entertainment (there was very little atmosphere and everyone had gone to bed by 11.30) and the dress code which stops men wearing shorts. It appears that jeans and hoodies were acceptable in the restaurant the evening, yet smart shorts were not.