Salt of Palmar is a 59 room adults only resort on the east coast of Mauritius.  There are 12 garden view rooms, 14 seaview rooms, 28 bang on beach rooms, 2 pool plus rooms, and 3 best on beach rooms. We spent 2 nights in a seaview room in April 2023 and share details about our stay in this post to help you decide if you want to stay here.

1. Location: 18/20

Salt of Palmar is approximately a one-hour drive north of the airport. The hotel is located on a white sand beach and there are a few other resorts located around. The beach is a little rocky and it looks much better than it does in photos. It was possible to find sandy bottom spots to swim and you have access to walkable coastline, all the way up to Belle Mare Beach and even beyond.

There aren’t many things like other restaurants or stores within walking distance but you can easily get to things with a rental car or electric bike (the hotel rents them). Flacq is about 15 minutes away.

Overall, the east side of Mauritius is rural and quiet, it’s very relaxing and laid-back.

2. Bed & Sleep Quality: 20/20

The king bed is a hand-crafted Carpe Diem bed and the bed linens are made of 100% Egyptian cotton with sateen finish. While the bed was softer than what we are used to as we prefer firmer beds, it was perfect and we felt as though we were sleeping on clouds.

The property is very quiet and we did not hear the other guests, maintenance equipment from the hotel, or the air conditioning.

The room design has the bed facing out towards the balcony with a view of the ocean. Our room was also in a quieter part of the hotel away from the pool, restaurant, and bar.

Overall, we experienced high sleep quality here.

3. Room and room amenities: 18/20

The sea view rooms vary from 30.3 m2 to 37.3 m2. We thought our room was a little on the small side compared to the other places we stayed on this trip but it was very functional and with a relaxing minimalist design. We enjoyed the small radio in our room and the bed facing the ocean. 

The balcony was a little small but had a nice view and had two chairs and a small table.

A pour-over coffee maker, coffee grounds and tea were provided as well as filtered water (replenished daily during housekeeping). There were snacks available for purchase but no fridge or mini-bar.

As for other things, there were some books to read, a yoga mat and yoga block, and a radio that was really neat.  

We would avoid the garden rooms as some of them face the parking and the back of other buildings.

4. Bathroom: 9/10

The bathroom was well-designed and located at the back of the room. There was a separate toilet area, a large shower, and a large sink. They provide “No nasties” bath amenities (Shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, hand wash, body lotion) that smell very good.

The shower was well designed even if it didn’t have a curtain or door: no flooding or water mess. There was also good water pressure.

5. Hotel public areas and amenities: 9/10

For a small resort, Salt is well-designed and offers the amenities of larger resorts. There is one main pool, a Spa, a gym, and free water sports (kayak, stand-up paddle board, pedal boat, etc.). There is also a restaurant, bar, library, and bakery on site.

The beach has umbrellas and chairs, as well as bean bags. They also have filtered water machines to minimize the use of plastic bottles and you can refill your own bottle or use a glass.

They also offer a variety of free activities, like fitness classes, making bath salts, etc. There are also paid activities, like a boat trip to an island to snorkel and eat seafood, sea urchin diving/fishing, a cooking class, and a bike tour to the villages and market (not sure we would bike on the road in Mauritius though).

There is one restaurant on site: The Good Kitchen and it offers a-la-carte meals (menus available here). They have lots of healthy options as well as more indulgent ones. There are many vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options too. Of all the hotels we stayed at on this trip, we enjoyed the food here the most (especially the breakfast!). The food is not cheap but it is high quality and well prepared: you will pay $50-$150 per meal, depending what you order. The average cost of a cocktail is about 600 Mauritian Rupees / $10 Canadian and a Phoenix beer (local lager) is about 350 Rupees / $6 Canadian.

Overall, the public areas are visually appealing and pleasant.

6. Service and staff: 8/10

Overall, the staff are fantastic and we have no complaints. Housekeeping was impeccable, the food and beverage staff were friendly and went above and beyond, and the front desk staff were also helpful and friendly.

The hotel also has a shower room for early arrivals and departures after check-out which is a nice feature.

We do have complaints about some of the resort’s practices in general and offer tips about them:

– The app: the hotel encourages you to use an app to make reservations for activities and meals but it doesn’t work on newer devices like ours (we were not able to download the Salt app but had no issues with the LUX Le Morne app). Check the posters by the resort boutique and ask staff about activities.

– Reserve activities: even if the sign doesn’t say so, you need to reserve all activities as none are drop-in. We missed out on one as this was not communicated to us. Other activities are poorly advertised, like the boat trip to the island.

– Meals: We were on the bed and breakfast plan but most other guests were on full and half board. Consider the meal plan if you will be staying at the resort most of the time as the food is pricey and adds up fast. We also found the menu a little misleading at times and the pricing inconsistent, i.e. a ceviche is on the medium option for dinner and was smaller and more expensive than something we ordered on the small section. The meal times were also not communicated to us: we sat waiting for dinner from 18:30 to 19:00 and we had gotten quite hungry as there is more or less no food served between 15:00-19:00. The rooftop bar only served drinks, and no light snacks or tapas other than chips. If you are driving, bring some snacks.

We also appreciated the less strict dress code at the resort compared to others in Mauritius that go over the top. While no beachwear is allowed in restaurants and understandably so, shorts and sandals are allowed for lunch and dinner and this is much more reasonable than resorts that require men to wear trousers and closed-toe shoes.

7. Overall Value: 10/10

Overall, the prices charged by Salt for what is offered are very reasonable and good value. Food costs and options aside, we would stay here again for sure!  While the hotel is adults-only, it doesn’t have a party atmosphere like other resorts. Salt is a perfect place for a calm, relaxing, and healthy couple’s vacation. Salt is a very well-managed resort that offers many options just to relax and explore Mauritius. Salt should also be commended for initiatives to minimize waste and impacts on the natural environment.

OVERALL 92/100

Would weleavetoday to go back? Yes!