This month Mauritius celebrated a 300-year-old tradition of dancing on beaches with an international DJ festival on a lagoon.

Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, African and Creole slaves would gather on beaches, light fires, play music, sing and dance on Saturday nights.

An ancient dance tradition joined contemporary dance traditions on the weekend of the 4 – 6 April. Ten international and 50 local dance club DJs performed live on a stage set in the middle of the tropical lagoon at Belle Mare Plage. Brilliant floodlights lit the beach and the azure lagoon waters.

32 hours of house music and dancing began at 8.30pm on 4 April and did not stop until sunrise on 6 April.

It’s hard to imagine a better setting for a dance festival anywhere in the world. Belle Mare Plage means Beautiful Mother Beach. The aquamarine lagoon waters are protected by a 500 metre wide barrier reef just one to two metres deep. There was dancing on the palm-lined beaches, in the water and on the water throughout the festival.

International DJs from UK, Holland, France, Amsterdam and Germany included: ATB, DaHool, Jaydee, DJ Assad, Bodyrox, DJ Kayper, Nathan Coles, Funkagenda, Daley Padley and Alex Goss. They accompanied the best DJs in Mauritius: David Jay, Bernard Desmarais, Kevin O’Keefe, Patrice d’Avrincourt, Henry Florent, David Rosalie, Avneesh Bacha, Francois Li and many more.

Mauritius club DJs are influenced by Mauritius’ own popular music, Sega music, which derives from rhythms brought to Mauritius by slaves and labourers during the Dutch French and English rules.

This is the fourth “House Rendez-vous” Festival but the first beach festival to feature international DJs and the first to float on water!

Belle Mare Plage is on the east coast of Mauritius. There are many resorts nearby including the five-star, Belle Plage Mare Resort, Le Coco Beach, Club Valtur, Emeraude Beach Hotel, Beau Rivage and others...There are 100 year old golf courses and a huge range of water activities at resorts. Sailing, diving, surfing, game fishing, water skiing and kite boarding.

And of course, dancing.

Festival information:

lahouserendez-vous.com

greendotevents.com

Mauritius information: www.tourism-mauritius.mu

MTPA agents: The Wren Partnership in Melbourne 03 9685 2600. Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Air Mauritius operates the only direct flights from Australia, from Perth, Sydney and Melbourne, with connectivity via Virgin Airlines.  Call 1300 658 572 www.airmauritius.com

For bookings and latest package deals contact your local travel agent

Further information

Greg Wren, The Wren Partnership, 0438 88 55 33