TL;DR
- 159,164 UK seats sit on sale every year on the London Gatwick to SSR non-stop.
- Shoulder season runs May to October… cooler in Mauritian terms but still warm by UK standards, and softer on price.
- Five non-stop weekly flights link London Gatwick to Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport (SSR).
- A ‘slow luxury’ positioning is pushing wellness, 15 golf courses, kitesurfing, diving and MICE.
- Air Mauritius and the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA) ran a UK roadshow in June 2026, with WTM London to follow this November.
- CCO Laurent Recoura says he wants to grow to daily non-stop at the earliest opportunity, with three more A350-900s on order, first one due December 2026.
What’s Happening at Air Mauritius
Here’s the bookable bit, sitting right at the front this week. 159,164 UK seats are on sale every year on the London Gatwick to Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport non-stop, across five flights a week, and the May to October shoulder window is where the softer pricing sits without writing the weather off. If you have clients who keep half-mentioning Mauritius and then never quite booking it, that’s the lever to pull this week.
The wider news is the supplier-side energy behind it. Air Mauritius and the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority spent part of June 2026 on a UK roadshow, telling British agents and British travellers that the destination is back on the front foot. Behind the scenes, Chief Commercial Officer Laurent Recoura has said openly that he wants to grow to daily non-stop at the earliest opportunity. No date attached, but the direction of travel is clear, and the current schedule already gives you plenty to sell from.
A Closer Look
The fleet behind all of this is worth a quick scan. Air Mauritius operates four A350-900s, two A330-900neos, two A330-200s and four ATR72s, with three additional A350-900s on order and the first one landing in December 2026. The new aircraft will be the ones gradually carrying more of the long-haul flying, which matters for product consistency on the Gatwick route.
The on-board picture is being upgraded too. Business class has expanded from 28 to 32 seats, giving a little more room for premium leisure clients and the corporate travellers Air Mauritius is courting through its MICE push. The wider positioning is being told under a ‘slow luxury’ banner, with a focus on wellness, sports tourism and longer, less hurried stays… which is a softer story than the usual beach-and-buffet shorthand Mauritius sometimes gets pinned with.
For Client Chats
This is the bit that’s most usable when a client says, “We’ve thought about Mauritius but…”. The island now has 15 golf courses, established kitesurfing and diving scenes, and a growing MICE offering, all of which sit neatly under the slow luxury frame. The #WeareMauritius global campaign, alongside the lighter Dodo social media campaign, is doing the brand-awareness heavy lifting, and there’s a regenerative tourism thread running through the destination’s wider story.
The other helpful piece is the seasons. Peak runs November to April, when the weather is at its showiest, and shoulder season runs May to October, which is cooler in Mauritian terms but still warm by UK standards. For clients put off by peak pricing, that shoulder window gives you a softer-priced alternative without writing the weather off… handy when you’re trying to widen someone’s idea of when Mauritius “works”.
The Helpful Bit
The action for this week is small and concrete. Pull up your client list and pick out the two or three names who’ve mentioned Mauritius in the last six months without committing, and send them a soft nudge built around the shoulder-season window… cooler in Mauritian terms, softer on price, and on the non-stop Gatwick service so the travel day stays simple. That’s a Friday-shaped job. Further out, Air Mauritius will be at WTM London this November, so if you’d like to put a face to the airline or have a longer chat about the product, book the meeting now while the diary is still open.
