Car hire at Mauritius Airport (MRU) from $31/day

Many listings also offer hotel delivery elsewhere on the island. Compare the full price and hand-over location for your dates.

Have these ready for the hand-over:

• your driving licence and passport;
• the booking confirmation;
• the card or cash for any balance or deposit shown in your offer (89% of cars here need no deposit).

Walk round the car with the representative, photograph each side and the fuel gauge, and check the air conditioning. Give your flight number when you book so the supplier can follow a delay, and check the offer conditions if you land late at night.

The airport name on an offer tells you the collection location, not the exact place to stand after customs. Before travelling, save the supplier's contact details and meeting instructions with your confirmation. If you cannot find the representative, contact that supplier rather than heading to an unrelated rental desk. A flight number helps identify your arrival, but check the delay arrangements too: do not treat it as an unlimited promise to wait.

With bags beside you, it is easy to focus on getting away. Take a moment for the practical things: mirrors, lights, windscreen wipers and where to select the gears. Note the agreed fuel policy and the return contact while the representative is there. If you requested a child seat, confirm it is included in your booking and check it at hand-over before loading the family into the car.

• Mahébourg and Blue Bay: a short drive from the airport.
• Belle Mare and the east coast resorts: about an hour.
• Flic en Flac and the west coast: about 50 minutes to an hour; see car hire in Flic en Flac.
• Grand Baie and the north: about 1 hour 15 minutes; see car hire in Grand Baie.

Rush hour around Port Louis can add a lot to the drive north, so if you land in the late afternoon, expect it. Set the navigation before you leave the car park, keep left at roundabouts, and watch for buses stopping and people walking along the verges.

Start with the coast where you are staying when planning the airport drive. Grand Baie means a drive towards the north; Flic en Flac means reaching the west coast; Belle Mare is an east-coast destination. Enter the exact hotel or villa in your navigation, check the suggested route and make sure it ends at the right property. Do not use the northbound motorway description as directions for every resort on the island.

Mahébourg and Blue Bay are options close to the airport if you have chosen to stay in the south-east. There is no need to drive across Mauritius simply because you have collected a car at MRU. For a longer journey, decide whether to go straight to your accommodation or make a stop before leaving the car park. Keep the arrival day realistic: baggage collection, paperwork and loading the car come before the drive times listed here.

Airport pick-up may suit you if the current offers and full hand-over costs compare well with hotel delivery: there is no separate transfer to arrange. A popular combination is to have the car delivered the morning after you arrive and return it at the airport when you fly home. Either way, the offer conditions show any fee for returning the car at a different place. The Mauritius car hire page explains delivery areas and island-wide tips.

Compare rentals using the collection and return hours you need, not just the headline daily rate. Include any confirmed delivery, out-of-hours or different-location fee, and the transfer cost if you choose hotel delivery. A hotel hand-over can be convenient, but first ask whether the supplier serves that exact address and at the time you want. A villa booking needs the same confirmation, with a map pin and a clear place to meet.

For car choice, think of the longest luggage journey in the booking. A small car may suit a couple's outings once bags are at the hotel, but airport collection requires room for those bags as well. The boot details depend on the actual model. If you are travelling with more passengers, compare the seating and luggage space together: extra seats do not tell you how much room remains for suitcases.

The price table on this page compares small automatics with other classes. Compare the airport and hotel-delivery totals for your dates before booking.

Work backwards from your airline's check-in instructions. Keep the drive to MRU, any fuel stop and the supplier's inspection separate from the time you need inside the terminal. The return meeting point may differ from the collection point, so save it before your last day. If your final night is in Grand Baie or Flic en Flac, use that address to plan the return route rather than assuming the outward drive will take exactly the same time.