South Africa from Durban

When you alight from your MSC cruise in Durban ? South Africa?s third-largest city and the continent?s largest port ? you will be captured by its tropical colours and holidaying people.A shore excursion on your MSC South Africa cruise can be the opportunity to discover Durban?s second-largest ethnic group, its Indian population, whose mosques, bazaars and temples are juxtaposed with the Victorian buildings of the colonial centre.The pulsing warren of bazaars, alleyways and mosques that makes up the Indian area around Dr Yusuf Dadoo Street is ripe for exploration, and there are some excellent restaurants around Durban?s photogenic harbour area. Durban?s city centre grew around the arrival point of the first white settlers, and the remains of the historical heart are concentrated around Francis Farewell Square.Durban?s expansive beachfront on the eastern edge of the centre has one of the city?s busiest concentrations of restaurants, a surfeit of tacky family entertainment. Durban?s beachfront, a high-energy holiday strip just east of the centre, is South Africa?s most developed seaside. MSC South Africa cruises also offer excursions to the 6km-stretch of the beach from the Umgeni River in the north to the Point in the south, traditionally called the Golden Mile.The big draw of Addington Beach ? and the only really worthwhile attraction along the beachfront ? is instead uShaka Marine World. This impressive water adventure wonderland is a tropical African theme park, complete with palm trees, fake rock formations and thatched bomas. The most appealing section is uShaka Sea World, designed in and around a superb mock-up of a wrecked 1920s cargo ship. The complex also includes a dolphin stadium and a seal pool, where daily shows (three a day) feature these creatures, as well as uShaka Wet ?n Wild, a series of pools and water slides, including The Drop Zone, the highest water slide in Africa.

Nosy Be is an island off Madagascar?s northwestern coast. In the southeast, the forests of Lokobe Reserve shelter chameleons, geckos and frogs. The capital, known as Hell-Ville, has French colonial buildings and a covered market. Lemuria Land is home to a variety of lemurs, plus reptiles. Also in the park is a 19th-century distillery still used to extract essential oils from the native ylang-ylang tree.

A holiday in the Mauritius with an MSC cruise means disembarking at Port Louis. It is the capital of this island nation off the cost of Madagascar, which together with its twin R�union, represents a must-see stop for an MSC cruise to Southern Africa.Port Louis has taken its role as the country?s first city seriously and has expanded over time with new streets, buildings and a beautiful promenade. After our cruise ship has docked, you will be able to take a stroll along the Caudan Waterfront, lined with some old cannons and numerous shops. Traces of Port Luis?s colonial past can be seen on Place D?Armes, where the statue of Bertrand Fran�ois Mah�, the count of La Bourdonnais and a former governor of the island, observes passers-by surrounded by palm trees.A short distance away, stands the Government House. Dating from 1738, it is shaped like a horseshoe and protected by an iron fence guarded by the statue of a grave-looking Queen Victoria. In the same neighbourhood, there are also the central market and the city park, the Jardins de la Compagnie. However, it is a former property of the Count de La Bourdonnais to house an even more spectacular garden, the Pamplemousses Botanical Garden.An MSC excursion to this garden should not be missed for any reason on earth. This garden is almost three hundred years old. Over the centuries, it has been lovingly tended by expert gardeners, who have slowly enriched it with plant species from three different continents, Asia, Africa and Oceania. If you prefer the sea to vegetation, another highly recommended MSC excursion will allow you to pass a day on the other side of Mauritius, on the splendid beaches of Ile aux Cerfs (so called because of the deer imported here for hunting).

A holiday in the Mauritius with an MSC cruise means disembarking at Port Louis. It is the capital of this island nation off the cost of Madagascar, which together with its twin R�union, represents a must-see stop for an MSC cruise to Southern Africa.Port Louis has taken its role as the country?s first city seriously and has expanded over time with new streets, buildings and a beautiful promenade. After our cruise ship has docked, you will be able to take a stroll along the Caudan Waterfront, lined with some old cannons and numerous shops. Traces of Port Luis?s colonial past can be seen on Place D?Armes, where the statue of Bertrand Fran�ois Mah�, the count of La Bourdonnais and a former governor of the island, observes passers-by surrounded by palm trees.A short distance away, stands the Government House. Dating from 1738, it is shaped like a horseshoe and protected by an iron fence guarded by the statue of a grave-looking Queen Victoria. In the same neighbourhood, there are also the central market and the city park, the Jardins de la Compagnie. However, it is a former property of the Count de La Bourdonnais to house an even more spectacular garden, the Pamplemousses Botanical Garden.An MSC excursion to this garden should not be missed for any reason on earth. This garden is almost three hundred years old. Over the centuries, it has been lovingly tended by expert gardeners, who have slowly enriched it with plant species from three different continents, Asia, Africa and Oceania. If you prefer the sea to vegetation, another highly recommended MSC excursion will allow you to pass a day on the other side of Mauritius, on the splendid beaches of Ile aux Cerfs (so called because of the deer imported here for hunting).

Cruise ships rarely visit the port of La Possession, on the splendid Punta des Galets. This makes it one of the most unique stops of an MSC cruise to Southern Africa. As soon as you disembark, you can head off on an excursion to the so-called Circus of Salazie, the remains of an enormous volcanic caldera located a few kilometres from La Possession.Instead of geysers of lava, extinguished centuries ago, you will find an explosion of life, where marvels of nature live side by side with small towns scattered throughout a lush forest. The view you will enjoy as you ascend along the windy road is indescribable. However, not all of the fire has gone out. In the Piton de la Fournaise, you can still admire two active volcano craters, the Dolomieu and the Bory, which filled with lava in 2007.During your holiday with MSC Cruises, another excursion offered by MSC will introduce you to Saint-Denis and its impressive examples of Creole architecture. Its houses, a product of the woodworking skills of the local boat builders going back to the 1800s, stand side by side with the bold architectural works of the 20th century.In Saint-Denis, the Central Post Office, which is reminiscent of some Algerian cities, and the unique building housing the Department of Agriculture and Forestry are worth a visit; both were designed by Jean Bossu, a student of Le Corbusier. Don?t miss out on the markets of Saint-Denis, where you will be able to find spices, vegetables, fruit, flowers, the famous smoked meat boucan� and a wide variety of local craftworks, such as vases, baskets and pestles for preparing the rougail, a condiment served with cari, a dish typical of the island.

When you alight from your MSC cruise in Durban ? South Africa?s third-largest city and the continent?s largest port ? you will be captured by its tropical colours and holidaying people.A shore excursion on your MSC South Africa cruise can be the opportunity to discover Durban?s second-largest ethnic group, its Indian population, whose mosques, bazaars and temples are juxtaposed with the Victorian buildings of the colonial centre.The pulsing warren of bazaars, alleyways and mosques that makes up the Indian area around Dr Yusuf Dadoo Street is ripe for exploration, and there are some excellent restaurants around Durban?s photogenic harbour area. Durban?s city centre grew around the arrival point of the first white settlers, and the remains of the historical heart are concentrated around Francis Farewell Square.Durban?s expansive beachfront on the eastern edge of the centre has one of the city?s busiest concentrations of restaurants, a surfeit of tacky family entertainment. Durban?s beachfront, a high-energy holiday strip just east of the centre, is South Africa?s most developed seaside. MSC South Africa cruises also offer excursions to the 6km-stretch of the beach from the Umgeni River in the north to the Point in the south, traditionally called the Golden Mile.The big draw of Addington Beach ? and the only really worthwhile attraction along the beachfront ? is instead uShaka Marine World. This impressive water adventure wonderland is a tropical African theme park, complete with palm trees, fake rock formations and thatched bomas. The most appealing section is uShaka Sea World, designed in and around a superb mock-up of a wrecked 1920s cargo ship. The complex also includes a dolphin stadium and a seal pool, where daily shows (three a day) feature these creatures, as well as uShaka Wet ?n Wild, a series of pools and water slides, including The Drop Zone, the highest water slide in Africa.