James' in the UK

For my 30th birthday I decided to treat myself with a trip to Mauritius. When I was looking for somewhere to go I was feeling pretty stressed from work and I had never been on a holiday where I was just going to sit on the beach or around the pool and not much else, and I thought Mauritius might be the place to do it.

I looked at different resorts and settled on the Heritage Golf and Spa. It was on the south coast of the island which meant it had a higher risk of wind but the resort itself got fabulous reviews. So I convinced Adrian to take a few days off and soon enough we were 'enjoying' the 12 hour flight.

I had left for the airport straight from work so I found myself feeling hot and looking a little bit stupid when we reached the hot humid air in Mauritius and the wall to wall holiday clothes, but soon we were on the bus and making the 50 minute trip to the resort.

As soon as we pulled up to the resort entrance we were impressed. The entrance was a tropical garden with ponds, lush greenery and a boardwalk to reception. We were greeted by some cold flannels and a drummer!

Onto reception which was just as impressive, with a view over the main pool and out to the sea. We got our check in sorted out then onto a tour of the resort. All the common buildings were open with very few solid walls, and they were all set around a series off pools. This resort was soooooo beautiful, it was just amazing. The ocean was beautiful and was a wonderful backdrop to the bars and infinity pools. It was just so wonderful, I couldn't quite believe I was somewhere so breath taking.

The tour concluded in our room which was amazing like everything else. It had a huge bathroom, walk in robe, a lovely big bed and a balcony which looked over one of the pools and the ocean. The balcony had a day bed which was perfect for sitting on, reading and enjoying the view. You could also check out the sunlounges around the pool and head down when you knew one was free.

As soon as our bags had arrived we got changed into our bathers and hit the pool and then some sun lounges. Next thing on my agenda was heading to the spa. Apparently we had to have a consultation before any treatments so we booked our consultation for the next morning.

The next few days were filled with swimming, sunbathing and reading by the pool, broken up by spa treatments and drinking cocktails in the bar. Other than getting dressed in the evening for dinner, I lived in either bathers or my spa robe and slippers.

The spa was georgeous - all lush tropical gardens and beautiful pools. Some of the treatment cabins had little courtyard type areas with cool fountains and greenery. The jacuzzi looked like an amazing water feature and was really nice. We originally booked 4 treatments - a massage each and I also got a body scrub and a facial, but on the last day I managed to sqeeze another massage in. Our massages were done in the same room on side by side massage tables which was nice, although Adrian didn't like it when I laughed at his paper undies. We then got to chill out on the cute day beds for awhile then spend some time in the Jacuzzi.

Adrian managed to fit in a game of golf while I was enjoying some spa time, and we also got to go snorkelling over a reef and also to do some kayaking.

The breakfasts at the resort were an experience - there were people on hand cutting fresh fruit, squeezing orange juice, cooking pancakes and whipping up omelets or scrambled eggs. Then there were the usual breakfast items like toast, cereal, pastries and hot breakfast foods. We stuffed oursellves silly most days we were there, but one morning we sacrificed the buffet selection and got room service served on the balcony. We spent ages out on the balcony in our robes, eating breakfast and feeding the birds our leftovers. The birds were obviously used to this because they would fly onto the table and stick their beaks into the pastries wrapped in a napkin and made a b-line for a crossant.

Most evening there was also a buffet for dinner, although one night we went to Infinity Blue, the swish seafood restaurant which was pretty cool and yummy.

All to soon it was time to pack up all our summer clothes and catch the plane back to London feeling much more relaxed and sun kissed than when we left. It was an amazing way to spend my 30th and just what I needed.

The resort from the beach

The view from our balcony

Adrian in the pool

Breakfast

Food of choice in Mauritius: Breakfast Buffet and fresh Mauritian seafood