Eureka House (Maison Eureka)

Maison Eureka is the finest surviving example of a 19th-century Creole colonial mansion in Mauritius. Built around 1836 from local ebony and mahogany, the house is set in tropical gardens beside a stream, with small waterfalls and a wide veranda from which the family once supervised their sugar estate.

The interior is furnished with period antiques — four-poster beds, rocking chairs, china, silverware, and family portraits — giving a vivid picture of how the Franco-Mauritian planter class lived during the island's sugar boom. Guided tours are available. A Creole lunch is served on the veranda, making this one of the more memorable meals on the island: curries, chutneys, rougaille, fresh tropical fruit. It is worth planning a visit to include lunch.

things to do museum sight
A story
The house was named Eureka by its original owner, Charles Martial Beaton, who reportedly exclaimed "Eureka!" — the Greek word for "I have found it" — when he won a contract to supply the colonial government with lamp oil. The house changed hands several times during the sugar boom and is now the best-preserved example of a Franco-Mauritian planter's residence on the island. With 109 doors and windows, it was designed to maximise cross-ventilation in the tropical heat.