Home / Experience Mauritius / Historical & Cultural Sites / Notre Dame Auxiliatrice
The red-roofed chapel at Cap Malheureux, on the northernmost tip of Mauritius — a small working church a few metres from the lagoon, with Coin de Mire and the northern islets filling the view behind it.
Cap Malheureux means unfortunate cape, a name earned by the ships wrecked on this exposed northern point over the centuries; it is also where British forces landed in 1810 in the campaign that took the island from the French. The chapel was built in 1938 and dedicated to Our Lady Help of Christians. Its bright red corrugated roof against the white walls, the lagoon and the mountains of the north has made it one of the island’s most recognisable images — but it remains a small parish church serving a fishing village, not a monument.
Inside, the scale is modest and the detail is what holds attention: fine local woodwork, and a holy-water font made from a giant clam shell. Step outside and the view carries north across the water to Coin de Mire — Gunner’s Quoin — with Flat Island and Round Island beyond it on clear days. The grass behind the church runs down to the shore and is a favourite spot for wedding and honeymoon photographs, so you will often find couples here at golden hour. Visitors are welcome to look inside outside service times; Sunday morning mass draws a mix of parishioners and travellers, and quiet, covered clothing is the courtesy expected.
Grounds open daily during daylight hours
Church open outside service times
Sunday mass on the morning — check locally
Something to cover shoulders and knees if you plan to go inside, and a camera — the light is best early, before the sun moves behind the building.
Level ground with a step at the entrance, and roadside parking on the coast road, which fills quickly at weekends. This is a working parish church, so avoid wandering in during a service.
The wedge-shaped islet filling the view from the churchyard — a nature reserve and a landmark on boat trips out of the north coast.
Ten minutes south: the north’s busiest bay, with boat trips, restaurants and the island’s liveliest evenings.
A few steps from the church: a quiet strip of sand where the fishing boats pull up, and the classic angle for photographing the red roof.
Notre Dame Auxiliatrice,
Royal Road, Cap Malheureux,
Rivière du Rempart District, Mauritius
~10 min from Grand Baie
~50 min from Port Louis
~1 hr 20 min from the airport
On the coast road at the northern tip of the island, ten minutes beyond Grand Baie, with roadside parking directly outside.
In 1938. It is dedicated to Notre Dame Auxiliatrice — Our Lady Help of Christians — and stands a few metres from the lagoon at Cap Malheureux, the northernmost point of Mauritius.
The name means unfortunate cape, from the ships wrecked on this exposed northern point. It is also where British forces landed in 1810 during the campaign that took the island from the French.
Yes, outside service times. The interior is small and simple, with fine woodwork and a holy-water font made from a giant clam shell. Cover shoulders and knees, and keep quiet if a service is under way.
The lagoon and, straight out to sea, Coin de Mire (Gunner’s Quoin), with Flat Island and Round Island visible beyond on clear days.
Early morning, while the sun still lights the red roof and the white walls from the front. It is a popular spot for wedding and honeymoon photographs, so late afternoon is often busier.