Home / Experience Mauritius / Beaches / Blue Bay Beach
Fine white sand, deep shade and water so clear it looks lit from below — the public beach beside Mauritius’ most famous marine park, ten minutes from the airport.
Blue Bay earns its name. The lagoon here is unusually deep-toned and unusually transparent, protected by a reef that sits well offshore, and the colour holds all the way to the beach. The public stretch is a compact crescent of fine white sand with mature casuarinas giving proper shade almost to the waterline — which, combined with shallow, calm water, makes it one of the most family-friendly beaches in Mauritius. It is a real Mauritian beach rather than a resort strip: at weekends local families arrive early, set up under the trees and stay all day.
What lifts it above other south-east beaches is what lies just offshore. The Blue Bay Marine Park begins metres from the sand, so you can snorkel straight out from the beach over living coral, or take one of the glass-bottom boats that operate from the shore. Expect to be approached by boat operators and hawkers — it is part of the character here, and a polite no is enough. The beach faces the reef rather than the open ocean, so the water stays calm most of the year, and the proximity to the airport at Plaine Magnien makes it a common first or last stop for people flying in and out.
Calm, shallow and clear, with coral reachable directly from the beach. No lifeguards. Do not stand on or touch the coral, and watch for boat traffic in the marked channels.
Mask and snorkel, reef-safe sunscreen and water shoes. Cash if you plan to take a glass-bottom boat, and agree the price and duration before you board.
Free parking, toilets and casuarina shade at the public beach, with snack vans and boat operators on site. Expect hawkers; a friendly refusal is enough. Busiest at weekends and on public holidays.
The protected lagoon that starts metres offshore — 353 hectares of coral garden, best seen by snorkel or glass-bottom boat.
Half an hour west along the coast: a wave-cut lava arch over a sea cave, at the end of a rough cane-field track.
Just up the coast off Mahébourg: a restored coral islet where native forest, pink pigeons and giant tortoises have been brought back.
Blue Bay Public Beach,
Blue Bay, near Mahébourg,
Grand Port District, Mauritius
Around 10 minutes from the airport
Approximately 10–15 minutes from Mahébourg
Around 1 hour from Port Louis
Signposted from Mahébourg and from the airport road at Plaine Magnien; follow the coast road to Blue Bay village, where the public beach has its own free car park.
Yes. The Blue Bay Marine Park begins metres offshore, so you can swim out from the sand over living coral. Bring your own mask and snorkel, or hire gear from one of the operators on the beach.
Among the best on the island. The water is shallow, calm and clear, and mature casuarinas give real shade almost to the waterline. There are no lifeguards, so keep children in sight and away from the boat channels.
Around ten minutes by car, which makes it a popular first stop after landing or a last swim before a late flight. Mahébourg is ten to fifteen minutes away.
They are part of the scene here. Glass-bottom boat trips are genuinely worth doing, but agree the price and the duration before you board, and a polite refusal is enough if you would rather be left alone.
Weekends and public holidays, when Mauritian families arrive early and stay all day. Weekday mornings are calm, clear and much quieter.