Home / Experience Mauritius / Beaches / Pomponette Beach
A long, casuarina-shaded stretch on the south coast between Riambel and Bel Ombre — wide, quiet, and one of the beaches Mauritians fought to keep public.
Pomponette runs along the south coast between Riambel and Bel Ombre, a wide belt of pale sand behind a shallow lagoon, with mature filao trees giving deep shade well back from the water. It is one of the longest undeveloped stretches left on this coast, and it has stayed that way partly because Mauritians pushed hard to keep it open — proposals to build on the site drew sustained public opposition, and the beach’s status as a public space is something locals take seriously.
Practically, that means a beach with room and shade and almost no infrastructure. The lagoon is shallow and generally calm, though the reef along this coast is patchy and the water is less reliably protected than at Bel Ombre a few minutes west, so it suits wading and paddling more than serious swimming. At weekends families arrive with picnics and barbecues and settle in under the trees for the day; on a weekday morning you may share the whole length of it with a few fishermen. Bring everything you need — there are no shops, kiosks or facilities here.
Shallow and usually calm, but the reef is patchy along this coast so protection is less reliable than at Bel Ombre. No lifeguards — wading and paddling rather than long swims.
Everything: water, food, sunscreen and a bag for your rubbish. There are no shops or vendors on this stretch.
Informal roadside parking and deep filao shade, with no toilets, showers or kiosks. Quiet on weekdays, busy with local families and barbecues at weekends.
Inland at Bel Ombre: 1,300 hectares of forest and river valley, on guided 4×4 safaris, quad trails or a walking trek.
A few minutes east at Riambel: a family-run cultural house with a heritage museum, spice gardens and traditional tastings.
An 1819 estate with vanilla houses, an artisanal rum distillery and a set Mauritian lunch in the old house.
Pomponette public beach,
Coastal road, Pomponette,
Savanne District, Mauritius
Around 10 minutes from Bel Ombre
Approximately 45 minutes from the airport
Around 1 hour from Port Louis
On the south coast road between Riambel and Bel Ombre, with informal parking on the verge under the filao trees and unmarked access through the treeline.
Yes, and emphatically so. Proposals to develop the site drew sustained public opposition, and its status as an open public beach is something people locally take seriously. Access is free, with parking on the verge.
The lagoon is shallow and usually calm, but the reef along this coast is patchy, so protection is less reliable than at Bel Ombre a few minutes west. There are no lifeguards — it suits wading and paddling rather than long swims.
None. Roadside parking and deep filao shade, and nothing else — no toilets, showers, kiosks or vendors. Bring what you need and take your rubbish home.
Weekends and public holidays, when Mauritian families arrive with picnics and barbecues and settle under the trees for the day. On a weekday morning it is often nearly empty.
Bel Ombre, ten minutes west, where a length of surviving reef keeps the lagoon reliably calm and there is parking, shade and easier access.