Home / Experience Mauritius / Marine Protected Areas / Blue Bay Marine Park
353 hectares of protected lagoon off the south-east coast — a Ramsar-listed coral garden with a thousand-year-old brain coral, reachable with nothing more than a mask.
Blue Bay was proclaimed a national park in October 1997 and given full Marine Park status in June 2000 under the Fisheries and Marine Resources Act, and in January 2008 it became a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance. The park covers 353 hectares, running from Pointe Corps de Garde south to Pointe Vacoas and extending about a kilometre beyond the reef crest, with depths from roughly one metre in the lagoon to well over a hundred outside it.
What is protected is a coral garden of unusual quality. Surveys have recorded at least 38 coral species from 28 genera alongside some 72 species of fish, mangroves, seagrass meadows and macro-algae, and the lagoon serves as a nursery for juvenile species and a feeding ground for green turtles. The headline resident is an enormous brain coral several metres across, estimated to be around a thousand years old. Because the shallows begin metres from Blue Bay public beach, this is one of very few places in Mauritius where world-class coral is reachable by swimming out from the sand rather than boarding a boat — though glass-bottom boats reach the better formations further out, and licensed operators run dives for certified divers. Mooring buoys mark zones for conservation, boat traffic and swimming; anchoring on coral, fishing and collecting anything are prohibited.
Coral starts metres from the beach in water one to five metres deep. Do not stand on, touch or collect coral, and take nothing from the park. Fishing and anchoring on coral are prohibited; stay clear of the marked boat channels.
Mask, snorkel and reef-safe sunscreen — or better, a rash vest instead of sunscreen. Water shoes, and cash if you are taking a boat.
Around fifteen operators hold permits to work inside the park, running glass-bottom boat trips of roughly 45 minutes to an hour from Blue Bay beach. Use a permitted operator, agree the price and duration before boarding, and note that diving is restricted to certified divers.
The public beach the park begins from — fine sand, deep casuarina shade, free parking and the launch point for every boat trip.
Ten minutes away: a long, undeveloped stretch of sand with none of the boats or crowds — the quiet counterpoint to Blue Bay.
The island’s other marine park, on the north-west coast — protected lagoon, coral and turtle habitat near Turtle Bay.
Blue Bay Marine Park,
off 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
Access is from Blue Bay public beach, signposted from Mahébourg and the airport road, with free parking. Snorkel out from the sand, or take a permitted glass-bottom boat from the shore.
353 hectares of lagoon and reef running from Pointe Corps de Garde to Pointe Vacoas and about a kilometre beyond the reef crest. Surveys have recorded at least 38 coral species and around 72 fish species, along with mangroves, seagrass meadows and green turtles.
It was proclaimed a national park in October 1997, granted Marine Park status in June 2000 under the Fisheries and Marine Resources Act, and designated a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in January 2008.
Yes — that is what makes Blue Bay unusual. The shallows begin metres from the public beach, in water roughly one to five metres deep, so you can swim out with a mask. Boats reach the larger formations further out.
The park’s best-known feature is an enormous brain coral several metres in diameter, widely estimated at around a thousand years old. Glass-bottom boat operators will take you over it, and it is visible from the surface in clear conditions.
Do not stand on, touch or collect coral, and take nothing from the water. Fishing and anchoring on coral are prohibited, mooring buoys mark the zones, and only permitted operators may run commercial trips. Diving is restricted to certified divers.