Photo: ABDEL KHAN via Google
The verdict
- Best forTravellers who want a beautiful beach day for the cost of a picnic, with no resort markup and no priced day trip
- Top pickFlic en Flac for a long free public beach with snack vans, shade and a famous west coast sunset
- One thing to knowBy law every beach in Mauritius is public, so the sand never costs a thing. The spend is sunbeds, watersports and boat tours
Published 26 February 2026. Last reviewed 21 April 2026
Here is the good news for anyone watching the budget in Mauritius: by law every beach on the island is public, including the long stretches in front of the grandest resorts. The sand itself is always free, the lagoon is always free, and the casuarina shade behind the beach is free too. What costs money is the resort sunbed, the catamaran cruise and the watersports, and almost none of it is necessary for a wonderful day.
We have ranked these for the traveller who wants the beach for the price of a picnic. The order favours the long public stretches with free parking, natural shade and a cheap snack van or two, over the spots where the only comfortable option is a paid lounger. We have been honest about which famous outings are worth the money and which are a tour operator markup on something you can do for next to nothing.
If you want one easy and cheap pick, drive to Flic en Flac on the west coast, park for free, lay a towel under the casuarinas and buy lunch from one of the snack vans behind the sand. It is a long, lovely, free public beach with a sunset thrown in, and the whole day need cost no more than a street food plate and a cold drink.
The best free and budget beaches
Free public sand, cheap food and easy access first.
Flic en Flac
One of the longest beaches on the island and entirely free, with a calm lagoon, deep casuarina shade and free roadside parking. Snack vans and simple stalls behind the sand keep lunch cheap, and the west coast sunset costs nothing. The best all round budget day in Mauritius.
Mont Choisy
A graceful free curve of soft sand with a thick belt of shade trees that locals fill with picnics at weekends. Free parking, calm shallow water and room to spread out well away from any lounger. Bring your own cooler and it is a perfect low cost northern beach.
Pereybere
A friendly free public beach near Grand Baie with calm clear water and cheap snack stalls and shops right behind the sand. You pay nothing to swim and very little to eat, which makes it the easy budget swim in the busy, otherwise pricey north.
Belle Mare
A very long ribbon of free public sand on the east coast, elegant and uncrowded for its size, with shade trees and space to picnic far from the resorts behind it. Quiet, beautiful and free, it is ideal for a long lazy day that costs only what you carry in.
La Cuvette
A small free public beach tucked below Grand Baie, calm and sheltered, handy if you are based in the north without a car. There is no entry and no need for a lounger, so it is an easy free swim within walking reach of the town and its cheap eats.
Blue Bay
The public beach here is free and the snorkelling straight off the sand is the cheapest great snorkel on the island, since the coral sits just offshore in a marine park. Bring your own mask rather than paying for a glass bottom boat, and the vivid water costs nothing.
The honest read on doing it cheaply
The single biggest saving in Mauritius is to skip the organised Ile aux Cerfs day trip if money is tight. It is a lovely island, but the boat transfer, the speedboat add ons and the lunch turn a free beach into one of the priciest days on the island, and the main beach is busy and loud. If you want that turquoise lagoon look for nothing, Blue Bay and the public east coast beaches deliver it without the fare.
The catamaran cruises and the resort watersports are the other place the budget leaks. A sunset sail is a treat, but a free walk along Flic en Flac or Mont Choisy at golden hour gives you the same sky for nothing, and a snorkel from the sand at Blue Bay beats a paid reef tour for value. Hire a mask and fins for the week rather than renting by the hour, and most of the island's best moments are free.
Keep the costs down by using the cheap public buses, which reach the main beach towns for a few rupees, or sharing a small hire car to reach the quieter stretches. Buy lunch from the snack vans and roadside stalls rather than the resort restaurants, where a dholl puri or a fish curry costs a fraction of a hotel plate. Bring water and shade, since both are dear at the beach. Conditions are typical and never guaranteed, so check the sea before you swim.
The paid option, if you want it
A budget trip to Mauritius does not need a beach club, because the public sand is the equal of anything behind a resort gate. But if you want one polished daybed day in the trip, the island has a single genuine public beach club, C Beach Club at Bel Ombre on the south coast, which sells a day pass to visitors. We never invent a price or an opening status, so the current day pass rate is to be confirmed.
Treat it as an occasional splurge rather than the shape of the holiday. Browse the directory, send one enquiry to check the day pass and any minimum spend before you commit, and weigh it against the simple truth that a free public beach plus a street food lunch is the better value almost every day.
Book a beach club in Mauritius
Before you go
Are beaches in Mauritius free?
Yes. By law every beach in Mauritius is public and free to access, including the sand in front of the luxury resorts. You can walk and swim anywhere at no cost, and you pay only for sunbeds, watersports or a private beach club day pass if you choose to.
Which is the best free beach in Mauritius?
Flic en Flac on the west coast is the best value, a long free public beach with shade, free parking, cheap snack vans and a famous sunset. Mont Choisy and Belle Mare are close behind for free sand with room to picnic far from any resort.
How do I keep a Mauritius beach day cheap?
Use the cheap public buses or share a small hire car, lay a towel rather than renting a lounger, and buy lunch from the snack vans and roadside stalls instead of resort restaurants. Bring your own water, shade and snorkel gear, since all three are dear at the beach.
Is Ile aux Cerfs worth the money on a budget?
If money is tight, skip it. The boat transfer, speedboat add ons and lunch make it one of the priciest days on the island, and the main beach is busy. Blue Bay and the public east coast beaches give you the same turquoise lagoon for nothing.
Do I have to pay for sunbeds in Mauritius?
No. The beach and the lagoon are always free, and you only pay for a sunbed if you choose one at a resort or beach bar. Bring a towel and a parasol and you can enjoy any public beach on the island without spending a thing.
Where can budget travellers snorkel for free in Mauritius?
Blue Bay in the southeast is a marine park with coral just off the sand, so you can snorkel straight from the beach for free with your own mask. Trou aux Biches and Flic en Flac also have reef close to shore. Marine life and visibility are never guaranteed.