Rivière du Rempart (North Coast)
Pereybere Beach
The north coast's best public swimming beach, a 5-minute drive from Grand Baie — a calm, shallow lagoon, snorkelling off the rocks at either end, and food vans behind the sand.
Where
Grand Baie, Mauritius
Opening hours
Open access (always open). The beach is a free public beach you can use at any time; lifeguard cover, food vans and shops keep their own daytime hours and are busiest at weekends and in the high season.
Tickets
Free — no ticket needed to use the beach or swim in the lagoon. You only pay if you buy from the food vans and shops behind the sand or hire snorkelling gear or a sunshade.
Time needed
A half-day to swim, snorkel and laze, or an hour or two for a quick dip and a bite from the food vans.
In short
Visiting Pereybere Beach
Pereybere is the north coast's best public swimming beach, a 5-minute drive from the centre of Grand Baie. The lagoon is calm and shallow, the gradient is gentle for children, and there's decent snorkelling off the rocks at either end. Casual food vans and small shops sit behind the sand. It's free to use, and a far better swim than Grand Baie's own harbour bay.
A proper swimming beach
If you’re staying in Grand Baie and want an actual swim, Pereybere is where you go. It sits about a 5-minute drive up the coast and it’s the best public swimming beach on this stretch — which matters, because Grand Baie’s own bay is a busy working harbour with boats and a murkier waterfront, far better for boarding a catamaran than for getting in the water.
The lagoon here is calm, clear and shallow, with a gentle gradient that shelves slowly enough to suit children, and the reef offshore keeps the swell down inside the bay. At either end of the sand are rocky outcrops where the snorkelling is at its best — bring a mask and you’ll see reef fish in the shallows. Be honest about it, though: it’s a relaxed lagoon snorkel rather than a dive-quality reef, and you should keep clear of boat traffic near the edges.
Using it, and what it costs
It’s a free public beach — no ticket, no entry fee, open at any hour. You only spend money if you buy from the food vans and small shops lined up behind the sand, which do drinks, snacks and casual meals, or if you hire gear or a sunshade. There’s some natural shade under the trees fringing the beach, which is worth claiming early.
The trade-off is popularity: Pereybere is no secret, so it gets busy at weekends and in high season, and parking near the front fills up. Come earlier in the day for space, a shady spot and the calmest water, and it’s an easy, genuinely good half-day — swim, snorkel, dry off, grab something from a van and repeat. As anywhere, keep an eye on your belongings while you’re in the water.
Planning the rest of your trip? See the Grand Baie city guide.
