Situated in the Mauritian district of Rivière du Rempart, Grand Baie (also known as Grand Bay) is a very popular tropical island retreat that serves as one of the top tourist destinations in the country. Like almost any other place in Mauritius, Grand Baie also has plenty of history attached to it.
Once known as De Bogt Zonder Eylandt (meaning ‘The Bay Without an End’) during colonization by the Dutch, Grand Baie, despite having a different name now, is still quite reminiscent of its Dutch traditions, customs and lifestyle. One of the most popular tourist destinations in the country, Grand Baie has everything you could possibly ask for to indulge in the perfect beach holiday. Source
Once little more than a barely-known coastal village, today, Grand Baie has become one of the most popular tourist hotspots in the country, and offering everything from miles and miles of white sandy beaches, to adventure activities like snorkelling and scuba diving, to a vibrant nightlife and upmarket shopping centres, Grand Baie is every bit the perfect beach holiday destination in Mauritius.
Unanimously crowned by locals and tourists alike as one of the best beaches in Mauritius (and with the number of beaches the country has, that's saying something), the La Cuvette beach is the best beach you could visit on a trip to Grand Baie.
The other important beach in Grand Baie is the Grand Bay public beach, which is the most well-known tourist beach in the area. Despite being one of the shortest beaches in the entire country, Grand Bay's popularity has always been at its peak, owing mainly due to it being one of the few beaches offering every tourist activity under the sun.
Most cities in Mauritius are home to swanky casinos, and Grand Baie is no exception. The most popular casino in town is the Senator Club Grand Bay Casino, which is one of the best places you can visit to unwind and try your hand at getting lucky! Housing an adjacent bar-cum-restaurant that serves local delicacies and beverages at reasonable rates, the casino is one of the top places to hang out and have fun after a long day at the beach.
Shopping in Grand Baie
Grand Baie is renowned for being a shopaholic's paradise and the vast number of people thronging Sunset Boulevard at any given point of the day can easily attest to that fact. The Sunset Boulevard is a shopping complex located in the heart of the city, and is one of the busiest shopping districts in the town, closely beating the Grand Baie Bazaar. No matter what you're looking for, it souvenirs to take back home for your friends and family, beachwear for the rest of your vacation, jewellery, shoes to even high-fashion clothing, Sunset Boulevard has it all.
The entire complex is littered with eateries and restaurants, so you can drop in for a quick bite if you want to take a break from doing all that heavy-duty shopping!
The easiest way to get to Grand Baie is by hitching a ride down the M2 freeway, which will take you to your destination in Grand Baie from Port Louis in a record time of 40 minutes only.
