Le Morne Public Beach

What sets it apart

Two facts set this beach apart. First La Pointe Cassis: its 1,940 metres of shoreline are the longest in the whole west for a single section of public beach. Then a withdrawal, a rare thing: close to 400 square metres were taken out of the public domain on the section near the former Berjaya hotel, now reduced to 0.4 hectare. The island knows only one other case, that of Von Moltke, in the north.

The mood

On busy public holidays a duty ambulance attached to Victoria Hospital stands near the Dinarobin hotel. It is one of the island’s seven duty points and, with Blue Bay, one of only two to which no other beach is assigned.

Highlights

• Four sections, public since 1991, 1995 and 2014
• 22.3 hectares and 3,480 metres of shoreline in all
• La Pointe Cassis, 1,940 metres: the longest shoreline of a single section in the west
• Close to 400 square metres withdrawn from the public domain near the former Berjaya hotel
• Duty ambulance on public holidays, near the Dinarobin hotel, attached to Victoria Hospital
• One of only two duty points in the country with no other beach to cover

Good to know

• This is one of the two points in the country where a duty ambulance is stationed for a single beach on public holidays: come early if you want space.
• The longest section is La Pointe Cassis, at Le Morne village: that is the landmark to name, with its 1,940 metres of shoreline, the longest in the west.
• Do not confuse this beach with the climb of Le Morne Brabant: the mountain and the beach are two different outings.
• Near the former Berjaya hotel, close to 400 square metres have been withdrawn from the public domain: public access there is no longer what it originally was.

Getting there

The beach lies at the south-western tip of the island, in the Rivière Noire district, south of La Prairie. Its sections are found by Le Morne village, Pointe Sud Ouest and the former Berjaya hotel, the duty ambulance by the Dinarobin hotel: these are landmarks, not owners, since all four sections are public. The climb of Le Morne Brabant, the mountain that towers over the site, is a separate outing.