Level: Free shore access This spot have a free shore access: you can go snorkeling there freely and without having to book a tour or pay an entrance fee.
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Last updated on October 4, 2022
Terre-de-Bas, the largest island of Les Saintes, is still very authentic. Much less crowded than its “sister” Terre-de-Haut, it nevertheless offers good snorkeling, like in Grande Baie. This natural, sheltered bay boasts calm waters and seagrass beds attracting many green turtles, as well as a wide range of reef fish.
Grande Baie is located on the east coast of Terre-de-Bas, in the Saintes archipelago. The island is served daily by boat from Trois-Rivieres (Basse Terre), but also from the neighboring island of Terre-de-Haut, the most visited of the Saintes.
From Anse des Mûriers pier, you can reach Grande Baie by walking along the road for some 700 meters or by taxi.
Get in the water from the small sandy beach, which is accessed by stairs.
You can snorkel throughout the bay, but we advise you to stay at a distance of fewer than 300 meters from the beach.
While the edges of the bay are rocky, its central part is covered with extensive seagrass beds, where the depth varies between 6 and 15 ft/2 and 5m. It is this seagrass that attracts many green sea turtles to Grande Baie.
Although they are less abundant here than in Malendure, you will have a good chance of encountering one while snorkeling the bay, most of the time busy grazing on the meadows or resting on the seabed.
In the seagrass beds, keep your eyes peeled for other forms of wildlife that favor these open environments including the sharptail snake eel, the flying gurnard and the cushion starfish, which are sometimes seen at this location. However, it is near the rocky edges of the bay that the underwater life is the most diverse.
Around the rocks, on which you will note sponges, sea fans and hard corals, you will spot several reef fish such as the bluehead wrasse, the foureye butterflyfish, several species of grunts, as well as the orangespotted filefish.
Grande Baie is a popular mooring area, so watch out for boat traffic when you are in the water.
The closest restaurants are next to the jetty, a 700m walk from the beach. There is no hotel on Terre-de-Bas, but a choice of guest rooms and vacation rentals.
These snorkeling spots are accessible to beginners and kids. You will enter the water gradually from a beach, or in a less than 3ft. deep area. The sea is generally calm, shallow, with almost no waves or currents. These spots are usually located in marked and/or monitored swimming areas. It is not necessary to swim long distances to discover the sea life. This level only apply when the spot experiences optimal sea and/or weather conditions. It is not applicable if the sea and/or weather conditions deteriorate, in particular in the presence of rough sea, rain, strong wind, unusual current, large tides, waves and/or swell. You can find more details about the definition of our snorkeling levels on our snorkeling safety page.
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Snorkeling spots are part of a wild environment and their aspect can be significantly altered by weather, seasons, sea conditions, human impact and climate events (storms, hurricanes, seawater-warming episodes…). The consequences can be an alteration of the seabed (coral bleaching, coral destruction, and invasive seagrass), a poor underwater visibility, or a decrease of the sea life present in the area. Snorkeling Report makes every effort to ensure that all the information displayed on this website is accurate and up-to-date, but no guarantee is given that the underwater visibility and seabed aspect will be exactly as described on this page the day you will snorkel the spot. If you recently snorkeled this area and noticed some changes compared to the information contained on this page, please contact us.
The data contained in this website is for general information purposes only, and is not legal advice. It is intended to provide snorkelers with the information that will enable them to engage in safe and enjoyable snorkeling, and it is not meant as a substitute for swim level, physical condition, experience, or local knowledge. Remember that all marine activities, including snorkeling, are potentially dangerous, and that you enter the water at your own risk. You must take an individual weather, sea conditions and hazards assessment before entering the water. If snorkeling conditions are degraded, postpone your snorkeling or select an alternate site. Know and obey local laws and regulations, including regulated areas, protected species, wildlife interaction and dive flag laws.
