Anse Cocos or Anse Forbans: Seychelles Head to Head
Published 2026-08-30. Conditions described are typical and never guaranteed.
The verdict in one screen
These two beaches share a reputation for peace and very little else. Pick Anse Cocos if you are a fit, curious walker who wants a wild, often empty stretch of sand on La Digue and treats swimming as a bonus rather than the point. Pick Anse Forbans if you want to actually get in the water without a fight, on a quiet reef sheltered bay on the south east coast of Mahe, and you value ease of access over drama.
That is the whole decision in a sentence. One is an expedition on foot to a beach where the open sea is frequently rough. The other is a gentle, local bay you can walk onto from the road, calmest on a higher tide. Neither has a beach club, loungers for hire or a bar on the sand, so both reward people who bring their own water, shade and food. Below I contrast them properly, then flag the exact conditions that flip the answer.
Getting there sets the tone
Anse Cocos is not a beach you drive to. There is no road access at all. You cycle from La Passe to the far side of La Digue, then continue on foot along the coast path past two other bays, a walk of roughly thirty to forty minutes each way. The reward is a broad, wild shore that most day trippers never reach, but you earn every metre of it. Good footwear matters, and mornings are cooler for the walk.
Anse Forbans could hardly be more different. It sits right on the coast road on the less visited south east of Mahe, with open public access and a few guesthouses set back behind the trees. You arrive, you park nearby, you walk onto the sand. That simplicity is the point, and it is why Anse Forbans suits families, older visitors and anyone who would rather spend their energy in the water than on a trail.
If the words "coast path" and "sensible shoes" make you groan, your answer is already Anse Forbans. If they make you reach for a daypack, it is Anse Cocos.
Sand and setting
Both beaches are pale and soft, but the scale is completely different. Anse Cocos is wide: a broad, generous stretch of soft pale sand backed by palms and granite, frequently with very few people on it. It has that open, cinematic quality that makes the walk feel worthwhile even before you sit down.
Anse Forbans is a narrow ribbon of soft sand fringed by casuarina and takamaka trees rather than wide open dunes. It feels intimate and green rather than epic. That tree line matters in practice, because it gives you natural shade options that the more exposed Anse Cocos does not offer as reliably. On a fierce midday sun, the shade behind Forbans is a genuine advantage.
The water, and this is where it splits
This is the single biggest difference, so read it carefully. At Anse Cocos the open sea is frequently choppy, with strong currents and surf. It is not a casual swimming beach, and there is no lifeguard cover at all. The one sensible place for a dip is the natural rock pool at the southern end, which is far calmer than the open water on settled days. Go to Anse Cocos for the scenery and the walk. Treat any swim as conditional on the sea being kind, and never assume it will be.
Anse Forbans is the opposite story. A reef across the bay shelters the water, so it is usually gentle, which is reassuring on a settled day. The catch is the tide. Low water exposes a wide shallow flat with seagrass, so it becomes less inviting for a proper swim. Time your dip for rising or high water and the reef sheltered bay is at its best. As with Cocos there is no patrol here, so swim within your depth and take more care when the wind is up. Neither beach carries a swimming safety guarantee, and conditions on both can change, but on a typical calm day Forbans is the far easier place to float.
- Want a real swim: Anse Forbans on a higher tide.
- Want a wild walk with a cautious dip in a rock pool: Anse Cocos on a settled day.
- Want certainty either way: check the sea on arrival, because neither is a controlled environment.
Facilities: bring everything, twice over
Do not choose between these two on amenities, because they barely have any. Anse Cocos has, at most, an occasional small kiosk that is to be confirmed and should not be relied on. Otherwise there are no shops, so you carry your own water, food and sun cover, which also happens to be exactly what a long coastal walk demands.
Anse Forbans is similar: no club, no sunbed hire and no beach bar on the sand, with only the odd shop and guesthouse nearby. The practical difference is proximity. Because Forbans sits on the road with guesthouses close behind it, restocking or retreating is far simpler than on Cocos, where you are committed once you have made the walk. If self sufficiency worries you, that tips things toward Forbans.
Crowds and atmosphere
Both are quiet by Seychelles standards, which is a large part of their charm. Anse Cocos is usually quiet all day, and its remoteness does the filtering for you: the walk keeps numbers naturally low, so you often get a long, wild beach close to yourself. Anse Forbans is quiet for structural reasons. It sits away from the famous north beaches, has no club or lounger hire and is fronted mostly by small guesthouses, and that lack of development is precisely what keeps it calm and local. Early morning in the calmer season is the most beautiful, glassy time on the bay.
Timing, and how it flips the answer
Season changes everything here, and it is where a confident recommendation can reverse. Anse Cocos is at its gentlest in the shoulder months of April, May and October, the calmer windows between the two monsoons, when the water is least likely to be rough. Anse Forbans reads the calendar differently: its best stretch is the calmer north west season from November to April, which brings the cleanest, stillest water on this south facing coast. From May to October the south east trade winds can bring breeze, chop and drifting seaweed to Forbans.
So here is the flip. In the depths of the south east trade wind season, Anse Forbans loses some of its main advantage, the calm, and the shoulder months can still find Anse Cocos surprisingly settled around its rock pool. Conversely, from November to April, Forbans is often at its glassy best while the east coast of La Digue can still be lively. Match the beach to the month and you get the best of each. Our guide to seasons across the islands is worth a look before you lock in dates.
The situation where Anse Cocos wins outright
You are reasonably fit, you love a walk, you want scenery over swimming, and you are visiting in a calmer shoulder window. Anse Cocos gives you one of the prettiest, wildest and emptiest beaches on La Digue, with the rock pool as a bonus on the day the sea allows it. For most people it is worth the walk if they go for the setting rather than the swim.
The situation where Anse Forbans wins outright
You have children, you want to swim without reading the ocean like a sailor, you would rather not commit to a trail, or you are travelling in the north west season. Forbans is the calmer, easier, more family friendly choice, especially on a rising tide. Families weighing up the wider archipelago may also find our notes on family friendly bays helpful.
How they sit against the famous names
Neither of these is trying to be a showpiece, and that is the honest appeal. If you want deeper, genuinely swimmable water with restaurants behind the sand, the wide curve of Anse Lazio up on Praslin is the better known pick, though it draws tour groups by midday. For sheer drama there is the powerful open swell of Anse Intendance on Mahe, which is superb to watch and often unsafe to swim. For a controlled, private feeling bay reached through resort grounds, consider Anse Georgette, where access should be confirmed in advance. Cocos and Forbans are the quieter, wilder alternatives to all three, and choosing between them comes down to your legs, the tide and the month. If solitude is the whole brief, our roundup of the most secluded shores puts both in context.
Planning a club day around your trip
Because neither Anse Cocos nor Anse Forbans has any club, lounger hire or bar on the sand, pair them with an organised day elsewhere if you want service, shade and a proper lunch. For clubs, spend bands and how to enquire about a day across the islands, see our Seychelles beach clubs directory, and use the wider Seychelles hub to build the rest of the itinerary around your two quiet bays.