Mahabalipuram beach runs along the eastern edge of town, a broad strip of coarse sand backed by casuarina trees and a long strip of guesthouses, restaurants, and craft stalls. The swimming is safe in calm weather, though the surf can get rough between October and January when the northeast monsoon hits this coast. The Shore Temple is visible to the south from anywhere on the beach.
The beach is popular with domestic tourists on weekends and relatively quiet on weekday mornings. A walk south along the shore to the Shore Temple takes about ten minutes and offers the best views of the monument from the seaward side — the angle that mariners would have seen it from for the past thirteen centuries.