Anders, 85, said he's a "big supporter" of the "remarkable" unmanned programmes, "mainly because they're much cheaper". But he says the public support simply isn't there to fund vastly more expensive human missions.
"What's the imperative? What's pushing us to go to Mars?" he said, adding "I don't think the public is that interested".
Meanwhile, robotic probes are still exploring Mars. Last month, the InSight lander, which will sample the planet's interior, successfully touched down at Elysium Planitia.
In a statement, Nasa said it was "leading a sustainable return to the Moon, which will help prepare us to send astronauts to Mars".
"That also includes commercial and international partners to expand human presence in space and bring back new knowledge and opportunities."
In December 1968, Anders, along with crewmates Frank Borman and Jim Lovell, lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida atop a Saturn V, before completing 10 orbits around the Moon.
The crew of Apollo 8 spent 20 hours in orbit, before returning to Earth.
They splashed down in the Pacific on 27 December, landing just 5,000 yards (4,500 metres) from their target point. They were picked up by the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown.
It was the furthest humans had ever been from their home planet at that point - and a vital stepping stone on the road to Apollo 11's historic moon landing just seven months later.
But the former astronaut is scathing about how Nasa has evolved since the heady days of President John F Kennedy's pledge to land a man on the Moon by the end of the 1960s.
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