Travel tips for Reunion Island

Réunion Island's status as a French overseas department shapes almost every practical detail of a visit, and this hub is built around the questions that trip up first-time visitors specifically because of that status. The island is part of France and the European Union, classified as an outermost region, but it lies outside the Schengen area, which means a Schengen visa does not automatically cover entry here and needs to be checked separately if it applies to you; EU citizens can enter with a national identity card rather than a passport. The currency is the euro, and EU mobile roaming rules apply, so a European phone plan should work as it would on the mainland.

Both French, the official language, and Réunion Creole are spoken, though French is what you'll need for signage, menus and most day-to-day interactions. Getting around is built around driving on the right, and a rental car is close to essential given how much of the island's best hiking and viewpoint access sits away from any public transport route; a bus network exists for coastal towns but does not reach most of the interior. The island runs on UTC+4 with no daylight saving time, and power sockets are the European 230V types E and F.

Emergency numbers are 112 for the general European number, 15 for the SAMU medical service, 17 for police and 18 for the fire service, and tipping is not expected anywhere. The single biggest planning factor is climate: seasons are reversed from Europe since Réunion sits in the southern hemisphere, with a hot, humid austral summer from November to April that is also cyclone season, and a drier, cooler austral winter from May to October that is the better window for hiking and volcano access.

It can even freeze at the summit of Piton de la Fournaise and Piton des Neiges during the austral winter, and the east coast receives noticeably more rain than the west year-round, which is worth factoring into where you base yourself and when you plan mountain days.