Réunion🇷🇪 | best national parksDiscover the 5 Best national parks Across Réunion

How many to visit: Réunion has one park, so the real decision is how many zones to cover. I advise two or three: one cirque, the volcano area, and optionally the high plains. More than that means long drives, fog-bound views and tired legs, while fewer can miss the dramatic contrast between lush green walls and black lava. Each zone gives a full day or a two-day hut stay, and the payoff is a ridge at dawn with clouds pooling below you.Which kind for your style: Hikers who like multi-day treks should prioritize the cirques, with village gîtes and long ridge lines. Short-trip travelers get the best reward from the volcano, where crater rims and lava fields are reachable on day hikes. If you only have a rental car and little time, choose viewpoints and short loops on the highland roads.Costs: … read more 👉

How many to visit: Réunion has one park, so the real decision is how many zones to cover. I advise two or three: one cirque, the volcano area, and optionally the high plains. More than that means long drives, fog-bound views and tired legs, while fewer can miss the dramatic contrast between lush green walls and black lava. Each zone gives a full day or a two-day hut stay, and the payoff is a ridge at dawn with clouds pooling below you.Which kind for your style: Hikers who like multi-day treks should prioritize the cirques, with village gîtes and long ridge lines. Short-trip travelers get the best reward from the volcano, where crater rims and lava fields are reachable on day hikes. If you only have a rental car and little time, choose viewpoints and short loops on the highland roads.Costs: Park entry is free. Budget about €45 to 80 a day as a backpacker: a gîte bed with dinner and breakfast is roughly €45 to 60, a trail lunch €6 to 10, and a rental car €30 to 50 a day, or buses at €2 to 4 a ride. Guides for volcano or canyoning days run roughly €50 to 100 a person.Safety and etiquette: Fog, steep drops and flash rain are the real risks. Check Météo-France alerts and the trail closure notices before leaving, and carry a headlamp, rain shell and 2 liters of water. Cyclone season can shut trails for days. Stay on marked paths, since the thin native plants take years to recover. Greet fellow walkers and gîte hosts with a French “bonjour,” and book huts ahead, since cooks plan meals around reservations.What to watch: Rental car roads in the cirques are narrow and single-lane in places, so drive slowly and use the horn on blind bends.