More about hotels in Réunion
Réunion is a small island with an outsized personality: a live volcano at one end, a turquoise lagoon at the other, and green mountain amphitheatres in between that look like nowhere else on Earth. Piton de la Fournaise erupts often enough to be one of the most closely watched volcanoes on the planet, yet you can walk right up to its crater rim on a clear day. That range, from black lava fields to white-sand lagoon, is what makes this French overseas department in the Indian Ocean such an interesting base for a holiday.
Whatever pace you're after, from a full-on hiking trip through the Cirques to a week of doing very little by the water, there's a stay on the island to match. Réunion's hotels spread across a handful of very different towns, so where you book matters almost as much as which hotel you pick.
Where to stay in Réunion
- Saint-Denis: the island's capital and biggest town, with a proper café and market scene. A practical base if you're flying in and out of the nearby airport. See hotels in Saint-Denis.
- Saint-Paul and Saint-Gilles-les-Bains: the west coast's resort strip, home to the island's best lagoon at L'Hermitage-les-Bains and most of its beachfront hotels. This is where to base yourself for snorkelling and calm swimming water. See hotels in Saint-Paul.
- Saint-Pierre: the main town in the south, with a lively seafront promenade, a Saturday market, and a slightly younger, more laid-back feel than the capital. See hotels in Saint-Pierre.
- Saint-Benoît: on the lush east coast, closest to the waterfalls and forest roads leading up towards Piton de la Fournaise. See hotels in Saint-Benoît.
- Cilaos: a mountain town inside one of the island's three Cirques, reached by a famously twisty road with hundreds of bends. Known for thermal spring baths, vineyards at altitude, and cooler nights than the coast.
How much is Réunion accommodation?
Rooms on the island start from around AU$75 a night for a simple guesthouse or budget hotel room, based on current listings. From there, prices climb steadily with location and view.
- Budget guesthouses and B&Bs: from AU$75 a night. Simple, often family-run rooms, usually set back from the coast.
- Mid-range hotels: a step up gets you a pool, breakfast included, and a spot closer to Saint-Gilles or Saint-Pierre's centre.
- Boutique and heritage stays: restored villas and small hotels with a spa or garden, usually in Saint-Pierre or Saint-Denis.
- Beachfront resorts: the top end of the market, sitting directly on or near the Hermitage lagoon with full resort facilities.
Prices tend to rise over the Southern Hemisphere winter (June to September), when the weather is driest and mildest, and again around the December holidays.
Top-rated hotels in Réunion
- LUX* Saint Gilles: a beachfront resort at L'Hermitage-les-Bains with direct lagoon access, Creole-style architecture set across seven hectares of tropical garden, and one of the calmest stretches of water on the island for a swim before breakfast.
- Villa Delisle Hôtel & Spa: a seafront hotel in Saint-Pierre with a rooftop terrace, an outdoor pool, and a garden spa with a private heated jacuzzi right on the water's edge.
- Wood Hotel & Spa: a striking timber-built hotel on the west coast at Trois-Bassins, designed around sustainable materials, with an ocean-facing wellness spa and hammam.
- Le Saint Pierre Hotel: a central, no-fuss option in Saint-Pierre, walking distance to the seafront, restaurants and the poolside bar most guests end up at by evening.
- Villa Maido Luxe: a small guesthouse in Saint-Paul with a garden pool, set back from the coast, handy for the black-sand beaches nearby and the drive up to the Maido viewpoint over the Cirque de Mafate.
Tips for finding the perfect accommodation in Réunion
- Book the coast for beach time and book the highlands for hiking. Trying to do both from one base means a lot of driving, since the island's roads wind around its mountainous centre rather than through it.
- If you're heading into the Cirques, check whether your accommodation is even on the road network. Mafate has no roads at all, so stays there are mountain lodges reached on foot, not hotels you drive to.
- A hire car is worth it almost everywhere outside Saint-Gilles-les-Bains. Public transport exists but isn't really built around a holiday itinerary.
- June to September is the driest, most comfortable stretch for hiking and volcano visits, so book ahead if your trip lines up with it.
- Ask about sea view versus garden view before you book on the west coast. The price difference at the same hotel can be significant, and not every room actually faces the lagoon.
Pair your stay with a Piton de la Fournaise sunrise hike, a soak at Cilaos, or a slow lunch of cari and rougail in Saint-Pierre, and you've covered most of what makes Réunion worth the flight.
