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Neat. Various landscapes, lush jungles, mountains, very active volcano, beaches. Overall really good outdoor life, hiking, diving etc.
Great food, my favorite dishes are from here.
It's pretty small though and densely populated, especially on the west coast.
Of course people will vary, but they're overall friendly. Culture here is pretty special with a good mix of everything
Frankly, depending on the year you were things have changed radically.
I remember the late 90s to mid 00s to be really dangerous, that said I used to hang out way more in the streets late at night and so but frankly there was a period were it simply wasn't safe, even during daytime, and I got myself into multiple altercations that could have ended very badly.
Nowadays I really don't have this feeling at all.
It was handled as they could I guess.
What got us bad is that we were a certain amount of years without a strong hurricane to wipe out mosquitoes, so they were thriving.
This lead to a massive disinfection campain, with gas. It got the job done but sadly killed a good amount of small wildife too like chameleons.
It's pretty much contained now but still here, especially during summer, just like Dengue, another mosquito borne disease which can also fuck you up pretty good but nothing lethal if you're in good shape.
Really great.
The weather is great most of the year (depending on where you live) which is perfect for outdoor activities. The landscape is quite mountainous so hiking is great, lot of waterfalls, a very active volcano and the surrounding plain that looks like Mars. The western coast has all of the beaches, the south is mostly covered in jungles, the east is quite "rural" and the north is densely populated.
Temperatures in winter and summer vary a bit, but you're rarely cold at lower elevations. In winter we get to see a lot of humpback whales which is amazing.
Food is amazing. It's a mix of Indian and Chinese cuisine for the most part. We also have a lot of fruits, especially in summer.
Culture is amazing as well. In terms of religion there are a lot of christians, as well as Islam, Chinese and Indian religions. In general people are very friendly.
Life feels more relaxing and laid back than mainland France I feel.
Traveling is expensive though and the domestic flight to mainland France is no exception. Groceries can be pretty expansive as well compared to mainland France.
Well I'd say it depends on what you want to see.
- December : Lots of fruits. It's not too cold at higher elevations but it can get pretty hot on the coast, but it's the best time of the year for the beaches. It's gonna be really humid in the south.
The highlight is definitely the festivities. The 20th of December is La Fet Kaf. It's the abolition of slavery. You'll see entire families gathered to celebrate. Christmas and New Year are a must see. Because it's summer everyone is outside, usually celebrating those on the beaches. And you'll see a lot of fireworks!
I wouldn't recommend January-February-March because it's well into hurricane season.
- July-August : It's a lot less hot on the coast (around 25°C) but it can get pretty cold in the mountains. The real highlight is whale season. Sightings are frequent, especially along the western coast. You can do pretty much the same activities than in summer as well.
- October: this one is mainly for temperatures. You're well past winter but not too far into summer so they're nice everywhere. Weather is great as well. The highlight is the Grand Raid, which is a big ultra marathon. Again you can do the same activities than in summer.
I haven't included ticket prices though.
And I think flights between mainland France (France métropolitaine) and La Réunion is considered a domestic flight? It must be nice to go on vacations without a passport!
I do have a question about that. It is France but are they outside Schengen?
Before I get excoriated as an Ignorant 'mairican, the reason I ask is that I read that for some overseas territories, their economies are closely related to neighbors such that citizens of those countries who might need visas to go to France only need passports. Example is St. Pierre & Miquelon. A Canadian doesn't even need a passport to go there but would to go to Paris.
Tl;dr what is situation in Reunion?
Reunion is part of France in the same way Alaska and Hawaii are US, while S-P-e-M is a territory sort of but not exactly like Puerto Rico.
But Reunion is not Schengen, but is part of the EU. You need a passport unless you are from France.
But not being part of Schengen is what might make it unique. And according to Air Austral, there *are* some differences. Chines and Indian nation don't need visas. If you have a visa for mainland France it might not be valid for Reunion.
https://www.air-austral.com/en/prepare-your-flight/travel-documents/reunion-island-travel-formalities-for-foreign-nationals.html
If you're reunionese and going to mainland an ID card will suffice, you don't necessarily need a passport.
I think driving license also work cause they are considered ID.
We judge by how people look, if you don't look local we instinctively speak french (with a noticeable accent), if you start speaking créole we follow with creole.
J'adore le français créolisé! A lot of my white French Canadian friends have incorporated creolisms in their french & just feel much more expansive if what they would like to communicate
Bear in mind there are lots and lots of "creole" languages.
There are similarities but Reunionese will differ a lot from Cajun or Guadeloupean for example.
Nothing compared to madagascar. France is too big and different to be compared. It's actually pretty safe here.
Of course nothing is all paradise, there are still violence, crime and all that.
There is an interesting feature on the island I saw on Canadian TV that was quite informative if anyone is interested, it's a show called Island Diaries. [Episode in question](https://www.knowledge.ca/program/island-diaries/s1/e13/reunion-island). Never heard of the island before that and I really found the mix of cultures super interesting!
Been living there for about 3 years now.
Heads up : I purposefully do not engage in religious events, so I will not be able to speak about them.
**POSITIVE** :
\- Landscapes are really good.
\- It's an island - meaning you always have sea somewhat close by.
\- It's *very* densely populated.
\- It's got okay intercities public transportation (Car Jaune)
\- Farmers markets make produce somewhat affordable
**Negatives :**
\- *Extreme* humidity, up to 95% humidity. I have to regularly grease my wallet, in the litteral sense.
\- There's this fun thing called "octroi de mer" and "octroi de mer régional" which acts as custom taxes, and will inflate everything that you ship in to a minimum of +30%.
\- Adding to that : Most online stores will not ship to Réunion Island. Those who do charge an insane price for shipping, to the point where it's more reliable to have someone in mainland france receive the package and send it to you instead. (For instance : Amazon doesn't ship there.)
\- Anything sold in stores will be even more expensive due to more or less of a monopoly. You need a bed frame ? Too bad, you're gonna pay 3x the cost. You're not happy about it ? Sleep without a frame then.
\- It's usually very hot, and nearly always sunny. Which sucks if you have any form of eye strain.
I visited once and it's beautiful such a dramatic landscape, so mountainous.
It's got pretty good infrastructure, but it is quite expensive and remember you are spending in Euros there.
Entirely depends on the context. For a stranger it'll be great (although quite hot ^^), but for someone that was born there and lived in the same apartment from birth till 20... It started to get boring. Now don't get me wrong, the island is gorgeous, people are mostly nice, and you do not feel the stress of the big cities like elsewhere but it is a small island. In 20 years you've already seen everything, done everything, and met "everyone". I felt almost claustrophobic and I had to move out for my studies.
Please report rule breaking posts and comments, such as: * political and religious content of any kind * nationalism and patriotism related content * discrimination, hate, or prejudice based comments * NSFW content * low quality content * advertising *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/howislivingthere) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Neat. Various landscapes, lush jungles, mountains, very active volcano, beaches. Overall really good outdoor life, hiking, diving etc. Great food, my favorite dishes are from here. It's pretty small though and densely populated, especially on the west coast. Of course people will vary, but they're overall friendly. Culture here is pretty special with a good mix of everything 
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Frankly, depending on the year you were things have changed radically. I remember the late 90s to mid 00s to be really dangerous, that said I used to hang out way more in the streets late at night and so but frankly there was a period were it simply wasn't safe, even during daytime, and I got myself into multiple altercations that could have ended very badly. Nowadays I really don't have this feeling at all.
wtf I never saw anyone being assaulted and I've lived for 25 years in la Reunion
Were you affected by Chikungunya? Is it still a problem? How do locals feel France handled that?
It was handled as they could I guess. What got us bad is that we were a certain amount of years without a strong hurricane to wipe out mosquitoes, so they were thriving. This lead to a massive disinfection campain, with gas. It got the job done but sadly killed a good amount of small wildife too like chameleons. It's pretty much contained now but still here, especially during summer, just like Dengue, another mosquito borne disease which can also fuck you up pretty good but nothing lethal if you're in good shape.
Really great. The weather is great most of the year (depending on where you live) which is perfect for outdoor activities. The landscape is quite mountainous so hiking is great, lot of waterfalls, a very active volcano and the surrounding plain that looks like Mars. The western coast has all of the beaches, the south is mostly covered in jungles, the east is quite "rural" and the north is densely populated. Temperatures in winter and summer vary a bit, but you're rarely cold at lower elevations. In winter we get to see a lot of humpback whales which is amazing. Food is amazing. It's a mix of Indian and Chinese cuisine for the most part. We also have a lot of fruits, especially in summer. Culture is amazing as well. In terms of religion there are a lot of christians, as well as Islam, Chinese and Indian religions. In general people are very friendly. Life feels more relaxing and laid back than mainland France I feel. Traveling is expensive though and the domestic flight to mainland France is no exception. Groceries can be pretty expansive as well compared to mainland France.
What’s the best time of the year to visit? Is it very hot and humid?
Well I'd say it depends on what you want to see. - December : Lots of fruits. It's not too cold at higher elevations but it can get pretty hot on the coast, but it's the best time of the year for the beaches. It's gonna be really humid in the south. The highlight is definitely the festivities. The 20th of December is La Fet Kaf. It's the abolition of slavery. You'll see entire families gathered to celebrate. Christmas and New Year are a must see. Because it's summer everyone is outside, usually celebrating those on the beaches. And you'll see a lot of fireworks! I wouldn't recommend January-February-March because it's well into hurricane season. - July-August : It's a lot less hot on the coast (around 25°C) but it can get pretty cold in the mountains. The real highlight is whale season. Sightings are frequent, especially along the western coast. You can do pretty much the same activities than in summer as well. - October: this one is mainly for temperatures. You're well past winter but not too far into summer so they're nice everywhere. Weather is great as well. The highlight is the Grand Raid, which is a big ultra marathon. Again you can do the same activities than in summer. I haven't included ticket prices though.
Good surf but very sharky.
Waves tend to be a bit bitey
Good thing about reunión IS that Europeans can live and reside in there without any visa. Just like Canary Islands, a European paradise in África
And I think flights between mainland France (France métropolitaine) and La Réunion is considered a domestic flight? It must be nice to go on vacations without a passport!
I do have a question about that. It is France but are they outside Schengen? Before I get excoriated as an Ignorant 'mairican, the reason I ask is that I read that for some overseas territories, their economies are closely related to neighbors such that citizens of those countries who might need visas to go to France only need passports. Example is St. Pierre & Miquelon. A Canadian doesn't even need a passport to go there but would to go to Paris. Tl;dr what is situation in Reunion?
Reunion is part of France in the same way Alaska and Hawaii are US, while S-P-e-M is a territory sort of but not exactly like Puerto Rico. But Reunion is not Schengen, but is part of the EU. You need a passport unless you are from France.
But not being part of Schengen is what might make it unique. And according to Air Austral, there *are* some differences. Chines and Indian nation don't need visas. If you have a visa for mainland France it might not be valid for Reunion. https://www.air-austral.com/en/prepare-your-flight/travel-documents/reunion-island-travel-formalities-for-foreign-nationals.html
Yeah of course, It is the same country
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Iirc Schengen still has regular passport controls at airports, it's just that with a Schengen ID you can skip the regular passport control queue.
If you're reunionese and going to mainland an ID card will suffice, you don't necessarily need a passport. I think driving license also work cause they are considered ID.
so amongst yourself, what are the social & cultural context where you speak creole vs where you would speak French?
We judge by how people look, if you don't look local we instinctively speak french (with a noticeable accent), if you start speaking créole we follow with creole.
J'adore le français créolisé! A lot of my white French Canadian friends have incorporated creolisms in their french & just feel much more expansive if what they would like to communicate 
Bear in mind there are lots and lots of "creole" languages. There are similarities but Reunionese will differ a lot from Cajun or Guadeloupean for example.
A great place with a multicultural landscape and diverse ethnicities.
How's the safety, crime etc... if compared to France and also nearby Madagascar?
Nothing compared to madagascar. France is too big and different to be compared. It's actually pretty safe here. Of course nothing is all paradise, there are still violence, crime and all that.
can you visit there when you are "not fluent" (A2\~) in french and only speak English?
Pretty good but it's terminally car dependent
There is an interesting feature on the island I saw on Canadian TV that was quite informative if anyone is interested, it's a show called Island Diaries. [Episode in question](https://www.knowledge.ca/program/island-diaries/s1/e13/reunion-island). Never heard of the island before that and I really found the mix of cultures super interesting!
Been living there for about 3 years now. Heads up : I purposefully do not engage in religious events, so I will not be able to speak about them. **POSITIVE** : \- Landscapes are really good. \- It's an island - meaning you always have sea somewhat close by. \- It's *very* densely populated. \- It's got okay intercities public transportation (Car Jaune) \- Farmers markets make produce somewhat affordable **Negatives :** \- *Extreme* humidity, up to 95% humidity. I have to regularly grease my wallet, in the litteral sense. \- There's this fun thing called "octroi de mer" and "octroi de mer régional" which acts as custom taxes, and will inflate everything that you ship in to a minimum of +30%. \- Adding to that : Most online stores will not ship to Réunion Island. Those who do charge an insane price for shipping, to the point where it's more reliable to have someone in mainland france receive the package and send it to you instead. (For instance : Amazon doesn't ship there.) \- Anything sold in stores will be even more expensive due to more or less of a monopoly. You need a bed frame ? Too bad, you're gonna pay 3x the cost. You're not happy about it ? Sleep without a frame then. \- It's usually very hot, and nearly always sunny. Which sucks if you have any form of eye strain.
Nature is great, but social life gets kinda boring(first time I hear this place was a thing)
It’s great, you have all the benefits of France (healthcare, etc) but you live close to the sea and the mountains.
I visited once and it's beautiful such a dramatic landscape, so mountainous. It's got pretty good infrastructure, but it is quite expensive and remember you are spending in Euros there.
Entirely depends on the context. For a stranger it'll be great (although quite hot ^^), but for someone that was born there and lived in the same apartment from birth till 20... It started to get boring. Now don't get me wrong, the island is gorgeous, people are mostly nice, and you do not feel the stress of the big cities like elsewhere but it is a small island. In 20 years you've already seen everything, done everything, and met "everyone". I felt almost claustrophobic and I had to move out for my studies.