| Animals | Scenery | Culture | Shopping | Food |
| *** | * | *** |
| Highlights | |
| Piton Maido | nice view into the Cirque de Mafate 1100m below; you should get there early in the morning when there is no fog yet |
| Cirque de Cilaos | Cilaos is a thermal spa resort surrounded by steep rock formations overgrown with deep green vegetation |
| Piton de la Fournaise |
still active (sometimes) volcano in the southern end of the island; the trip from the car park to the summit and back takes about 5 hours; most of the walk leads over impressive lava formations |
| Forêt de Bébour |
enchanted mountain rain forest where you can see farn trees and hundreds of Calla |
| Hell-Bourg |
village in the cirque de Salazie with nostalgic old Créole buildings |
| Restaurants / Hotels | |
| restaurant at the hotel Le Boucan-Canot, Boucan-Canot | exquisite French restaurant overlooking the beach |
| hotel Saint-Alexis, Boucan-Canot | the best hotel on the island, built in a mediterranean architecture; the rooms are generous, each one contains a jacuzzi; the breakfast buffet is impressive (i.e. the honey is served directly from the comb) |
| hotel Le Vieux Cep, Cilaos |
charming middle class hotel with a heated swimming pool |
| Tips | |
| transportation | if you want to see all the cirques and make a roundtrip of the island it is best to rent a car; the roads are very good and - for a French place - driving is agreeable |
| food, French bakeries | like all places where the French have been, the food is excellent; also there are many French bakeries for bread and sweets |
| hiking | there are excellent hiking possibilities on this island, starting from a few hours to several days |