Practical tips
Renting a car on Réunion: is it essential?
La Réunion6 minby Sejournia
Two airports, fourteen communes, and journeys that vary sixfold depending on where you land. The car decision rests on those figures, not on habit.
The question comes up with every booking, and the answer depends on a figure people skip: the distance from the airport to the lodging. Catalogue listings publish it, taken from the source. It runs from 7 km for Saint-Denis to 45 km for Saint-Paul or La Saline.
Two airports, two halves of the island
Roland Garros serves the north, near Saint-Denis. Pierrefonds serves the south, near Saint-Pierre, and takes regional flights. The journey between them is made by road, shortened by the route des Tamarins.
What the listings state
Sixteen listings out of forty-two publish that distance; the others do not give it. The listings themselves carry it, not a route planner. They give a reliable order of magnitude for deciding: between Roland Garros and Saint-Paul there are forty-five kilometres, which is well over an hour of driving before you have even taken the keys.
| Airport | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Saint-Denis | Roland Garros | 7 km |
| L'Étang-Salé | Pierrefonds | 11 to 12 km |
| Saint-Pierre | Pierrefonds | 14 km |
| Le Tampon | Pierrefonds | 16 km |
| La Possession | Roland Garros | 23 to 27 km |
| Saint-André | Roland Garros | 22 km |
| Bras-Panon | Roland Garros | 26 km |
| Saint-Paul | Roland Garros | 42 to 45 km |
| La Saline-les-Bains | Pierrefonds | 45 km |
Published distances between the airport and the property's commune.
Saint-Denis
- Airport
- Roland Garros
- Distance
- 7 km
L'Étang-Salé
- Airport
- Pierrefonds
- Distance
- 11 to 12 km
Saint-Pierre
- Airport
- Pierrefonds
- Distance
- 14 km
Le Tampon
- Airport
- Pierrefonds
- Distance
- 16 km
La Possession
- Airport
- Roland Garros
- Distance
- 23 to 27 km
Saint-André
- Airport
- Roland Garros
- Distance
- 22 km
Bras-Panon
- Airport
- Roland Garros
- Distance
- 26 km
Saint-Paul
- Airport
- Roland Garros
- Distance
- 42 to 45 km
La Saline-les-Bains
- Airport
- Pierrefonds
- Distance
- 45 km
On Réunion, a car is not for going fast. It is for going where no bus goes.
- Check the airport-to-lodging distance before comparing prices
- Book the car for the excursion days, not the whole stay
- Plan on a car if the plan includes a cirque or the volcano
- Check the property's parking when arriving in a hire car
What visitors say
2 comments
Aurélie
We landed at Roland Garros and had an hour and a half to Saint-Gilles. Without a car it was a taxi or nothing.
Michel
A week in Saint-Denis without a car: bus and walking were enough. We hired one for two days to reach the cirque.
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