Éric
From the Pointe au Sel, humpbacks are easy to see with the naked eye in August.
Seasons
Saint-Leu: the humpback whale season
La Réunion6 minby Camille Revest
Humpbacks spend several months in Réunion's water, between June and October. Their presence shifts what the west coast offers: the Pointe au Sel becomes the main watching point.
Humpbacks come to Réunion's warm water each year and stay several months. They arrive from June and leave around October, with a clearly heavier concentration in August.
The season is not decoration: it decides what you see from shore, and how far out. A stay outside it can still be pleasant, but it carries no sighting guarantee.
The Pointe au Sel
The Pointe au Sel is Saint-Leu's main watching point. A dry-stone wall separates the road from the shore, and the view carries far over the lagoon and the reef.
You recognise them by the rostrum, when the head clears the water, and by the hump when they dive. The blows show too, as columns of vapour, several hundred metres out.
- Binoculars help, though naked-eye watching is possible in August
- Wind is frequent on the point: a jacket cuts it
- The wall is low: stay behind it, especially with children
- Boat trips run from Saint-Leu and Saint-Gilles
The Pointe des Châteaux and La Saline
The Pointe des Châteaux sits before you enter Saint-Leu, on the same open shore. It gives a second angle on the open water, useful when the swell hides the lagoon from the Pointe au Sel.
Further south, La Saline-les-Bains and the hamlet of Le Tévelave continue the coast. The Route des Tamarins cuts through the ridges and shortens the trip from the north-west considerably.
Planning a season stay
August packs in both the sightings and the visitors. The rest of the season still delivers, with fewer people on the beaches and the road. Booking on the west side saves a full day of driving.
| Presence | Visitors | Weather | Suited to | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June | Arrival, first sightings | Low | Austral winter settling in | Anyone wanting the coast to themselves |
| July | Regular | Moderate | Dry and clear | Walking and sea |
| August | Peak presence | The heaviest | Dry, windy | Watching first |
| September to October | Gradual departures | Falling away | Heat returning | Late season, quiet |
The whale season, month by month.
June
- Presence
- Arrival, first sightings
- Visitors
- Low
- Weather
- Austral winter settling in
- Suited to
- Anyone wanting the coast to themselves
July
- Presence
- Regular
- Visitors
- Moderate
- Weather
- Dry and clear
- Suited to
- Walking and sea
August
- Presence
- Peak presence
- Visitors
- The heaviest
- Weather
- Dry, windy
- Suited to
- Watching first
September to October
- Presence
- Gradual departures
- Visitors
- Falling away
- Weather
- Heat returning
- Suited to
- Late season, quiet
You cannot choose the day the whales pass. You can choose the day you stand on the point.
- Aim for the Pointe au Sel late in the morning, when the light comes head-on over the water.
- Come back the next day rather than waiting longer: the passes do not repeat.
- Go down to La Saline-les-Bains in the afternoon, on the same road.
- Keep one unplanned day, in case the conditions turn.
What visitors say
2 comments
Sonia
The wind blows hard through the austral winter: bring a jacket to the point.
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