What You Need to Know About Réunion
We are currently presenting to you a French overseas single-department region, also called DOM. It is an island located off the Indian Ocean, more precisely located to the west of the African continent. The fact is that the department’s area is 2,512 km2, with a population of 861,210 inhabitants, this department has a population density of 343 inhabitants per km2.
Administratively, the status of 974 is “overseas department and region,” which means it has a regional and departmental capital and also has 4 arrondissements, namely: Saint-Benoît, Saint-Denis, Saint-Paul, Saint-Pierre. Its cantons number 25, communes number 24, and intercommunalities number 5.
What Is the Geography of Réunion Like?
Given its location in the Indian Ocean, the countries closest to Réunion are: Madagascar at 679 km and Mauritius at 172 km. It is also known that it is the westernmost island of the archipelago called Mascarenes, which also includes Mauritius and Rodrigues, which is also an integral part of the Republic of Mauritius. As mentioned above, this Mascarenes archipelago is located to the east-southeast of the African continent.
What Is the Climate of Réunion Like?
Réunion, being part of the tropical countries of the southern hemisphere, has a fairly temperate humid tropical climate. The fact is that this climate is strongly influenced by the trade winds (winds coming from the east and blowing westward).
Moreover, the climate of Réunion is very variable because the island’s territory is mainly dominated by rugged terrain that generates many microclimates. So on the island, there are many disparities, but also milder temperatures on the coasts and cooler temperatures inland.
As for the seasons, the way to distinguish them is by the precipitation rate.
- First, there is a rainy season that usually occurs between January and March, meaning that during this period there is a lot of precipitation, and also, this is the period with the most precipitation in the year.
- Second, there is the dry season, which normally takes place between May and November; this season is mainly pronounced in the eastern parts and in the foothills of the volcanic mountain ranges. Also, even during this so-called dry season, there could be large amounts of rain.
- Finally, there are the so-called “transition” periods because during these periods it rains a lot, but sometimes these months can also be dry. These are generally the months of April and December.
When we now talk about temperature, we know that the seasons in the department of Réunion are characterized by mild and constant temperatures throughout the year. Added to this is the fact that temperatures display a range of about 10°C throughout the year.
- First, when we talk about the hot season, normally from November to April, there are minimum temperatures ranging between 21 and 24°C and then maximum temperatures ranging between 28 and 31°C. At altitudes above 1000 m, there are average minimum temperatures that can range between 10 and 14°C. And finally, when we talk about average maximum temperatures, they are between 21 and 24°C.
- Then, when we talk about the cool season, a season generally between May and October, temperatures during this season range around 17 to 20°C. From the average of the average maximums, we know that temperatures range around 26 to 28°C. As soon as you go up to 1000 m altitude, the average minimum temperatures range around 17 to 21°C.
What are the most important cities of Réunion ?
We have compiled for you a list of the 15 main cities of Réunion.
- Saint-Denis
- Saint-Paul
- Cilaos
- Saint-Pierre
- La Possession
- Saint-Joseph
- Sainte-Marie
- Salazie
- Le Tampon
- Sainte Suzanne
- Le Port
- Entre-Deux
- Sainte-Rose
- l’Etang-Salé
- Petite Île
What are the largest communes of Réunion ?
To establish this ranking, we referred to the area of the communes in the department of Réunion, so here are the 10 largest communes of 974:
- Saint-Joseph
- Saint-Benoît
- Saint-Paul
- Saint-Philippe
- Sainte-Suzanne
- Saint-André
- Sainte-Rose
- Sainte-Marie
- Saint-Leu
- Salazie
