Things to see and do West

Boasting exceptional views of the sea, lagoon and Saint-Leu, the de Châteauvieux family's former estate and its^19th-century outbuildings are quite simply magnificent. In 1857, the estate covered 660 hectares from the sea to the mountains. Its agricultural activity was based on sugar cane and geranium, as well as food crops, tea, cotton... Beer, cider and oil were also produced. Today, the park covers 13 hectares, 8 of which are open to visitors. Its primary vocation is to raise awareness of the island's cultural heritage, particularly its indigenous and endemic plant life. There are three botanical collections to discover: the Bas de l'Ouest forest, "lontan" plants, a Creole orchard, succulents, palms, orchids and ferns, world coffee trees, a cathedral bamboo gully and a collection composed exclusively of Bourbon roses. The guided tour lasts 45 minutes, but to explore the entire garden, you'll need a good two hours (beware, it's a bit of a climb!). We enjoy discovering the richness and diversity of the botanical collections as much as admiring the architecture of the former agricultural estate, both inside and out, while strolling through a well-organized, clean and well-maintained estate with magnificent views. We highly recommend it! There's also a souvenir store and a restaurant, Le Vieux Pressoir, offering decent Creole and metro cuisine.

Kélonia is at the same time a research centre, an observatory, a care centre and an educational centre. Built partly in the open air, this site offers a playful and interesting visit in the mysterious and vulnerable world of turtles. Accessible to the whole family, we strongly recommend the guided tours which are given by the care staff at 10 am, 11.30 am, 2 pm, 3.15 pm and 4.30 pm. You will find in the shop the latest works of the craftsmen working the tortoiseshell.

As you leave Saint-Leu on the Route du Littoral, just past Pointe-au-Sel, a parking lot offers a view of a powerful "souffleur", a curious geological phenomenon on the coast. The wave enters a rocky cavity, sucked into the jagged basalt cliffs. A few seconds after the backwash, the water that has remained in the hole is violently expelled in a spray several metres high. This is the great oceanic geyser, the fireworks display. A fascinating spectacle, especially when the ocean is rough.

Nestled in the district of Piton Saint-Leu, the museum tells, with a lot of originality, the history of the island. A history marked by the work of slaves and those engaged in the transformation of cane into sugar, and today by the fate of the workers who lived at the pace of this factory, closed in the 1970s. The content is truly interactive and at the cutting edge of technology with amusing and very successful holograms that explain, for example, the process of sugar crystallization. Allow at least half a day for a visit.

This educational farm is dedicated to the coconut. You'll discover all its secrets, from planting to processing and using the products: wood, fibers, cabbage-coconut, water, coconut milk and oil, shell crafts... Participatory workshops enable you to learn how to make coconut punch, braid the leaf, or grate the coconut to make cakes. If you want to tantalize your taste buds, think of the Coco Snack (11.30am-1.30pm) or the Saturday brunch (once a month, 9am-12pm, by reservation), all made with coconut, of course.

This is undoubtedly the hike that offers the best "minimum effort for a maximum view" ratio. From the car park, a path starts and reaches a fork 30 m further on. Take the direction of the Cap Noir, for about ten minutes of walking at the edge of a cliff of 1 000 m height from where you have an imposing panorama on Mafate. From there, you can either retrace your steps back to the car park or make a loop via the Verre-Bouteille rock. It's a very nice walk, but beware of the ladders that may make walkers sensitive to vertigo feel cold.

This is an original walk, open to all, even Sunday swimmers! Accompanied by an experienced guide, you will discover the richness of the Hermitage coral reef. A few strokes of the flippers, a bit of walking, three or four fathoms and you're done. Reassuring enough for the less adventurous, who should not hesitate to take advantage of this beautiful underwater adventure, free, safe and very instructive on the lagoon. The schedule of the trips is published at the beginning of each month on their Facebook page.

A typical Creole villa built at the end of the 18th century, in neoclassical style, the Villa Rivière comprises a stone main building and a wooden facade, with varangue and pilasters. On two levels, it brings together all the canons of classical composition and presents a rare architectural authenticity. The villa, its outbuildings and the garden have been listed as Historic Monuments since 1990. It is the only Creole hut of its kind open to the public. The guide, Marion, offers you an incredibly rich guided tour!

On the sea side, north of Saint-Paul; just follow the signs. This pond, which lazes in the sun in a pleasant undergrowth, was a fantastic food reserve for the settlers. If you are discreet, you can observe moorhens, herons and pawpaws. At the time of the Sunday picnic, the Reunionese families take possession of the green banks and the coconut grove. You can also go water skiing on the pond, or go for a jog on the very pleasant fitness trail along the ocean.

This is a walk not to be missed, whether you are on foot, on rollerblades, by bike or by car. At the Saint-Paul bus station, go under the bridge in the direction of the Grande Fontaine district. You'll find yourself in another world. It is best to get there early in the morning or just before nightfall to enjoy the subtle play of light and the special atmosphere of this island of greenery nestled in the heart of an immense coconut grove. The Tour des Roches takes about an hour on foot, plus 30 minutes if you reach your starting point.

Built facing the ocean in 1780, the marine cemetery is home to many characters who have marked the history of the island: the Desbassayns family, the poets Leconte De Lisle and Eugène Dayot or unfortunate Breton sailors, tragically shipwrecked in the middle of the Indian Ocean. The best time to visit this place of contemplation is undoubtedly late afternoon, when the sun sets over the magnificent bay of Saint-Paul. Ask the city's architecture and heritage animator for information on visits.

Located in the commune of Saint-Paul, Réunion's first "site-museum", built on a vast colonial estate, evokes the prosperity of a Creole family who left their mark on the island's history in the ^17th and ^19th centuries, during the era of slavery. This illustrious family, who built a sugar factory on their estate in Villèle in 1827, contributed to the island's economic development under the leadership of^Mme Desbassayns (1755-1846), an emblematic and highly controversial figure in Reunionese history. Her death marked the end of the estate's prosperity, which passed to the heirs, the fruit of an alliance with a noble family from Toulouse, the Villèle family. The guided tour takes in the master's house (where temporary educational, historical and artistic exhibitions take place), the master's kitchen outside the main building, the slave hospital (where a memorial was inaugurated in 1996) and the remains of the sugar factory. Finally, you can discover the small Pointed Chapel, built on a small hill between 1841 and 1843, a place of worship and the scene of the evangelization of the estate's slaves. The Musée de Villèle also boasts a number of collections, including period furniture, model ships, silverware, prints and lithographs... A fascinating visit that leaves no visitor indifferent. Educational tours are also organized.

This tropical ethno-botanical garden of 2.5 ha reconciles beauty, diversity and pedagogy. It was directed by Philippe Kaufmant, a passionate botanical engineer from Lorraine, who died in 1992, one year after the realization of his lifelong dream: an extraordinary garden. In addition to the 700 varieties of plant species (including plants endemic to Reunion Island), you may be lucky enough to observe cardinals, chameleons, black water hens with red beaks, serins and butterflies. There are also workshops and one-off events to be discovered on the website.

The town of Saint-Paul is built and stretches along the largest bay on the island. With its perfect curvature from the Port to Cap la Houssaye, it looks like a huge black sand beach, deserted... but forbidden for swimming because of the currents, swell and sharks. You can stroll along the landscaped path that runs along the coast, where lovers and families come to stroll and observe the 17th and 18th century cannons, before slipping into one of the perpendicular streets that will take you into the town.

The office is located at the north entrance of Saint-Leu. It covers the communes of Saint-Paul, La Possession, Le Port, Trois Bassins, Saint-Leu and the cirque of Mafate. In addition to the information provided, the team also handles reservations for your accommodation and leisure activities throughout the island, via the regional reservation platform. The office also organises all year round packs to discover the west of Reunion Island: the Zarlor, the treasures of the West.

The Saint-Gilles ravine, which flows from the Éperon to the Port of Saint-Gilles, feeds several heavenly pools and waterfalls. Beware, access to most of them is forbidden since 2002 by prefectural decree, and, if everyone ignores it and passes anyway, know that the paths leading to them are not always easy to practice. The ponds supply Saint-Gilles with water. It is for the sake of hygiene and because the community fears that they will become a public dumping ground that they are forbidden to enter.

This road was built under the authority of Mahé de La Bourdonnais in 1732, then paved with basalt stones in 1775, on the initiative of Governor Crémont. But it was in 1810, when the British invaded the island, that it took on the name of chemin des Anglais, as it gave them a strategic position from which to attack Saint-Denis by surprise and take the island from the French, who ceded it back to them in 1814. This path, the oldest on the island, stretches 9 km from La Possession to Grande Chaloupe, overlooking the ocean from the top of the cliff.

This is a superb gateway to the cirque de Mafate. Easy but fairly long, the Orangers canalisation path, located for the most part on the rampart wall of the cirque de Mafate, offers a magnificent panorama. A must: with each step, the view opens up a little more over the cirque to the îlet des Orangers. On the way back, the coast gradually reveals itself. This hike is a change from the usual access to Mafate via the Col des Boeufs or the Rivière des Galets.

La maison du Géranium is a small country distillery, in the heart of a vast botanical garden of 3 800 m² planted with medicinal and food species, run by a friendly couple. Mr, a distiller from father to son for three generations, explains the extraction process of the essence of geranium, cryptomeria or eucalyptus... Everything depends on the day and what is simmering on the fire of the big still, condemned to sweat big drops of natural essences. Madame welcomes you in the souvenir shop, full of essential oils.