Overseas region of the French Republic under Article 73 of the Constitution. French and European Union law apply, subject to adaptations; it is an outermost region of the European Union.
National Identity
- Official name
- Réunion
- Official name (in French)
- La Réunion
Source:- La Réunion ↗ - Ministry in Charge of Overseas Territories
- National flag
- National anthem
- La MarseillaiseThe national anthem of France.1:19
- Title (in French)
- La Marseillaise
- Title (in English, translated)
- The Song of Marseille
- Lyrics
1Allons enfants de la Patrie, Le jour de gloire est arrivé! Contre nous de la tyrannie, L’étendard sanglant est levé! L’étendard sanglant est levé! Entendez-vous dans les campagnes Mugir ces féroces soldats? Ils viennent jusque dans nos bras Egorger nos fils et nos compagnes!
ChorusAux armes, citoyens! Formez vos bataillons! Marchons! marchons! Qu’un sang impur Abreuve nos sillons!
2Que veut cette horde d’esclaves, De traîtres, de rois conjurés? Pour qui ces ignobles entraves, Ces fers dès longtemps préparés? Ces fers dès longtemps préparés? Français, pour nous, ah! quel outrage! Quels transports il doit exciter! C’est nous qu’on ose méditer De rendre à l’antique esclavage!
Aux armes, citoyens!3Quoi ! ces cohortes étrangères Feraient la loi dans nos foyers! Quoi ! ces phalanges mercenaires Terrasseraient nos fiers guerriers! Terrasseraient nos fiers guerriers! Grand Dieu ! par des mains enchaînées Nos fronts sous le joug se ploieraient! De vils despotes deviendraient Les maîtres de nos destinées!
Aux armes, citoyens!4Tremblez, tyrans et vous perfides, L’opprobre de tous les partis, Tremblez ! vos projets parricides Vont enfin recevoir leurs prix! Vont enfin recevoir leurs prix! Tout est soldat pour vous combattre, S’ils tombent, nos jeunes héros, La terre en produit de nouveaux, Contre vous tout prêts à se battre!
Aux armes, citoyens!5Français, en guerriers magnanimes, Portez ou retenez vos coups! Epargnez ces tristes victimes, A regret s’armant contre nous. A regret s’armant contre nous. Mais ces despotes sanguinaires, Mais ces complices de Bouillé, Tous ces tigres qui, sans pitié, Déchirent le sein de leur mère!
Aux armes, citoyens!6Amour sacré de la Patrie, Conduis, soutiens nos bras vengeurs! Liberté, Liberté chérie, Combats avec tes défenseurs! Combats avec tes défenseurs! Sous nos drapeaux, que la victoire Accoure à tes mâles accents! Que tes ennemis expirants Voient ton triomphe et notre gloire !
Aux armes, citoyens!7Nous entrerons dans la carrière Quand nos aînés n’y seront plus; Nous y trouverons leur poussière Et la trace de leurs vertus. Et la trace de leurs vertus. Bien moins jaloux de leur survivre Que de partager leur cercueil, Nous aurons le sublime orgueil De les venger ou de les suivre !
Aux armes, citoyens!Source:
- Official name:La Réunion ↗ - Ministry in Charge of Overseas Territories
- National anthem:nationalanthems.info ↗
Geography
- Location
- Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
- Total area
- 2,512 km²
- Land area
- 2,512 km²
- Water area
- 0.00 km²
- Coastline
- 207 km
- Terrain
Mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast - Climate
Tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry (May to November), hot and rainy (November to April) - Avg. temperature
- 20.6 °C
- Avg. daily range
- 18.8 to 22.8 °C
- Annual precipitation
- 1,587 mm
Temperature °CMeanDaily rangePrecipitation mmMonthly climate normals Month Avg. high, °C Mean, °C Avg. low, °C Precipitation, mm January 25.4 23.3 21.6 266 February 25.5 23.4 21.8 265 March 25.1 23.1 21.4 235 April 24.3 22.2 20.5 109 May 22.5 20.4 18.7 106 June 20.8 18.7 17 69 July 19.9 17.7 15.9 70 August 20 17.7 15.8 65 September 20.8 18.3 16.3 61 October 22 19.6 17.5 70 November 23.3 20.9 18.9 101 December 24.6 22.4 20.5 169 Country-wide averages over 1991–2020.
Sources:- The World Factbook: Réunion - CIA
- Climate Change Knowledge Portal (ERA5 reanalysis) ↗ - World Bank
- Weather
- Loading
- Land use2023
- Arable10.2%Perm. crops1.2%Pasture5.2%Forest30.7%Other52.7%
- Arable land
- 25,538 hectares (10.2%)
- Permanent crops
- 3,127 hectares (1.2%)
- Permanent meadows & pastures
- 12,962 hectares (5.2%)
- Forest
- 77,118 hectares (30.7%)
- Other land
- 132,255 hectares (52.7%)
Source:
- Location, Coastline, Terrain, Climate:The World Factbook: Réunion - CIA
- Climate:Climate Change Knowledge Portal (ERA5 reanalysis) ↗ - World Bank
- Land use:FAOSTAT Land Use domain ↗ - FAO
Demographics
- Population change2026
- +0.44% per year+3,892 people/yearWorld Rank145thof 237
- Birth rate
- 12.8 per 1,000 population
- Death rate
- 5.9 per 1,000 population
- Net migration rate
- −2.3 per 1,000 population
- 2026
- 38.4 yearsWorld Rank82ndof 237
- Age structure2026
- 0-14 years20.2%15-64 years63.0%65 years +16.9%
- Share aged 65 and over
- 16.9%
- Share aged under 18
- 24.6%
- Total dependency ratio
- 59
- Youth dependency ratio
- 32
- Elderly dependency ratio
- 27
- Sex ratio
- 0.9 male / female
MaleAgeFemalePopulation by age group, % of total population Age Male Female 80+ 1.5% 2.3% 70-79 3.4% 4.1% 60-69 6.0% 6.4% 50-59 6.3% 7.1% 40-49 5.5% 6.7% 30-39 5.0% 6.1% 20-29 5.9% 6.0% 10-19 7.4% 7.3% 0-9 6.6% 6.4% - 2026
- 0.12 above the replacement level for Réunion ()2.12 births per womanreplacement 2.00123World Rank101stof 237
- 1.03 daughters per woman0.03 above replacement, long-run each generation larger than the lastreplacement 1.000.511.5
- 2026
- +6.8 per 1,000 populationfor every 1,000 people, 6.8 more births than deaths a year
- 2026
- −2.3 per 1,000 population
- Urbanization2026
- 97.3% live in cities862,041 urban residents
- Largest communes2023
- Saint-Denis, Saint-Paul, Saint-Pierre, Le TamponRankCommunePopulation (2023 estimate)1Saint-Denis155,6342Saint-Paul108,0883Saint-Pierre85,0384Le Tampon82,5795Saint-André58,8856Saint-Louis54,9417Saint-Joseph39,2078Saint-Benoît38,6049Sainte-Marie37,09310La Possession36,568Source:
- National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies, France (2023 estimate), via City Population by Thomas Brinkhoff ↗
- Languages
- French (Français)
- Population, Population change, Median age, Age structure, Total fertility rate, Net reproduction rate, Natural change, Net migration rate:UN World Population Prospects ↗
- Urbanization:UN World Urbanization Prospects ↗
- Largest cities:National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies, France (2023 estimate), via City Population by Thomas Brinkhoff ↗
Government & Administration
- Form of state
- RepublicShared with France: the President of the French Republic is head of state.La Réunion is part of the French Republic, named in the Constitution as an overseas department and region governed by Article 73 (Arts. 1, 72-3).
- System of government
- Parent state's system appliesFrance's system applies: the President of the Republic appoints the Prime Minister, whose Government answers to the French Parliament; locally, elected councils administer the department and region, with no government of their own (Arts. 8, 20, 72).
- Official websites
- Parliament (in French)
- Capital
- Saint-Denis154,765 people(2021)
- National holidays
- 12 days in 2026
- ThuJan 1New Year's Day
- MonApr 6Easter Monday
- FriMay 1Labor Day
- FriMay 8Victory Day
- ThuMay 14Ascension Day
- MonMay 25Pentecost Monday
- TueJul 14National Day
- SatAug 15Assumption Day
- SunNov 1All Saints' Day
- WedNov 11Armistice Day
- SunDec 20Abolition of Slavery
- FriDec 25Christmas Day
Nationwide public holidays only, excluding regional, bank and government-only days.
- Time
- RETRéunion TimeUTC+4
- Currency
- Euro (EUR)
- Entry requirements
- Official visa and entry information
- Calling code
- +262
- Internet TLD
- .re
- ISO 3166-1 codes
- RE, REU
- Flag carrier
- Air Austral (in French)Partly state-owned
- Form of state, System of government:Constitution de la République française du 4 octobre 1958, texte intégral en vigueur, as at the constitutional revision of 8 March 2024 ↗ - Constitutional Council of France
- National holidays:Open World Holidays Framework (vacanza/holidays) ↗
Economy
Cost of Living
- Average gross salary2012latest available
- €2,714 per month$3,487 (USD)
- Men
- €2,804 per month($3,602)
- Women
- €2,604 per month($3,345)
Source:- ILOSTAT ↗ - International Labour Organization
- Average gross salary:ILOSTAT ↗ - International Labour Organization
Society
- Inbound tourists2022
- Official tourism site495,000 arrivalsdown 7% against 20197% below 2019World Rank102ndof 139
- Per resident
- 5.7 arrivals per 10 residents
- Same-day visitors
- 38,400 arrivals(2020, latest available)
- Visitor spending in the country
- $439 million
- Spending per arrival
- $887
- 3.3% tourism direct GDP(2019, latest available)
- Hotel beds
- 6,185(2020, latest available)
- Average hotel stay
- 15.8 nights(2020, latest available)
Overnight arrivals by year2010 to 2022A tourist stays at least one night. Arrivals count trips, not people.
Source:- UN Tourism Data Dashboard ↗ - UN Tourism
- Inbound tourists:UN Tourism Data Dashboard ↗ - UN Tourism
Crime & Safety
- Prison population2021
- 137.5 per 100,000 people
- Persons held
- 1,194
Source:- UNODC Data Portal ↗ - UN Office on Drugs and Crime
- Prison population:UNODC Data Portal ↗ - UN Office on Drugs and Crime
Health
- Life expectancy2026
- 83.9 years
- Infant mortality2026
- 4.0 per 1,000 live births
- Life expectancy, Infant mortality:UN World Population Prospects ↗
Environment
- CO₂ emissions2024
- 2.67 Mt per yearup 2 percent on the previous year2% from 2023
- CO₂ per capita
- 2.9 t per personWorld Rank98thof 207
- Share of global CO₂
- 0.01%
- Methane (CH₄)
- 0.24 Mt CO₂-eq
- Nitrous oxide (N₂O)
- 0.12 Mt CO₂-eq
- All greenhouse gases
- 3.03 Mt CO₂-eq
Source:- Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) ↗ - European Commission, Joint Research Centre
- 2024
- 2.7 µg/m³ of PM2.5Most polluted215thof 236
- WHO guideline
- 5 µg/m³
Source:- Air Quality Life Index ↗ - Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago
- CO₂ emissions:Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) ↗ - European Commission, Joint Research Centre
- Air pollution:Air Quality Life Index ↗ - Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago