How Many Airports in Reunion Island

Réunion Island maintains two functioning airports separated by roughly 70 kilometers of mountainous terrain, a configuration dictated by the island's volcanic topography and the concentration of population and tourism infrastructure along opposite coasts. Roland Garros Airport anchors the northern corridor near the capital Saint-Denis, while Pierrefonds Airport serves the sunnier, drier south where beach resorts cluster between Saint-Pierre and Saint-Leu. Roland Garros carries the overwhelming majority of passenger traffic. Named after the French aviation pioneer born in Saint-Denis, the facility opened in its current form in 1994 after replacing the older Gillot airfield. It operates 24 hours a day, year-round, with no seasonal closures. Long-haul carriers from Paris, Marseille, and Lyon land here, as do regional jets from Johannesburg, Nairobi, and Antananarivo. The terminal is free to enter, and both airports maintain the same access policy: no entrance fee, open around the clock for arriving and departing passengers. Pierrefonds handles a narrower slice of traffic. The airport serves travelers headed to the western beaches or the Cirque de Cilaos without the need to cross the island by road. Air Austral and Air Mauritius operate the majority of routes, focusing on short hops to Mauritius, Rodrigues, and Mayotte. The runway is shorter than Roland Garros, limiting the aircraft types that can land, and scheduling revolves around daylight operations despite the formal 24-hour designation. When researching how many airports in Reunion Island, the answer shapes every logistical decision: international visitors arrive at Roland Garros, but those continuing to southern or western accommodations face either a 90-minute drive or a short onward flight to Pierrefonds. Neither airport charges an entry fee, and both terminals remain accessible at all hours, though commercial flight schedules follow their own rhythms. Helicopter tour operators based near Roland Garros offer an alternative perspective on the island's dual-airport geography, with routes that trace the coast from Sainte-Marie to Saint-Pierre, passing directly over the volcanic interior that necessitated two separate facilities in the first place.