The Piton des Neiges is a 3,069 m (10,069 ft) shield volcano on Réunion, one of the French volcanic islands in the Mascarene Archipelago in the southwestern Indian Ocean. It is located about 800 kilometres (500 mi) east of Madagascar. Piton des Neiges is the highest point on Réunion and is considered to be the highest point in the Indian Ocean. The volcano was formed by the Réunion hotspot and emerged from the sea about two million years ago. Now deeply eroded, the volcano has been inactive for 20,000 years and is surrounded by three massive crater valleys, the Cirques. The Piton des Neiges forms the northwestern two-thirds of Réunion, with the very active Piton de la Fournaise comprising the rest. As its name suggests, snow is occasionally seen on its summit in winter. The Piton des Neiges is ranked 14th in the world by topographic isolation.
Piton des Neiges, October 2003
A panoramic view near to the Gîte de la Caverne Dufour.
The island of Reunion with the three central Cirques, with the ridge summit of the Piton des Neiges in the northwest centre (lighter brown area). The white spot on the crater edge to the southeast of the summit is the alpine hut.
Sunrise from the top of Piton des Neiges.
Réunion, officially Department of Réunion, is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. Part of the Mascarene Islands, it is located approximately 679 km (422 mi) east of the island of Madagascar and 175 km (109 mi) southwest of the island of Mauritius. As of January 2024, it had a population of 885,700. Its capital and largest city is Saint-Denis.
An 1816 ten-centime coin from Réunion, from when it was still called Isle de Bourbon
Statue of Mahé de La Bourdonnais in Saint-Denis
Hindu festival, 19th century
Palais de la Source, seat of the Departmental Council of Réunion