The Maïdo is a viewpoint perched at around 2,200 metres, just above the cirque of Mafate. It sits in the hills above Saint-Paul, on the west coast of Réunion Island, the French island in the Indian Ocean. We went up one morning in early November 2024 for sunrise, then hiked on to the Grand Bénare.
Here is what I took away from it. I cover how to get to the Maïdo and what time to arrive. I also cover what you can do there with or without hiking boots, and what is worth knowing before you set off. When a detail is missing (a bus timetable, for instance), I tell you so instead of guessing.
The Maïdo on Réunion Island: where it is and what you can see
The official Réunion tourism website places the viewpoint at 2,200 m. Other sources say 2,205 m, so we are talking about a few metres either way. You will also come across the name Piton Maïdo for the same place.
Right in front of you is Mafate, a cirque: a vast natural amphitheatre of rock walls. You can only reach it on foot or by helicopter. We crossed it during the GR R2. I covered the villages, the gîtes and the access routes in my article on the cirque of Mafate. The Maïdo is the opposite: a viewpoint you reach by car, from outside the cirque.
Maïdo viewpoint: the view over Mafate
The car park is right at the viewpoint, so the view is never far from your car. If you carry on hiking, the Grand Bord trail follows the edge of the rampart. Roche Plate, La Nouvelle and the Piton des Neiges are in your sights. About 600 metres after the start, a small mound topped with a statue also opens up the view over the west coast.
What stays with us is Mafate at the moment the day breaks, as I told it in our 10-day itinerary in Réunion.
How to get to the Maïdo
You drive up, along a forest road. Buses and opening hours are less clear, so I tell you what I found and, above all, what I did not find.
Driving up to the Maïdo
The official tourism website counts about an hour of driving from Saint-Paul. It describes the route like this: the Route des Tamarins, the Maïdo exit at Éperon, then Fleurimont, Guillaume and Petite France. Lonely Planet talks about a forest road in good condition but very winding, around twenty kilometres long from Guillaume, through a tamarind forest.
I did not find any official opening hours for this road. CityZeum points out that roadworks or the weather can close it temporarily, or close the viewpoint. Check the local information on the day.
Getting to the Maïdo by bus: what I could not confirm
The simplest option is still the car, as almost everywhere on the island (I said so in our holiday article already). Komoot says public transport to the viewpoint is limited. A Visorando page mentions a “Sentier Maïdo” stop served by bus 2 from Saint-Paul. It carries no date, though, so I am not giving you any timetable. Check the network’s website before counting on it, and plan how you will get back down.
Parking at the Maïdo
The car park is at the viewpoint. CityZeum describes it as free, but I have no official source to confirm that. As for finding a space, Komoot advises arriving before 8am, and a hiker quoted on Decathlon Outdoor says they found one easily around 7am. For sunrise, you will be there much earlier than that.
What time to go to the Maïdo?
It depends on what you came for: sunrise, the hike, or simply the view.
Maïdo sunrise: what time to arrive
In early November, the sun rises around 5:35am in Saint-Paul. Réunion time is UTC+4, so four hours ahead of the UK in winter and three in summer. It changes with the season, so look up the time for your date. The drive takes about an hour, so leaving the coast around 4:15am should get you there around 5:15am. That is my own calculation, not a rule. Keep some margin for the bends and for finding a space.
On my GPS track, the hike starts at 5:55am, which is after sunrise time in Saint-Paul. I can no longer remember what time we reached the viewpoint, so I am not writing it down.
Later in the morning, the clouds build up
The guides I read all repeat the same thing: set off early. The official tourism website recommends being at the top of the Grand Bénare before 10am, because the clouds then settle along the ramparts of Mafate. On my track, we were there at 9:45am.
Check the weather before you go
I did not find an official webcam at the summit. The ones Windfinder lists around the Maïdo show the beach or Saint-Denis, not the viewpoint, so I do not recommend any of them. Mountain-Forecast offers a forecast at 2,205 m, including the cloud base. I do not have enough hindsight to tell you which figure guarantees a clear view, but it gives you an idea before you get up at 4am.
Safety and respect for nature at altitude
Up there, you are nowhere near the temperatures of the coast. Decathlon Outdoor points out that “Benara” means “great cold” in Malagasy, and that the summit of the Grand Bénare can be freezing even in summer. The official tourism website recommends warm clothes in winter, and a hat and sun cream in summer (there is no shade). It also says to carry all your water, because there is none on the massif.
According to Decathlon Outdoor, the Maïdo lies in the heart of the Réunion National Park. The Département’s advice booklet for hikers is blunt about it: you take your rubbish back, organic waste included. That means peelings and apple cores too.
The Maïdo has burned before. The fire that started on 6 November 2020 at around 7pm was only brought under control on 19 November. So no fires or barbecues outside the designated areas, and no cigarette ends thrown into the forest or out of the car window.
Stay on the trail, which is waymarked in white. It runs along the edge of the rampart, and the stony descent is hard on knees and ankles according to the reviews quoted by Decathlon Outdoor.
What to do at the Maïdo: the view, then the hike
Just the viewpoint, no walking
If you have neither hiking boots nor the whole morning, the viewpoint is enough for the view over Mafate, as the car park is right next to it. Operators also offer quad bike outings or mountain bike descents from the area, according to Manawa. We tested none of it, so I have no opinion or price to give you.
Our hike from the Maïdo to the Grand Bénare
The classic route starts from the car park on the Grand Bord trail, waymarked in white. The page of the official tourism website rates it “difficult”, for about 6 hours of walking. Here is what my GPS track from 2 November 2024 says:
- Distance: 16.4 km, as a loop
- Elevation gain: about 800 m
- Start at 5:55am at the viewpoint (2,187 m), summit at 9:45am at kilometre 7.6, back at 12:28pm
- Duration: 6 hours 33 minutes in all, including about 4 hours 40 minutes moving
- Maximum altitude: 2,910 m on my GPS, against 2,896 m on the official tourism page
The guides do not agree with each other. You will find between 15 and 17 km, and from 600 to over 1,000 m of elevation gain, depending on the source (15.4 km and about 858 m for the official site, 16.2 km for Decathlon Outdoor). Take my figures as an example from real life, not as a reference.
My way back does not follow the same trail as the way up. The Decathlon Outdoor page describes the classic loop returning by the Grand Bénare trail, then the Glacière. It also mentions the variant of retracing your steps to shorten the day.
At the summit, that same page lists views of Mafate, Cilaos and the Gros Morne, and of the Piton de la Fournaise when the sky is clear. With six hours of walking and no water point, fill your bottles before leaving the coast.
An easy walk: the Glacière
For a quieter hike from the Maïdo, Decathlon Outdoor describes a route on a gentle slope from the car park to the Glacière cave, a historic site that served as a natural ice house. According to that same source, it is the least sporty of the walks starting here. I will let you read the page for the duration and the details.
Hiking down to Roche Plate
The Maïdo is also a starting point for going down to Roche Plate, in Mafate. Decathlon Outdoor describes a long, steep descent to La Brèche, then the trail to the îlet. In my Mafate article, I write that you reach it by a trail from the Maïdo, or from Marla for more experienced hikers.
We got there from Marla during the GR R2 stage, and the Maïdo is one of the viewpoints you can spot from over there.
Frequently asked questions about the Maïdo
Can you get to the Maïdo without a car?
Not easily. Public transport to the viewpoint is limited according to Komoot, and I did not find an up-to-date official bus timetable. Sort out your way back before you go.
Is the Maïdo viewpoint open every day?
It is accessible all year, but roadworks or the weather can close the road or the site. Check before you leave.
How long should you allow?
For the viewpoint alone, I have no sourced duration. Count the drive (about an hour from Saint-Paul) and the time you spend there. For the hike to the Grand Bénare, the official tourism website says 6 hours, and we took 6 hours 33 minutes with breaks.
What is the best time to go to the Maïdo?
Early. For sunrise, the sun rises around 5:35am in Saint-Paul in early November, and leaving the coast around 4:15am should get you to the viewpoint around 5:15am (my own calculation). For a clear view of Mafate, the official tourism website advises being at the Grand Bénare before 10am, before the clouds settle along the ramparts.
What to do at the Maïdo when it is cloudy?
Head back down to the coast. There is the Saint-Paul market (where we tried samosas) and Boucan Canot beach, two stops on our itinerary in Réunion. If your stay allows it, you can also try again the next morning.
Where to eat near the Maïdo viewpoint?
I did not test any place, so I am not recommending one. Generation Voyage and Komoot mention a picnic area on the road and small tables along the climb. The safest option is to bring your own picnic and water, since there is no water point on the massif.