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La Réunion is only the size of Dorset, but rises more than 10,000ft out of the Indian Ocean about 140 miles west of Mauritius. It comprises two volcanoes that merged to form the island: one is still active, erupting on average every nine months; the other blew itself to bits 200,000 years ago, leaving only three vast cirques, up to 10 miles wide. This natural violence has created a land of heart-stopping beauty. Walkers will experience everything from lush dairy pastures to deserts of bright-red ash. A two-centre holiday combining Réunion and Mauritius makes a pleasing contrast (Air Mauritius’s LondonRéunion flight stops at both).

The six-hour walk to the summit of Réunion’s active volcano (Piton de la Fournaise) is a haunting climb through coulées of fantastical, lifeless lava. Alternatively, the trek through the Mafate caldera: unreachable by car, it’s a lost world of giant ferns, wild rivers and villages whose inhabitants are the descendants of runaway slaves.

This is a département of France, so there’s no shortage of good, regulated accommodation. Try to stay in one of Mafate’s villages. For an excellent booking service, try resa. reunion.fr.

Not essential, but local knowledge greatly enhances the experience. Alexis Vincent (ayapanareunion.com) speaks good English, and groups should expect to pay €45-€60 (£39-£52) per person. Maps are widely available, and there are more than 600 miles of marked trails.

Medium to high; the best walks are seldom less than six hours, and the going can be steep.

reunion.fr Waitukubuli, meaning “tall is her body”, now headlines a 155-mile national trail that runs the length of the island. It would take two weeks to walk in full, so most visitors tackle various sections graded easy to advanced. Along with diving, hiking is a chief reason to come to Dominica. Challenges include a six-hour round trip to the steaming Boiling Lake in Morne Trois Pitons National Park, and an ascent of Morne Diablotin, the island’s highest point at 4,747ft. A sign at its trailhead sets out the blunt task ahead: you will be climbing from 1,900ft to 4,747ft. The first half follows a winding staircase of