Some quick thoughts/advice for anyone else that wants to visit Reunion:
1. Most English-language travel resources either have nothing on Reunion, or they actual recommend against it due to the language barrier. So you'll spend a lot of time research stuff on the internet, particularly using Google Translate with French-language reviews and travel websites. That said, the Lonely Planet guide was pretty good (it also covers Mauritius and the Seychelles).
2. Don't let the language thing throw you too much. It's 100% true that the vast majority of the Island speaks near-zero English.... but the few English speakers are definitely concentrated in the hospitality industry. That, and we found that everyone on the island was very patient, so between my crappy French (2 years in high school, almost 30 years ago), a phrase book, some pantomiming, and a lot of back and forth (once or twice invoking yet another language, like an innkeeper that knew German well), and once or twice relying on the kindness of fellow travelers (many of the French tourists actually speak English well, although some of them find the local accent and the heavy use of Creole challenging as well), it mostly worked out.
3. It used to be hard to get to, but there are two relatively easy, if long, routes to do it: direct flights from Paris (10.5 hours), or direct flights from London to Mauritius and a short hop over (about 12 hours total). Buying slightly off-peak and long in advance, we found the tickets relatively cheap.
4. A rental car is more or less essential, and I'd really, really, really recommend practicing your stick-shift skills if you live in a non-hilly area. I live in the backwoods of VT/NH, and the roads here are *nothing* in comparison, Reunion is covered with narrow, steep roads with many switchbacks and much spirited driving.
5. Most of the housing on Reunion isn't hotels (there are a few hotels and resorts), but informal guesthouses known as "gites" (pronounced "zheet"), ranging from modest accommodations (a bed with a restroom down the hall, such as some of the mountain gites we stayed in) to fairly elaborate, well-appointed rooms in a house with large common areas and dinner served up with the other guests at a fairly formal, large dinner (a "Table d'Host")
6. Mostly, skip the capital, St Denis. It's crowded, has heavy traffic, and is centered on governmental stuff. It's like downtown Nassau, and that's not a particularly complimentary thing to say. We spent three days there, and realistically, we should have just driven to the other side of the island immediately.