Suriname, French Guiana & Guyana: 9 Days Rainforest & Culture Adventure

Tour Overview

Itinerary Highlights

Day 1: Arrive Paramaribo — Suriname’s UNESCO Capital

Arrive at Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport. Transfer to your hotel in Paramaribo, whose historic inner city is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Evening walk through the Palm Garden (Palmentuin) behind the Presidential Palace. Overnight in Paramaribo.

Day 2: Paramaribo — Where Cultures Meet

Full-day walking tour of Paramaribo’s extraordinary multicultural heritage. Visit Fort Zeelandia, the 17th-century Dutch fortress. Walk past the monumental wooden St. Peter and Paul Cathedral — the largest wooden structure in the Western Hemisphere. Visit the Neveh Shalom Synagogue and the adjacent mosque — arguably the most beautiful symbol of religious harmony anywhere in the world, two houses of worship sharing a parking lot in peace. Explore the Waterkant (waterfront), Independence Square, and the lively Central Market with its Javanese, Hindustani, Creole, and Chinese food stalls. Overnight in Paramaribo.

Day 3: Commewijne Plantations & Dolphin Spotting

Morning drive to the Commewijne District across the Suriname River. Visit the former Peperpot Plantation, now a nature park where coffee and cocoa once grew and howler monkeys swing through old plantation trees. Visit Fort Nieuw Amsterdam, an 18th-century Dutch fort with a fascinating open-air museum. Afternoon: sunset boat cruise on the Commewijne River watching for the famous Suriname river dolphins (tucuxi), one of the few dolphin species that live in both fresh and salt water. Visit a Javanese village for authentic Indonesian-Surinamese cuisine. Overnight in Paramaribo.

Day 4: Brownsberg Nature Park — Into the Rainforest

Drive into Suriname’s interior to Brownsberg Nature Park, a 6,000-hectare reserve atop a 500-meter plateau. Hike through primary rainforest — the sounds alone are overwhelming. Your guide helps you spot howler monkeys, capuchins, toucans, and brilliant morpho butterflies. The climax: a viewpoint over the vast Brokopondo Reservoir with its eerie “skeleton forest” — dead trees standing in the flooded lake, a hauntingly beautiful landscape. Swim in a pristine waterfall pool in the heart of the jungle. Overnight near Brownsberg.

Day 5: French Guiana — Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni

Cross the Maroni River at Albina into French Guiana, an overseas department of France. It’s a surreal transition — from Suriname’s developing-world chaos to French order and the euro. Visit the Camp de la Transportation in Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni, the infamous prison where convicts arrived before being sent to Devil’s Island. The cells, solitary confinement blocks, and the guillotine courtyard tell a chilling story. Overnight at Hotel Atlantis overlooking Lac Bois Devil.

Day 6: Devil’s Island — The Prison of Papillon

Drive to Kourou and board a catamaran to the Îles du Salut (Salvation Islands). Visit Devil’s Island — yes, THAT Devil’s Island — the most infamous penal colony in history where French political prisoners including Captain Alfred Dreyfus were incarcerated. Walk through the crumbling prison buildings, the guard towers, the hospital, and the cemetery where prisoners who died here are buried. The beauty of the island — palm trees, turquoise water, and friendly macaws — makes its history even more powerful. Overnight in Kourou.

Day 7: Guiana Space Centre & Cayenne

Morning visit to the Guiana Space Centre (Centre Spatial Guyanais), Europe’s primary spaceport. This is where Ariane rockets launch satellites into orbit from a launch pad surrounded by tropical jungle — one of the world’s most extraordinary juxtapositions of technology and nature. Visit the Space Museum to see actual rockets and learn about the European space program. Afternoon: drive to Cayenne, French Guiana’s colorful capital. Explore the palm-lined Place des Palmistes, the Cayenne Market with its Amazonian crafts and spices, and the Fort Cépérou with views over the city. Overnight in Cayenne.

Day 8: Cayenne to Georgetown — The Journey’s End

Morning flight from Cayenne to Georgetown, Guyana. Afternoon exploring Georgetown’s unique wooden architecture — St. George’s Cathedral (the tallest wooden building in the world), the Stabroek Market with its stunning cast-iron clock tower, and the seawall at sunset where Georgetown comes alive with food vendors, couples strolling, and the Caribbean breeze. Farewell dinner featuring Guyanese pepperpot, roti, and rum at a colonial-era restaurant. Overnight in Georgetown.

Day 9: Depart Georgetown

Morning visit to the Guyana National Museum or the Botanical Gardens to see the Victoria amazonica (giant water lily). Transfer to Cheddi Jagan International Airport.

Inclusions

• 8 nights (Paramaribo hotel + rainforest lodge + French Guiana hotels + Georgetown hotel)
• Daily breakfast + 4 dinners
• Paramaribo UNESCO walking tour
• Commewijne plantation tour & dolphin cruise
• Brownsberg Nature Park guided hike
• Camp de la Transportation visit
• Devil’s Island catamaran excursion
• Guiana Space Centre and Space Museum
• All ground transport
• Border crossing assistance
• English-speaking guide throughout
• Airport transfers

Why The Guianas

• Devil’s Island — walk through the world’s most infamous prison
• Guiana Space Centre — rockets launching from the jungle
• Paramaribo UNESCO — the wooden cathedral and the synagogue next to a mosque
• Brownsberg — primary rainforest, howler monkeys, and skeleton forests
• Suriname dolphins — watch tucuxi dolphins play in the Commewijne River