The Guianas — Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana — are South America’s last great secret. Tucked onto the continent’s northeast shoulder and looking to the Caribbean and Europe more than to Latin America, this is a region of untouched rainforest, thundering waterfalls, and extraordinary wildlife, with barely a tour bus in sight. Below are the best things to do and see across the three Guianas, from Guyana’s colossal Kaieteur Falls to Suriname’s Dutch-colonial capital.
This is a destination for the curious and the adventurous — travelers who want genuine wilderness and culture over polished resorts. If that’s you, few places on Earth deliver like the Guianas.
I traveled to Guyana at the beginning of 2020. I have been to a lot of places in South America and Guyana is by far the most unique in terms of South American culture and language. The majority of our recommendations on things to do involve the Amazon or Savannah lodges so be prepared to fully immerse yourself in local communities, wildlife spotting, and gorgeous flora. Some highlights would be the overflight of Kaieteur Falls and eating lunch at Delvin Adam's Backyard Cafe. Both these activities require pre-reservation so talk to your agent about scheduling these in!
-Rebecca Deering
Guyana Travel Expert
Guyana's crown jewel and one of the most powerful waterfalls on the planet — Kaieteur drops a single, uninterrupted 226 meters (741 feet), roughly five times the height of Niagara, deep in pristine rainforest. Reached by light aircraft from Georgetown, it's astonishingly uncrowded: you may well have the viewpoints to yourself, with golden frogs and swifts darting around the gorge.
The Iwokrama Forest is a million acres of protected, near-pristine Amazonian rainforest — a living laboratory of conservation. Walk the treetop canopy walkway at dawn, climb Turtle Mountain for sweeping views, and search for some of the world's most sought-after wildlife, including the elusive jaguar, giant river otters, and the black caiman.
Guyana's capital is a faded but characterful port city of ornate 19th-century wooden architecture, including St. George's Cathedral — among the tallest wooden buildings in the world — the vibrant Stabroek Market, and a seawall promenade where the whole city gathers at dusk. A fascinating introduction to the region's blend of Caribbean, Indian, African, and Amerindian cultures.
Guyana's vast southern grasslands are one of the best places in South America for big wildlife: giant anteaters, giant river otters, capybaras, and the enormous arapaima fish, with a real chance of jaguar sightings. Ranch-style eco-lodges like Karanambu and Caiman House offer the kind of intimate, guide-led wildlife encounters that draw serious naturalists.
Much of the Guianas' interior is home to indigenous peoples who run community-owned eco-lodges and guide visitors through their ancestral forest. Staying with communities like Surama or Rewa is the most rewarding way to experience the region — a chance to learn traditional skills, spot wildlife with expert local eyes, and support conservation directly.
With almost no light pollution across their forests and savannahs, the Guianas offer some of the clearest night skies anywhere. After a day of wildlife-watching, the sky above a remote lodge fills with stars and the Milky Way — a quietly unforgettable part of any trip into the interior.
Beyond Guyana, Suriname's capital Paramaribo is a UNESCO World Heritage gem of Dutch colonial wooden architecture and remarkable cultural diversity, gateway to river journeys and rainforest reserves. Neighboring French Guiana adds another twist — an overseas department of France where you'll find the Guiana Space Centre and the notorious former penal colony of Devil's Island.
The Guianas are, above all, a wildlife destination — one of the most biodiverse and least-disturbed corners of the Amazon basin. Here’s what to look for.
Jaguars, giant river otters, black caiman, tapirs, howler monkeys, and over 800 bird species inhabit the Guianas' rainforests. The rivers and reserves of Iwokrama and the interior are among the best places in the Amazon basin to see large mammals in genuinely wild surroundings.
The open Rupununi savannah is prime territory for giant anteaters, capybaras, and the giant arapaima — one of the world's largest freshwater fish — along with countless birds. Its ranch lodges make it one of South America's finest and least-known wildlife regions.
A birdwatcher's holy grail: the brilliant flame-orange Guianan cock-of-the-rock, whose males gather at forest leks to display. The Guianas are also home to harpy eagles, scarlet macaws, and the Sun Parakeet, making the region one of the continent's top birding destinations.
One of the tallest wooden buildings in the world, this soaring Gothic-style Anglican cathedral is Georgetown's landmark and a symbol of the Guianas' unique colonial-era timber architecture — a striking contrast to the wild interior.
A series of suspension bridges and platforms up to 30 meters above the forest floor, the canopy walkway brings you eye-level with the treetop world of birds, monkeys, and epiphytes at dawn — a highlight of any journey into Guyana's rainforest interior.
Georgetown (Guyana), Paramaribo (Suriname), and Cayenne (French Guiana) are the three gateways, reached by air via the Caribbean, North America, or Europe. Distances and roads in the interior are rough, so highlights like Kaieteur Falls and the remote lodges are reached by light aircraft and river boat — part of the adventure. Overland travel between the three countries is possible via river ferries but slow; most itineraries focus on one country, usually Guyana, or combine two. Given the specialized logistics, this is a region best arranged with an experienced operator. Ask about a custom Guianas trip.
The region’s cuisine is a delicious melting pot — Guyana’s Caribbean-Indian curries, roti, and pepperpot; Suriname’s Javanese, Creole, and Dutch influences; and French Guiana’s Franco-Caribbean cooking. Fresh river fish, tropical fruit, and rum round out one of the most surprising food scenes on the continent.
For prepared travelers, yes. Guyana and Suriname are generally safe for visitors who take normal precautions, though Georgetown and Paramaribo call for ordinary city sense, especially after dark. The real considerations here are logistical — remote terrain, tropical health precautions (including malaria prophylaxis for the interior), and the need for experienced guides. Traveling with a specialist operator, as we arrange, is the sensible approach. See our Guianas safety guide.
The best time to visit the Guianas is during the drier months, roughly mid-August to November and February to April, when interior travel is easier and wildlife gathers around shrinking water sources. Kaieteur Falls, by contrast, is at its most thunderous in the wet season. The climate is equatorial and warm year-round.
The Guianas are known for spectacular, uncrowded wilderness: Guyana’s Kaieteur Falls, vast tracts of pristine Amazon rainforest, world-class wildlife and birding, and a cultural mix — Caribbean, Indian, Javanese, African, Amerindian, Dutch, and French — found nowhere else in South America.
The Guianas are three small countries and territories on the northeast coast of South America: Guyana (English-speaking, formerly British), Suriname (Dutch-speaking), and French Guiana (an overseas department of France). Culturally they look toward the Caribbean and Europe as much as Latin America, which makes them feel unlike anywhere else on the continent.
Plan 7–10 days to do Guyana justice — Georgetown, Kaieteur Falls, the Iwokrama rainforest, and the Rupununi savannah. Combining two or three of the Guianas needs two weeks or more, given the limited transport links between them. Most first-timers focus on Guyana, the easiest to travel and richest in headline sights.
Almost everyone visits Kaieteur on a day trip by light aircraft from Georgetown — a spectacular flight over unbroken rainforest to a small airstrip near the falls, followed by a short guided walk to the viewpoints. Multi-day overland-and-river treks to Kaieteur exist for the very adventurous, but the flight is how the vast majority go.
Generally yes, for travelers who come prepared. Guyana and Suriname welcome visitors, though their capitals warrant ordinary city caution, particularly at night. The bigger factors are logistical — remote interior travel and tropical health precautions like malaria prophylaxis. Going with an experienced specialist operator, as we arrange, is the sensible way to travel here. See our Guianas safety guide.
Above all, Guyana's Kaieteur Falls — the world's largest single-drop waterfall by volume — plus vast pristine rainforest, exceptional wildlife and birdwatching, and a one-of-a-kind cultural blend. This is one of the least-visited and most authentic corners of South America.
