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Tourism in Suriname |
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The Country has great tourisim potential in its nature. Among other things, it offers a virgin tropical rain forest, with rich flora and fauna. Villages of the Amerindians and Maroons in the interior are very interesting sights for tourists.
The Central Suriname Nature Reserve(1998) is one of the largest nature reserves, and quite possibly the single most pristine tropical forest protected area on Earth.
Suriname can be reached by plane from Amsterdam (The Netherlands), Curacao (Dutch Antilles), Miami (Florida, USA), Port of Spain (Trinidad), Cayenne (French Guiana) and sporadically from some cities in Brasil (e.g. Belem). Reservations for these flights should be made as early as possible since they are quite popular. All international flights arrive at the Johan Adolf Pengel Airport, which is situated approximately 45 kilometres south of Paramaribo.
Suriname can be reached by car from Guyana as well as from French Guyana.
Border Formalities
A visa is required for entry into Suriname. For more information about how to obtain a visa, please contact your local embassy. Do not forget to take two identical copies of passport photographs with you to Suriname. They are necessary for the registration process.
Language
The official language of Suriname is Dutch. A reasonable number of people also speak English. Surinamese children are taught English in primary school starting in the seventh grade. There are many other languages spoken in Suriname by people whose ancestors came from other parts of the world, including India, Africa, Indonesia and China. The lingua franca in Suriname is Sranan Tongo. This is a creole language spoken by almost everyone. The second stanza of the Surinamese national anthem is in Sranan Tongo.
LAST UPDATED : October 2007