10 reasons to visit Suriname
Suriname is a country full of love, delicious food, friendly people and sunshine. The moment you step off the plane you get a warm welcome from the heat this country has to offer. It's a country of many population groups: Creoles, Maroons, indigenous peoples, Javanese, Chinese and Hindustanis.
Much of the country is covered by our beautiful green rainforest, where you can enjoy everything the jungle has to offer.
- The people
Suriname has many population groups: Creoles, Hindustanis, Maroons, indigenous peoples, Chinese and Javanese. People from our neighbouring countries, French Guiana, Guyana and Brazil, have also come to settle here.
We Surinamese love to laugh and get together over food and drinks. We're open, friendly and polite, and we're happy to lend each other a hand when needed.
Surinamese people can sometimes be a little too honest, which can cause misunderstandings. Some things may come across as blunt, but we don't mean any harm. For example, if we say you've put on weight, we don't mean it badly: it just means you look well.
- The food
In Suriname you'll find a huge variety of dishes and drinks. A few examples:
- Creoles are known for their pom, pastei (chicken pie), orgeade, ginger beer and other fruit juices
- Hindustanis for their masala dishes, such as roti
- Javanese: bami, nasi, their delicious saoto soup and dawet
- Chinese: tjauwmin and nasi, prepared with various meats such as chicken and pork
- Indigenous: pepre watra, a spicy soup made with lots of peppers, which can also be made with fish or game (peccary, deer), and kasiri (an alcoholic drink made from cassava)
- Maroons: afingi soup (made from cassava, with fish or meat), and freshly baked cassava bread
- The climate
Suriname has only 2 seasons: the dry season and the rainy season.
- No spang
Surinamese people have a ‘no spang’ mentality. No spang means don't worry, no stress. We're never in a hurry with whatever needs doing or whatever we're busy with. Almost everyone is relaxed, which means you'll relax too.
- The language
The official language of Suriname is Dutch, because we were a colony of the Netherlands. Besides that we also speak Sranan Tongo (Surinamese), a language that mixes in several others, including Spanish, English, Portuguese and Dutch. Some well-known words you'll hear, or may already have heard:
- Ofa? — How are you?
- Fawaka? — How's it going?
- A'e go? — Are you OK?
- A boen. — It's good.
- Paramaribo
The capital of Suriname, where most Surinamese live. It can be super busy at times, and quiet at others. This is also where you'll find the monumental buildings from the colonial era.
Some places you have to visit when you're in Paramaribo:
- The central market
- The Palm Garden
- The Waterkant
- Fort Zeelandia
- The jungle
Suriname has a beautiful green rainforest where you can completely unwind and get away from the bustle. It's a three-hour drive from the city centre to Atjoni, and from there you take a boat to one of the villages in the Upper Suriname area. There you'll mainly find the Maroon population, who live from nature and make what they need from what they find around them.
The jungle is a paradise full of animals, including monkeys, snakes, birds, agoutis, jaguars and more.
Sleeping under the stars in the jungle is one of its great adventures: you end the evening with a drink, a campfire and good stories. When you wake up in the morning you feel the freshness of nature and hear the howler monkeys high in the trees waking everyone up.
Note: if you'd like to do a jungle tour, it's best to go with a guide. You can book these with us (Jenny Tours) too; see our tour overview for departing tours.
- The culture
Suriname is a country where you'll meet many cultures and faiths. It's the only country where you'll see a synagogue and a mosque side by side. In Suriname, cultures and faiths live together in harmony.
Family comes first for Surinamese people.
- The animals
There's a lot of wildlife in our jungle. It lies right next to the Amazon region, so our wildlife is enormous. Species you can find include:
- Pumas
- Jaguars
- Tarantulas
- Many species of monkey
- Iguanas
- Ocelots
- Many bird species
- Fish
- Frogs
- Caimans
- Snakes
- Sloths
- Tapirs
- Many kinds of insects
- The money
In Suriname we use the Surinamese dollar (SRD). You can exchange your currency for SRD at various exchange offices or at the Central Bank.
You can also withdraw money from bank ATMs with your debit or credit card. Some banks only give SRD; others give SRD or other currencies (euros or US dollars).
