Introduction to Para
Para is a district south of Paramaribo known for its forests, savanna landscapes, and natural recreation areas. Because it is located close to the capital, many visitors travel to Para to experience nature without having to go deep into the interior of Suriname.
The district is home to Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport, the main airport of Suriname, located in the town of Zanderij. Many travelers pass through Para when arriving in the country, but the district offers much more than just the airport.
One of the most popular attractions in Para is Colakreek, a recreation area famous for its dark brown creek water and sandy banks. The color of the water comes from natural substances released by forest vegetation, giving the creek its distinctive appearance. The area is widely used for swimming, picnics, and relaxing in the forest.
Para is also known for its savanna landscapes, which are very different from the dense rainforest found in much of Suriname. Near Zanderij and Republiek, visitors can see stretches of white sand and open vegetation surrounded by forest. These areas support unique plants and wildlife adapted to the savanna environment.
Throughout the district there are several resorts, recreation parks, and eco-lodges where visitors can spend the day swimming in creeks, walking through the forest, or simply enjoying the quiet surroundings.
For travelers looking to explore nature close to the capital, Para offers an easy way to experience Suriname’s forests, creeks, and savanna landscapes.
Experience it in Motion
Things to Do in Para
Para's biggest advantage is distance, or the lack of it. Everything here is close enough to Paramaribo for a half-day or day trip, but what you'll see, and the history behind it, feels like a different country entirely.
See the Ruins of Jodensavanne
Jodensavanne was one of the earliest Jewish settlements in the Americas, founded along the Suriname River in the 1680s after an earlier community had settled nearby at Cassipora Creek. At its peak around 1700 it was home to roughly 570 people and dozens of plantations, centered on the Beracha VeShalom synagogue, a brick building completed in 1685 and one of the oldest synagogues built in the Western Hemisphere. A fire destroyed most of the settlement in 1832, and the jungle reclaimed what was left. What remains today, a cemetery and the synagogue's ruined foundations among the trees, is a quiet, genuinely unusual historic site that most visitors to Suriname never hear about.
Swim at Colakreek
Colakreek is a black-water creek, the color the result of tannins released by the surrounding forest vegetation rather than pollution, and it's one of the most popular swimming spots within reach of Paramaribo. Sandy banks, shaded picnic areas, and calm water make it an easy half-day trip, especially on weekends when local families come out in numbers.
Walk the Savanna Near Zanderij and Republiek
Much of Para sits on white sand savanna rather than dense rainforest, closer to scrubland than jungle, with open vegetation and stretches of exposed white sand around Zanderij and Republiek. It's a short, easy way to see a side of Suriname's interior that's genuinely different from the rainforest most visitors expect, and it sits right along the main road south from the airport.
