What is Suriname known for?

Suriname is known for its rainforest, its cultural diversity, and, since 2025, for being malaria-free.

Rainforest: more untouched rainforest, relative to its size, than almost anywhere else on Earth. Over 93% of the country is covered by primary tropical rainforest, the highest percentage in the world. The Central Suriname Nature Reserve alone protects 1.6 million hectares of it, roughly the size of Kuwait.
Cultural diversity: unusual even by South American standards. Suriname has no single ethnic majority: Hindustani, Maroon, Creole, Javanese, Indigenous, Chinese and Lebanese communities all shaped the country. You can see it in a mosque and synagogue sharing a fence on Keizerstraat, and in a food scene that mixes Javanese, Indian, Chinese and Creole cooking within a few blocks in Paramaribo.
Heritage: Paramaribo's historic inner city, with Dutch colonial wooden architecture along the Waterkant, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Wildlife: jaguars, giant river otters, harpy eagles, and sea turtles nesting at Galibi.
Malaria-free: in June 2025, the World Health Organization certified Suriname malaria-free, the first country in the Amazon region to reach that status. That is a genuinely new reason to visit the interior with one less health precaution to plan around.

Suriname is known for its rainforest, its cultural diversity, and, since 2025, for being malaria-free.

Rainforest: more untouched rainforest, relative to its size, than almost anywhere else on Earth. Over 93% of the country is covered by primary tropical rainforest, the highest percentage in the world. The Central Suriname Nature Reserve alone protects 1.6 million hectares of it, roughly the size of Kuwait.
Cultural diversity: unusual even by South American standards. Suriname has no single ethnic majority: Hindustani, Maroon, Creole, Javanese, Indigenous, Chinese and Lebanese communities all shaped the country. You can see it in a mosque and synagogue sharing a fence on Keizerstraat, and in a food scene that mixes Javanese, Indian, Chinese and Creole cooking within a few blocks in Paramaribo.
Heritage: Paramaribo's historic inner city, with Dutch colonial wooden architecture along the Waterkant, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Wildlife: jaguars, giant river otters, harpy eagles, and sea turtles nesting at Galibi.
Malaria-free: in June 2025, the World Health Organization certified Suriname malaria-free, the first country in the Amazon region to reach that status. That is a genuinely new reason to visit the interior with one less health precaution to plan around.

Traveller Questions