Suriname with Kids
Family travel guide for parents planning with children
Top Family Activities
The best things to do with kids in Suriname.
Brownsberg Nature Park
Brownsberg is a 500-metre-high slab of jungle that overlooks the Brokopondo lake. Short trails lead to waterfalls and troops of howler monkeys that primary-school kids can watch at eye level. Simple cabins inside the park make a two-day escape easy.
Galibi Nature Reserve Sea Turtle Watching
From March through August, leatherback and olive ridley turtles crawl onto Galibi's sand to nest. Standing beside a 300-kilo leatherback while she drops ping-pong-ball eggs in the moonlight needs no parental commentary. Kids remember it for years.
Paramaribo Historic Inner City Walk
Paramaribo's centre is one of the world's only wooden colonial cores on the UNESCO list. The all-timber Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral and the riverside promenade make an undemanding family stroll.
Suriname Zoo (Paramaribo Zoological Garden)
On the south side of town, the small zoo keeps only regional animals, tapir, giant anteater, caiman, macaw, anaconda, species most kids have never seen. Facilities are basic. But it fills a rainy morning and primes young eyes for later jungle spotting.
Peperpot Nature Park
Peperpot, a former coffee and cacao estate just outside town, has flat, shaded paths under huge old trees that even preschool legs can manage. More than 200 bird species have been logged, and you can cover the trails in half a day.
Brokopondo Lake and Maroon Village Visit
Down-river Saramaka and Ndyuka settlements were founded by people who escaped slavery and built self-governing forest communities. A guided boat-and-village visit gives teenagers a living history lesson no classroom can match.
Canopy Tower at Brownsberg
Inside Brownsberg, a 50-metre tower lifts you into the canopy for sunrise views over Brokopondo lake and uninterrupted green. Older children love the eagle-eye perspective. Younger ones may balk at the height.
Fort Zeelandia and Suriname Museum
The 17th-century Dutch fort on the Suriname River houses the national museum, covering pre-Columbian history, the colonial period, and the cultures of Suriname's varied ethnic groups in a compact space. The fort grounds are nice to stroll, and the exhibits keep school-age children interested without tiring them out.
Kayaking on the Commewijne River
Across the river from Paramaribo, the Commewijne district has plantation roads lined with royal palms and rivers where pink river dolphins swim. A guided kayak trip on the calm, flat water is one of the most memorable activities here for kids old enough to paddle. When pink dolphins pop up beside the boat, excitement erupts instantly.
Palmentuin (Palm Garden)
An 18th-century palm grove in central Paramaribo, the Palmentuin is a relaxed place for younger kids to burn off energy. Tall royal palms give shade, it's usually quiet, and it's close to the Waterkant, so you can combine it with a riverside walk and an ice cream stop.
Best Areas for Families
Where to base yourselves for the smoothest family trip.
Paramaribo is the starting point for almost every family visiting Suriname. The historic center is walkable (sidewalks can be uneven), the riverfront promenade is pleasant after dark, and the concentration of restaurants, pharmacies, supermarkets, and decent lodging makes managing children much easier here than anywhere else in the country.
Highlights: UNESCO-listed wooden buildings, Waterkant promenade, easy-to-reach restaurants and markets, Fort Zeelandia, and close to both the Palmentuin and Peperpot.
A short ferry ride from Paramaribo, Commewijne feels like another country, old plantations, open farmland, and rivers with pink dolphins. Plan at least a day trip. Some families spend a night or two in a plantation guesthouse for a change from the capital.
Highlights: Pink river dolphins, plantation history, kayaking, bird-filled wetlands, and the atmospheric town of Nieuw Amsterdam.
The park has simple guesthouses inside the reserve, putting you right in the rainforest. Logistically it's straightforward, you're already on site at dawn for wildlife walks before the heat builds and can watch animals outside your room after dinner.
Highlights: Jungle trails, waterfalls, howler monkeys, canopy views over the Brokopondo reservoir, and night walks.
For the sea-turtle experience, the village of Galibi at the mouth of the Marowijne River is the base. It's remote, you reach it by boat from Albina, and lodging is basic homestay or community guesthouse style. The reward is notable if you visit during nesting season.
Highlights: Leatherback and olive ridley sea turtle nesting (March, August), the Kaliñan Indigenous community, mangrove ecosystems, and the meeting point of the Marowijne River and the Atlantic.
Suriname's western district near the Guyana border is the country's rice bowl. Fewer visitors come here than to Paramaribo or the interior. But Nickerie town is laid-back and the nearby Coppename-Wia Wia reserves offer excellent birdwatching and some of Suriname's more accessible beaches. It's worth a look if you want a different side of the country.
Highlights: Corantijn beaches, rice paddies, a ferry to Guyana for the adventurous, and top-notch birding in the coastal reserves.
Family Dining
Where and how to eat with children.
Paramaribo's food scene is a real surprise. Thanks to Suriname's mix of cultures, you can eat Hindustani roti for lunch, Javanese nasi goreng for dinner, and then drop into a Chinese restaurant that's served the same neighborhood for 40 years. Kids who are even a little adventurous will find plenty to like. Restaurants are relaxed with children, informal enough that no one minds a toddler's mess, and cheap enough that dinner out isn't stressful. Outside Paramaribo, choices drop sharply, pack snacks for any interior trip.
Dining Tips for Families
- Roti shops are Suriname's family cafeterias, cheap, filling, and fast. Dhal puri with chicken and vegetables costs about $2, 3 per person and kids almost always enjoy it. Look for them on Maagdenstraat and around the central market.
- Javanese warung stalls near the central market are good for lunch, point-and-choose counters where kids can see the food before deciding.
- Most restaurants are happy to split dishes or make simple swaps. Just ask, staff are usually flexible rather than strict.
- Bring snacks everywhere for day trips outside Paramaribo. Gas stations and small shops exist. But choices shrink fast once you leave the capital.
- Saoto soup, chicken broth with noodles and crunchy shallots, borrowed from Java, is the safe pick for kids who want something that tastes almost like home. You'll see it everywhere and it's almost always decent.
- Pick up fruit at the Centrale Markt: ripe mangoes, bananas and rambutan cost almost nothing and survive a day in the car better than chips.
- Chinese restaurants are dotted all over Paramaribo. They serve big plates of recognisable food, fast, so they're a solid fallback when the kids are done with experimenting.
Curry-stuffed flatbread, chicken, potato or chickpea, is cheap, filling and easy to eat. The dhal-puri version, all flaky layers, usually wins over the bread lovers.
Look for small Indonesian-style counters selling nasi (rice with sides), bami (noodles) and chicken satay. The skewers vanish first every time.
Chinese families have run restaurants here since the 1800s. Portions are generous, prices low and the menus read like a greatest-hits of comfort food. Air-con is a bonus on sticky evenings.
Grilled chicken, white rice and sweet plantains served at plastic tables. The plantains convert even the sceptics and the meat arrives plain enough for picky eaters.
Tips by Age Group
Tailored advice for every stage of childhood.
Toddlers can cope. But the climate is brutal: 30°C and 80% humidity wears out little bodies. Plan indoor or shaded downtime from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The payoff is a compact city where you can reach parks, the riverfront and small attractions without long rides.
Challenges: The heat is constant and toddlers overheat fast. You'll need an air-conditioned room for the midday break. Strollers roll fine in central Paramaribo but get stuck on cracked sidewalks and are useless once you leave the city. Playgrounds are scarce, so expect to improvise entertainment.
- Block out two hours every afternoon for a cool-down in an air-conditioned room, don't try to power through the heat.
- Schedule all outdoor activities before 10am or after 4pm
- A portable clip-on fan for the stroller makes a real difference in the heat
- The 15-minute ferry ride across to Commewijne is a hit with toddlers: boats, water, and plenty of birds to spot.
Kids from about five to twelve are the sweet spot for Suriname. They can handle jungle hikes, get excited about spotting howler monkeys and pink dolphins, and absorb the mix of cultures without needing a lecture. At this age the country feels like an adventure, not an ordeal.
Learning: Suriname turns into a living textbook for this age. In a nation of only 600,000 you'll hear Hindustani, Javanese, Creole, Maroon, Chinese, and Indigenous voices side by side, which sparks real questions about migration and identity. The rainforest is close enough to touch, making food webs and biodiversity easy to grasp. And the story of the Maroons, slaves who escaped and built free communities in the forest, comes alive at Fort Zeelandia.
- Pick up a basic Amazon wildlife guide before you leave. Kids who can name the birds and mammals they see stay far more interested on forest walks.
- Expect questions about languages, Dutch, Sranantongo, Hindi, Javanese, and several Maroon tongues are all around. Most kids pick up a few words without trying.
- Bring a waterproof notebook for a nature journal, old-school, but it still works.
- Some kids are stunned by the sheer number of bugs in the interior. Talk about it honestly instead of pretending it's no big deal.
Teens who like the outdoors and want something different can love Suriname. There are no water-park thrills. But river trips, jungle hikes, and real cultural encounters feel more authentic than another beach resort.
Independence: During daylight, the historic core and Waterkant are safe enough for teens to explore in pairs. The market is busy but not risky. At night things change, bars and clubs cater to adults, so teens need to check in with parents before heading out. Outside the capital, stick together. The interior is remote.
- Hand them a camera and a notebook and make them the trip's chronicler, it gives them a stake in what happens and a keepsake afterward.
- Boat rides, to Commewijne, upriver lodges, or Galibi, are when most teens finally put their phones away.
- History-minded teens latch onto the Maroon story: in 1762 the Saramaka people forced the Dutch to sign a formal peace treaty, a feat unique in the Americas. Read up before you go.
- The sheer variety of Surinamese food usually wins over picky eaters, there's always something new to try.
Practical Logistics
The nuts and bolts of family travel.
Taxis are how most families move around Paramaribo and a cross-town ride is only 3, 6 USD. Don't expect car seats, bring a travel seat or vest. Sidewalks are cracked and flood after rain, so an umbrella stroller or carrier beats a full pram. Tour companies use 4WD minibuses with bench seats for day trips. City minibuses (busjes) are cheap but packed, skip them with kids or luggage. The ferry to Commewijne is five minutes and children usually want to stand at the rail the whole way.
The Academic Hospital Paramaribo (AZP) on Flustraat is the main emergency centre. Smaller clinics dot the city. Large pharmacies and supermarkets such as Fernandes stock nappies, formula (few brands) and basic meds. Outside the capital, supplies disappear, so pack a full kit. Start malaria tablets before you leave if you'll leave the coastal strip. Visit a travel clinic 4, 6 weeks ahead. Yellow-fever vaccination is mandatory and dengue is around, use repellent every day.
Book a room with air-con (essential), a minibar for milk or snacks, and steady Wi-Fi if screens are your backup. Torarica Resort has the only real hotel pool in town and space to run around. Guesthouses in the old centre sometimes have connecting rooms, email to check, websites rarely spell it out. Interior lodges fill up in turtle season. Reserve through a tour operator.
- Bring DEET repellent, 30-50% for adults, kid strength for under-12s. You can buy it locally but brands sell out.
- Pack light ponchos for everyone. Afternoon cloudbursts are common and umbrellas are useless on forest paths.
- Portable travel car seat or CSTA-approved safety vest for taxis
- Malaria prophylaxis prescribed by your travel medicine clinic before departure
- Stash oral-rehydration salts. Sweat drains fluids faster than you notice.
- High-SPF broad-spectrum sunscreen, sun is intense even on cloudy days
- Waterproof sandals with closed toes for rainforest walks and river areas
- Give every member a headlamp, power cuts happen and turtle walks start after dark.
- Carry a filter bottle or SteriPen. Tap water in the capital is treated but bottled is kinder to young stomachs.
- Assemble a small kit: antihistamine cream, blister plasters and antifungal cream, heat plus moisture equals rashes.
- Lunch at roti shops or Javanese stalls, four people eat for under 15 USD and the food beats most mid-range menus.
- Reserve Brownsberg through STINASU, the parks office. City agencies just add a markup.
- The Commewijne ferry costs pocket change. Hire bikes at the landing and pedal the old plantation roads for free instead of joining a pricey cycle tour.
- Stock up on fruit and snacks at the Centrale Markt instead of corner shops, you'll pay half the supermarket price.
- Join group tours to Galibi, Brownsberg or Maroon villages. Sharing the 4WD slashes the per-person cost and kids still get the full experience.
Family Safety
Keeping your family safe and healthy.
- ! Malaria is active outside Paramaribo. Visit a travel clinic well ahead of time and start the right prophylaxis, chloroquine or Malarone depending on your route. Children's doses are by weight, not age. Skipping this is not an option.
- ! Stick to bottled or filtered water for kids everywhere. Tap water in the capital is treated. But young stomachs react to unfamiliar microbes. Ask about ice in restaurants. Most tourist spots use filtered water. But confirm if you're unsure.
- ! Dengue is year-round and spread by daytime mosquitoes, so apply repellent every morning even if you're staying in town. Use a DEET product safe for children and add permethrin-treated clothing for long jungle days.
- ! The sun is brutal even under cloud cover. Kids burn fast, and morning clouds can fool you into skipping sunscreen. Use SPF 50 every morning, reapply after swimming or sweating, and keep toddlers in long sleeves and hats.
- ! Roads outside the capital demand caution. Speed bumps replace traffic lights, driving habits vary, and interior tracks turn to mud in the wet season. If you rent a car, take it slow. The road to Brownsberg can require 4WD after rain.
- ! Swimming needs supervision. Atlantic beaches near Nickerie have hidden currents, and interior rivers can have strong flows and the occasional caiman. Ask your guide or lodge exactly where it's safe before letting kids jump in.
- ! Suriname's historic center doesn't target tourists with violent street crime. Yet the usual city rules still apply. Keep your bag zipped, don't flash your camera or phone in the central market, and skip unfamiliar side streets after dark if you're with kids. Common sense is usually enough.
Book Family Activities
Top-rated family experiences in Suriname.
Paramaribo City Tour
Paramaribo, the capital of Suriname, featuring numerous wooden buildings of unique architecture and a variety of hospitable ethnic groups, living together in harmony. First the guide will take you on
Full-Day Brownsberg Nature Park Tour
The Brownsberg Nature Reserve covers 6000 hectare of unspoiled land. In one day you will become acquainted with the major share of the flora and fauna the Suriname rainforest has to offer. A hike thro
Sunset and Dolphin Tour Suriname
Enjoy a relaxing boat trip on the Suriname River. During the tour, we search for playful dolphins and take in an impressive sunset. We depart from Leonsberg by traditional tent boat and head toward t
Bigi Pan Tourist Eco Lodge
The Bigi Pan nature reserve is famous for its coastal birds: 72 species have their own fixed stay, including the red ibis, the osprey, the tern and various waders. Another 50 other species visit the a
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