French Guiana (French: Guyane or Guyane française) is an overseas French department and region in the Amazonia region of South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname. It is governed as an overseas department of France with the same rights and privileges granted to all other French departments and benefits financially from the arrangement.
- Cayenne., the administrative capital of French Guiana
- Kourou., the city which hosts the space center and Arianespace
- Saint-Laurent., located on the Maroni river, which forms the natural border between Suriname and French Guyana.
- Saint-Georges., on the Oyapock river, which is the natural border between Brazil and French Guyana.
Cayenne., the administrative capital of French Guiana
Kourou., the city which hosts the space center and Arianespace
Saint-Laurent., located on the Maroni river, which forms the natural border between Suriname and French Guyana.
Saint-Georges., on the Oyapock river, which is the natural border between Brazil and French Guyana.
- Îles du salut (Devil's Island). — the ruins of the infamous offshore penal colony
Îles du salut (Devil's Island). — the ruins of the infamous offshore penal colony
First settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of notorious penal settlements (collectively known as Devil's Island) until 1951. The European Space Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou. It is the only portion of mainland South America still governed by an overseas nation.
Tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation.
Low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains, mostly an unsettled wilderness. It also consists of hill plateaus and the Tumuc-humac mountains.
French is the official language of France, although Creole is widely spoken. The majority of the population speaks French while few understand English. However, some officials, police, and gendarmes may speak English. Because of the presence of many Brazilians and Dominicans, lots of people understand basic Portuguese and basic Spanish. On the Maroni river, Sranan Tong (Taki-taki) is often used.
- Guiana Space centre close to Kourou. There is a free tour twice a day. And for a few euros you can visit a museum. Check the rocket launch schedule for a special experience.
- The capital of Cayenne has some museums and colonial architecture.
- The Îles du salut and Kourou used to form a penal colony, colloquially known as the Devil's Island (although in reality that's the name of just one of the islands). From Kourou you can visit the islands by boat, however the Devil's Island proper isn't open for visitors.
Guiana Space centre close to [[Kourou]]. There is a free tour twice a day. And for a few euros you can visit a museum. Check the rocket launch schedule for a special experience.
The Îles du salut and Kourou used to form a penal colony, colloquially known as the Devil's Island (although in reality that's the name of just one of the islands). From Kourou you can visit the islands by boat, however the Devil's Island proper isn't open for visitors.
- Take a guided tour to the inland rainforest.
- Like in many other Catholic countries, the carnival is celebrated early in the year. In French Guiana the festivities take place between the first Sunday in January and Ash Wednesday. During the carnival people put on masks and traditional dresses and go out dancing along the streets every Sunday in Cayenne, Kourou and St.Laurent. Visitors are also welcome to dress up and participate in the parades. During the carnival the festivities continue through the night in bars and nightclubs.
Take a guided tour to the inland rainforest.
Like in many other Catholic countries, the carnival is celebrated early in the year. In French Guiana the festivities take place between the first Sunday in January and Ash Wednesday. During the carnival people put on masks and traditional dresses and go out dancing along the streets every Sunday in Cayenne, Kourou and St.Laurent. Visitors are also welcome to dress up and participate in the parades. During the carnival the festivities continue through the night in bars and nightclubs.
The official currency is the euro just like in mainland France. Most purchases will be more expensive than you expect, as a lot of stuff has to be imported - even milk is flown in from metropolitan France. Things like electronics are really expensive. However the local rum and objects carved out of wood are great souvenirs and relatively affordable.
For daily purchases, there is a shopping mall outside Cayenne similar to the "hypermarkets" of metropolitan France. Smaller grocery and convenience stores are in the city selling not just food but other small things you might need like insect repellent, toothpaste and other hygiene articles.
GDP per capita is around half that of mainland France and unemployment hovers around 20% which makes the economic situation pretty bad. The local economy largely depends on tourism and the spaceport but gold mining is another important factor. Sadly gold mining is often done illegally and in ways harmful to the environment.
A typical local dish includes fish and other seafood or game meat served with rice, red beans or couac (flour made out of dried cassava) and can be rather fierce, as they often use liberal amounts of spices. What else would you expect from a region whose capital has given name to the cayenne pepper? You can of course always ask the chef to make your dish less spicy. Guyanese specialties include:
- Bouillon d'Awara - broth of awara fruit (Astrocaryum vulgare)
- Colombo - a Creole dish with pork or chicken
- Red beans - served with game or fish
- Lentils - served with game or fish
- Kalou/Kalalou - a fish dish with spinach and okra
- Pimentade - peppered and lemon seasoned fish in tomato sauce
- Blaf de poisson - fish prepared with court-bouillon
- Roti couniad - fish barbecued with its scale
In some restaurants you may find meat of threatened species (such as cayman and certain turtles) on the menu. Think twice before ordering any of those exotic dishes.
Tafia is a local hard liquor that is widely drunk and used for medical purposes. One can drink it with lime juice or with salt and it's used in a drink called Planter, excellent. Rum and ti-punch are also common.
It is advisable to pay extreme attention not to lose your passport: there are very few consulates in French Guiana as such services are provided by consulates in Paris, so you will be required to go to Paris in case you need your passport to be reissued if you are not an EU citizen.
Some parts of the department are patrolled by the French Foreign Legion, including the Kourou space centre and areas where illegal gold mining have occurred.
Vaccination against yellow fever is necessary; without a yellow fever vaccination certificate you are not allowed into French Guiana. Also two other tropical mosquito-borne diseases, namely malaria and dengue fever are endemic to the region. In other words, do protect yourself from mosquitoes and ticks - long sleeved clothing and insect repellent are recommended. The risk is smaller in the cities and towns. Swimming in still-standing water is not a good idea as it often contains parasites. This is less of a problem in rivers. However water in nature is not safe for drinking.
Poisonous snakes and spiders also pose a risk, and you should definitely wear boots in the rainforest and not "explore" hollow trees where these creatures often lurk. Remember that it can take very long to get to a hospital if you get bitten.
Other health risks include cholera, typhoid fever and rabies.
Healthcare is almost up to the same standards as in mainland France, although slightly more expensive. There are hospitals in Cayenne and Kourou. Concerning tropical diseases they are better equipped and more experienced than mainland hospitals.
The Creole culture is deeply rooted in French Guyana, but the population is still proud of being French. Hence insinuating they aren't really French is likely to cause offense. For example mainland France should be referred to as metropolitan/mainland France ("métropole"), not "France". The locals are happy to answer any questions about their culture, history and religion. However slavery is a sensitive subject that should be avoided.
For cheaper local calls and calls to mainland France it's advisable to buy a local prepaid SIM card. The Alizé cards by France Telecom offer 13 hours of communication for €15.
There are three GSM operators: Orange Caraïbe, Digicel and Only.