6 Days- Marowijne, Tapanahony and Drietabiki Voyage, Camping and Sightseeing Adventure
Travel deep into Suriname’s mighty Amazon jungle for an experience on the wild side, including exciting camping on river beaches, overnight sleeping under the starlit skies or in jungle sheds, in swinging hammocks just like the local Maroons and Amer-Indians.
Our starting point is Albina, from where we head upriver, in motorized dugout river canoes deep into the jungle. We will be crossing awesomely fierce rapids and splendid waterfalls.
After 6 hours of cruising we will reach our base camp, at Gakaba along the river banks. Starting from there the group will travel farther upriver visiting various Maroon villages, both on the French side of the river, as well as the Suriname side of the Marowijne and Lawa rivers.
At times when impressive waterfalls and shallow parts of the rivers needs to be crossed, you will experience the excitement of getting out of the boat and help pull it across the shallow stretches. For your enjoyment, the driver will at times also decent the wild rapids back-first. You will be blown away from excitement. Fun stuff. This, you will never experience anywhere else. The rivers are the only way the local Maroons and Amer-Indians are able to travel to the various villages strewn along the river banks.
We will visit villages such as Stoelmanseiland, Manlobie, and Drietabiki. Drietabiki, is the seat of the Granman (Chief) of the Okanisi tribe. If you are lucky, you may be able catch a glimpse of him. You will surely see his lieutenants.
Travel Dates: May 4- 9, 2024
Trip duration: 6 days
When to book: We recommend to book at least 10 weeks in advance.
Group size: 10-15
Price: $525 per person
Accommodation Type: You will spend about 2 or 3 nights of this adventure voyage at a riverside lodge at Gakaba, and the other nights in other villages under the starlit skies, or in jungle sheds, in your own private swinging hammock!
Internet Access: Not Guaranteed. And you probably will be happy if there is no access. No calls from pesky and jealous coworkers :). After all you came to escape the daily grind, and be one with nature for a bit:)
Who is this trip for:
- For adventurous individuals who have an interest in the rugged outdoors and nature at its purest
- For those who do not mind to get wet and dirty, enjoy jungle trekking and camping on river beaches and banks
- For those who want to experience living with the bare minimum in the jungle, but still comfortable enough to enjoy it
- And finally, it is for those who want to experience sleeping overnight in hammocks, in sheds on river banks deep into the Amazon jungle.
| DEPARTURE/RETURN LOCATION | Paramaribo | |||||
| DEPARTURE TIME | Please arrive by 7:45 AM for a prompt departure at 8:00 AM. | |||||
| RETURN TIME | End of Day 6 at approximately 8:00 PM. | |||||
| WEAR | Comfortable athletic clothing, sport shoes, hat, jacket and sunscreen. | |||||
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This is an adventure for people who love the rugged outdoors.
Day 1: Trip Paramaribo, Albina, Gakaba
At 8 AM we board the bus in Paramaribo to travel to Albina. A boat will be waiting to take us to base camp at Gakaba. We will make several sightseeing stops along the way including:
- Apatou, a French village on the right bank of the Marowijne river
- Langa Tabiki, a large island in the middle of the Marowijne river
- Gostoe, an island in the middle of the Marowijne river
Around 5 PM we should arrive at our base camp at Gakaba where we will have dinner. We party till late into the night with the locals to celebrate your arrival.
Tonight you can choose to sleep in hammocks or bunk beds.
Day 2: Crossing Major Waterfalls and Rapids: Destination Grand Santi
After breakfast we will leave Gakaba to continue our beautiful adventure. We will cross large waterfalls and rapids such as Singatete, Manbari and Poeloegoedoe. After that we will cruise to the French village of Grand Santi where we will go on a sightseeing tour around the village. After Grand Santi we continue our adventure with a stop at the village of Stoelmanseiland, a very large island in the middle of the Lawa river, where we will have lunch. After Stoelmanseiland, we will make stops at a few large waterfalls to enjoy a swim and massage by the rushing water. After some fun in the water we will make our way back to our base camp at Gakaba. If the water conditions are right, the driver will decent some rapids stern-side first, for your enjoyment. Around 6 PM we should arrive at base camp where we will have dinner. We will party till late into the night around a massive campfire where you can roast potatoes, fish, meat and what ever else you want to roast.
Tonight you can choose to sleep in hammocks or bunk beds.
Day 3: Destination Karmel and Surrounding Maroon Villages
After breakfast,we will leave base camp for our voyage to Drietabiki on the Tapanahony river. We will cross several large waterfalls and rapids, and the adrenaline rushing excitement of taming these fierce waves never gets old. We will go on a sightseeing visits of the various Maroon villages such as Tabiki, Malobie and Clementie and have some local drinks and snacks. We’ll stop at a few beautiful waterfalls to enjoy a swim and massage by the rushing water and of course enjoy a delicious picnic. In the late afternoon, we arrive at the village of Karmel, where we will visit the locals, including the medical facilities and nurses.
Later we will have a delicious BBQ dinner and relax around a campfire. Tonight you will sleep in hammocks.
Day 4:Visiting Poeketie and Drietabiki, including Surrounding Villages
Day 5: Swimming in Rapids, Enjoying Waterfalls, Goodbye Party
After breakfast we will depart Karmel and head back downstream to our base camp at Gakaba. Along the way we will visit Maroon villages such as Saje, Vandaki and Benanu. After the village tour we continue our trip down streams and will also stop a waterfall to enjoy a swim and massage by the rushing water, as well as enjoying a delicious lunch. Around 5 PM we should be back at our base camp at Gakaba where we will have dinner. We party throughout the night with a local aleke band to celebrate your visit.
Tonight you can choose to sleep in hammocks or bunk beds.
Day 6: Return Trip
Today (you are probably a little bit hung over), we travel back to Albina, after enjoying a last breakfast with the base camp team. Along the way we will stop at several beautiful uninhabited islands to relax and have lunch. If the water conditions are right, the driver will decent most rapids stern-side first, for your enjoyment. By 5 PM we should be back in Albina, where we will board the waiting bus to Paramaribo. Around 8PM we will be back in Paramaribo.
The remote, pristine Amazon jungle of French Guyana & Suriname, in South America.
