Essential

Trip schedule

DAY 1 – ARRIVAL IN CAYENNE

Arrival at Cayenne airport.
You will be welcomed by a team member from Guyane Evasion, who will display a welcome sign… he will review the detail of your program, will hand you your welcome pack and will assist you picking your rental car up, or arrange private transportation to your hotel.
Complimentary dinner and overnight accommodation at your hotel in Cayenne is included.
We work with Guyane Hotel, a new establishment – 2 ** sup.

DAY 2 – KAW SAVANNAH

Breakfast at your hotel.
7am : transfer to Kaw by private car or with your rental car (2h drive).
9am – Gathering at the Kaw pier to board a motorized canoe. Several stops will allow for swamp’s wildlife observations, a tour of the fishermen’s village and a visit to the “Maison de la réserve” (reserve information center) before the floating eco-lodge is reached, often surrounded by numerous birds such as cocoi herons, great egrets and jacanas.
This floating lodge will be your base camp throughout the day for swimming, fishing and paddling on canoes. Lunch will be served at 12.30am (drinks included).
In the afternoon, continuation of the hikes in the swamps.
Activities will be proposed such as fishing, kayaking ….
A candle-lit dinner will be served before you start on your nocturnal quest for caimans and other species revealed by searchlights. You may even encounter the capybara (the largest rodent on earth)—as well the three species of caimans: black ones, spectacled ones and smaller red ones (aka Cuvier’s dwarf caimans). This night time experience is unforgettable.
Overnight sleep in your bed or hammock in a communal room.

DAY 3 – KAW SAVANNAH – CACAO – ZOO DE GUYANE

After a restful night on the floating lodge, breakfast will be served at dawn to allow for more bird watching.
You will then explore the Wapou creek on canoe or pirogue, getting familiar with the giant otters and lush surroundings where varied orchids and bromeliads grow.
9apm – Arrival back at the Kaw pier.
Drive to cacao with your rental or private transportation (01h30 drive).
The Hmong people are an ethnic group from South-East Asia often treated as pariahs in their native Laos and Vietnam. Upstream from Saut Bief along the Comté River, Cacao is the place where the Hmong community came to settle in French Guiana in 1977. Initially rejected by some, their presence has gradually been accepted and their successful agricultural efforts have secured their integration into the local economy. Now one of the many ethnic groups in the very diverse makeup of Guiana, their tawny faces will welcome you to their extensive flower fields covered with so-called “porcelain roses”, birds of paradise and canna indica—all blending their perfumes in an atmosphere that still preserves memories of their long-lost Laotian uplands; their town market on Sundays is a real festival of colors and scents—for you to visit.
Free lunch in cacao.
In the afternoon transportation to the “Zoo de Guyane” (45 min drive).
Nature wild and powerful—more than 450 animal species are represented at the “Zoo de Guyane” where you can discover them along a tour lasting up to two and a half hours; this tour includes a number of special activities and facilities: educational tracks with audio guides (available in French, English and Portuguese), a tropical greenhouse, a play area for children, a mini-farm, a restaurant, a bar and – of course – a zoo boutique selling souvenirs and local crafts. Even a minimal tour will take about 2 hours.
Complimentary dinner and night in a hotel on Cayenne.

DAY 4 – FRENCH GUIANA SPACE CENTER

Breakfast at your hotel and then transportation to Kourou by private car or with your rental car.(01h15 drive).
8am – Meeting in front of the Kourou Space Museum for registration and perimeter access (ID required for the whole visit).
A bus tour will start at 8.30 to take you successively to the Soyuz launch pad, Vega launch pad and Ariane 5 launch pad and control center (3h).
Located only a few miles outside Kourou, the French Guiana Space Center (Centre Spatial Guyanais or CSG) employs more than 1,500 personnel within a vast security perimeter covering 75,000 hectares. Selected in 1964 among 13 other possible locations, the CSG is home to Europe’s gateway to space activities—its “Space Port”. Fully integrated into the natural landscape of Guiana, it is now a major item for any discovery of our region. Accompanied by specialist guides, your tour will take you into the world of high technology as you visit the control center for an overall presentation, followed by a close look at launch pads and other installations (depending on operational and/or security constraints).
At the end of the tour, you will discover the Space Museum..
Complimentary lunch on Kourou.
Free afternoon.
Complimentary dinner and night in a hotel on Kourou – 3 ***

DAY 5 – THE DEVIL’S ISLANDS

Breakfast at your hotel.
Transfer to the Kourou pier by private car or with your rental car.
8.00am – Gathering at the port of Kourou to board a sea shuttle (serving only the Royale island) or a catamaran (serving both the Royale island and St Joseph island).
Located at 10 miles (8 nautical miles) off the coast of Kourou, the Royale island, St-Joseph island and Ile du Diable (Devil Island) form an archipelago that once was one of the most infamous penal colonies in the world. Numerous penitentiary buildings are still to be seen on the Ile Royale, offering striking landmarks of a prison system that lasted until 1946; you will visit the late 19th-c. convicts’ hospital, the “death-row” quarters, the church and its presbytery, the madhouse, the lighthouse, etc. Some of the buildings – incl. houses formerly used by guards – have been restored to their original aspect and now accommodate visitors. The former guards’ mess is actually a restaurant where you can have lunch while scanning a fine distant view of Devil Island.
Between 9.30 and 10am – Landing on the Ile Royale. Free tour or guided tour starting at 10.30 in front of the Auberge des Iles. This tour will take you to the church, the hospital, the children’s cemetery, the guards’ quarters and the museum—two hours of history and gripping tales of human survival.
Wildlife is free to roam on the island and you will encounter numerous Agouti rodents, monkeys, macaws and iguanas along the many footpaths allowing for strolls; swimming is possible at the so-called “piscine des bagnards” (convicts’ swimming pool).
Lunch will be served at the Auberge des Iles (drinks not included).
If you took the “Catamaran option”, further sailing will transfer you to the Ile St-Joseph in the afternoon—where you can visit more convicts’ cells—or enjoy the beach covered with seashells.
5.00pm – Arrival back in Kourou, then transfer to your hotel in Cayenne.
Complimentary dinner and night in a hotel on Cayenne.

DAY 6 – CAMP CARIACOU

Breakfast at your hotel.
9:30am –Meet at PK18 Camp des Maripas – Degrad saramaca

DAY 7 – CAMP CARIACOU

DAY 8 – DÉPARTURE

Breakfast at your hotel is included.
You will have enough time in the morning to make your last purchases and visit Cayenne’s market (On Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays only).
Complimentary lunch In the afternoon, transfer to Cayenne airport (30 min drive).