Things to Do in Paramaribo: Fort Zeelandia, Wooden Cathedral and Commewijne River

Within a few walkable blocks of the Suriname River, Paramaribo brings together seventeenth-century Dutch shell-stone fortifications, the largest wooden building in the Western Hemisphere, a synagogue and mosque sharing the same street corner, and boat trips to eighteenth-century coffee plantations and pink-bellied river dolphins. Combine all five highlights below with our 3-day Paramaribo itinerary.

1. Explore 1667 Fort Zeelandia, Onafhankelijkheidsplein, and Palmentuin

Begin on the river point at Fort Zeelandia, captured and named by Dutch Admiral Abraham Crijnssen in February 1667 and now home to the Surinaams Museum. Step onto adjacent Onafhankelijkheidsplein (Independence Square) to photograph the 1730 wooden Presidential Palace, then walk behind the palace into the shaded grove of more than 1,000 royal palms at Palmentuin.

2. Step Inside the Unpainted Cedar Interior of Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral

Walk to Henck Arronstraat to visit the Cathedral-Basilica of Saint Peter and Paul, designed by Redemptorist carpenter Brother Frans Harmes and built between 1883 and 1885. Its soaring nave, arches, and confessional boxes are crafted entirely from unpainted aromatic Surinamese cedar.

3. Visit the Keizerstraat Mosque and Sand-Floored Neve Shalom Synagogue

On Keizerstraat, admire one of the world's most famous landmarks of religious coexistence: the white four-minaret Masjid Keizerstraat (Ahmadiyya Mosque) standing directly next door to the 1842 wooden Neve Shalom Synagogue, whose interior floor is covered in a thick carpet of white quartz sand.

4. Stroll Waterkant, Central Market, and Plantage Peperpot Nature Park

Follow the white wooden merchant houses along Waterkant down to the Central Market and the riverside Maroon Herb Market. In the afternoon, cross the 52-metre-high Jules Wijdenbosch Bridge to Plantage Peperpot Nature Park to spot squirrel monkeys, sloths, and toucans along shaded seventeenth-century coffee and cacao trails.

5. Cruise the Commewijne River or Visit UNESCO-Listed Jodensavanne

Board a wooden tent-boat at Leonsberg for a day on the Commewijne River visiting the 1734 star fortress of Fort Nieuw Amsterdam, restored Plantation Frederiksdorp, and wild Guiana dolphins at sunset, or drive south into the savanna to the 1685 brick synagogue ruins of UNESCO-listed Jodensavanne and Brownsberg Nature Park.