C
Centre Spatial Guyanais
Visiting the Centre Spatial Guyanais and (if you're lucky) seeing a rocket launch are two of French Guiana's biggest highlights. Both need to be arranged…
French Guiana
French Guiana is a remote region of France covered in thick jungle and wilderness, although you'll also find colonial architecture, eerie prison-camp history and some of the world's most diverse plant and animal life here. It's a strange mix of French law and rainforest humidity where only a few destinations along the coast are easily accessed and travel can be frustratingly difficult as well as expensive.
As a department of France, it's one of South America's wealthiest corners, with funds pouring in to ensure the smooth working of the Guiana Space Center at Kourou. But not even a European superpower can tame this vast, pristine jungle: you'll find potholes in newly paved roads, and ferns sprouting between bricks, while Amerindians, Maroons and Hmong refugees live traditional lifestyles so far from la vie métropole that it's hard to believe they're connected at all.
Explore French Guiana
- CCentre Spatial Guyanais
Visiting the Centre Spatial Guyanais and (if you're lucky) seeing a rocket launch are two of French Guiana's biggest highlights. Both need to be arranged…
- CCamp de la Transportation
The eerie Camp de la Transportation, where prisoners arrived for processing, was the largest prison in French Guiana. Convicts arrived exhausted after 20…
- CCentral Market
Inside Cayenne's market, shoppers will find a vibrant jumble of Amerindian basketry, African-style paintings and carvings, piles of spices at great prices…
- PPlage Les Hattes
This long stretch of beach is a very important nesting ground for giant leatherback turtles, which can grow up to 600kg. The females come ashore from…
- TTrésor & Kaw Nature Reserves
The Trésor Nature Reserve is one of French Guiana's most accessible primary rainforest areas, and wandering its 1.75km botanical trail is a great way to…
- ÎÎle Royale
Once the administrative headquarters of the penal settlement, Île Royale has several restored prison buildings, including a fine prisoner-built chapel and…
- MMaison de la Reserve Naturelle l'Amana
Amerindian settlements and thick clouds of mosquitoes populate Awala-Yalimopo and Plage Les Hattes, one of the world's most spectacular nesting sites for…
- FFort Cépérou
Off the gardened Place Léopold Héder are the remains of Fort Cépérou, perched on land bought in 1643 from the Galibi people by the first French colonists…
- ÎÎle St Joseph
With its eerie solitary-confinement cells and guards' cemetery, Île St Joseph is overgrown with coconut palms, though it does have a good white-sand beach…
Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout French Guiana.
- See
Centre Spatial Guyanais
Visiting the Centre Spatial Guyanais and (if you're lucky) seeing a rocket launch are two of French Guiana's biggest highlights. Both need to be arranged…
- See
Camp de la Transportation
The eerie Camp de la Transportation, where prisoners arrived for processing, was the largest prison in French Guiana. Convicts arrived exhausted after 20…
- See
Central Market
Inside Cayenne's market, shoppers will find a vibrant jumble of Amerindian basketry, African-style paintings and carvings, piles of spices at great prices…
- See
Plage Les Hattes
This long stretch of beach is a very important nesting ground for giant leatherback turtles, which can grow up to 600kg. The females come ashore from…
- See
Trésor & Kaw Nature Reserves
The Trésor Nature Reserve is one of French Guiana's most accessible primary rainforest areas, and wandering its 1.75km botanical trail is a great way to…
- See
Île Royale
Once the administrative headquarters of the penal settlement, Île Royale has several restored prison buildings, including a fine prisoner-built chapel and…
- See
Maison de la Reserve Naturelle l'Amana
Amerindian settlements and thick clouds of mosquitoes populate Awala-Yalimopo and Plage Les Hattes, one of the world's most spectacular nesting sites for…
- See
Fort Cépérou
Off the gardened Place Léopold Héder are the remains of Fort Cépérou, perched on land bought in 1643 from the Galibi people by the first French colonists…
- See
Île St Joseph
With its eerie solitary-confinement cells and guards' cemetery, Île St Joseph is overgrown with coconut palms, though it does have a good white-sand beach…
Guidebooks
Purchase our award-winning guidebooks
Get to the heart of French Guiana with one of our in-depth, award-winning guidebooks, covering maps, itineraries, and expert guidance.