Suriname Eases Visa Regulations in Effort to Boost Tourism

In an effort to boost its new emphasis on the tourism sector, the government of Suriname has recently abolished the requirement for a visa to enter the country from an additional 13 countries, including China, India, Indonesia and Turkey, four of the world’s most populous nations

The nine other countries are from Latin America. The list does not include any African or Arab countries.

However, to visit Suriname, citizens of these countries must purchase a tourist card, which costs US $35 at the Johan Pengel International Airport. The tourist card isn't available at the official border crossing posts between Suriname, Guyana and French Guiana, which is an inconvenience for some travellers. Moreover, the immigration and customs processing to enter Suriname from Guyana at the South Drain Ferry Terminal is a long and arduous ordeal that can take up to three hours.

The Parliament of Suriname is expected to soon pass legislation to govern the tourism industry. Suriname, once isolated from the non-Dutch speaking world, has in the past decade propelled itself closer to the English-speaking Caribbean, Latin America and Asia.

Concluding bilateral air agreements with key countries has been very slow for Suriname, and the country's national airline, Surinam Airways (SLM), is a loss making enterprise. The government is now looking to privatize SLM. The modernization and expansion of the Johan Pengel International Airport is still incomplete.

Suriname, which the New York Times referred to as "South America's hidden treasure”, is slowing working to develop and improve its eco- and cultural tourism product. More recently, Suriname has been promoting its tourism product in Holland, Belgium and now Germany. However, there is little or no promotion in North America, and the Caribbean.

Airlift is a major problem facing Suriname's unique and excellent tourism product. Airlift is mostly from the Netherlands and the Dutch ABC islands of the Caribbean. Suriname, like Guyana, is not linked to Venezuela or Brazil by air. It can cost more to fly from New York to Suriname than from Amsterdam to Suriname. Connectivity is difficult and the prices are generally considered exorbitant.

Source: Caribbean News Now