Guyana has much to offer with its unspoiled rainforests, beaches, rolling savannahs and meandering rivers.
Our attractions range from the natural splendour of Kaieteur Falls, to the British architecture of wooden houses in the capital, Georgetown.
Jungle trekking, freshwater fishing and wildlife watching are the high points closely followed by the possibility of sighting a jaguar, spotting a giant anteater, giant otter or the arapaima, the world’s largest freshwater fish.
One of the few Caribbean countries that is not an island, multicultural Guyana has more in common with the West Indies than it does South America;
Guyanese culture and cuisine reflect the ethnic makeup of the country owning to its name the land of 6 races, which consists of Indian, African, Amerindian, Chinese, Portuguese, and the mixed race from intermarriages, originally brought over to the Caribbean by Dutch and British colonialists.
Travellers looking for a destination with a difference, will find Guyana a joy to discover.
Guyana Visa and Passport Requirements
| Passport required | Return ticket required | Visa required | |
| Australian | Yes | Yes | No |
| British | Yes | Yes | No |
| Canadian | Yes | Yes | No |
| Other EU | Yes | Yes | No/1 |
| USA | Yes | Yes | No |
Passports: To enter Guyana, a passport valid for six months is required by all nationals referred to in the chart above.
Visas: Visas are not required by the nationals referred to in the chart above except:
- Nationals of (1) Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia, who do need a visa to enter Guyana.
- Transit passengers continuing their journey to a third country by the same aircraft or by first connecting aircraft within seven hours, without leaving the airport.
If you do not require a visa, you will normally be given 30 days to remain in Guyana, but you can extend this at the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Nationals not referred to in the chart are advised to contact the embassy/high commission to check visa requirements for Guyana.
Travellers who do require a visa must be able to prove they have sufficient funds to cover their stay.
Penalties for overstaying are severe; you could be faced with a large fine or even imprisonment.
Guyana History, Language and Culture
History of Guyana
Prior to the arrival of the Spanish, the Arawak and Carib people had been fighting for control of the region, but when the Spanish arrived, the victorious Carib warriors proved defenceless against the heavily armed Europeans, who discovered the area had no gold and gave the land back to the natives.
In 1616 the newly independent Dutch founded a trading post in current day Guyana and rapidly expanded their settlements inland, changing their original aim from trading with the natives, to conquering them.
For more than 170 years the Dutch named the colony Essequibo and used it mainly as a trading base for locally grown tobacco, exporting some 15,000 kilos in 1623. When the Dutch West India Company took complete control of the colony, business changed from trading tobacco to trading African slaves, until the Berbice slave uprising of 1763, during which time plantations rapidly fell to the Africans.
The British and French marched in to quash the uprisings from neighbouring colonies, thus laying the path for an eventual majority British population. During the French Revolutionary Wars, when Napoleon’s forces occupied the Netherlands, Britain conquered all Dutch colonies in the Americas, including Guyana.
This British control was legitimised by the signing of the London Convention of 1814, at which France agreed to allow Britain to control the newly unified British Guiana. Successive Governors of the colony repeatedly complained to London about the lack of able bodied workers to complete grand public works, so paid workers were imported from British India in their shiploads, thus resulting in an un-proportionately sized Indian population calling Guyana home.
In 1950, Indian-Guayanese Cheddi Jagan and Afro-Guyanese Forbes Burnham founded the first political party in the country, the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) which campaigned for independence from Britain, which was granted in 1966.
After independence, Forbes Burnham was elected to power, but his premiership saw border disputes with Venezuela and Suriname grow. Burnham took Guyana from a pro-imperial right-wing to a left-leaning pro-communist country, developing ties with Cuba. Successive left-wing governments neglected Guyana’s potential oil and gas reserves until Desmond Hoyte took power and embraced the free market, elections and independent media. The PPP/C won the election in 1992 seeing a change in government and the development and expansion of several sectors and the introduction of many initiatives.
Guyana Culture
Religion: 50% Christian, 33% Hindu, less than 10% Muslim.
Social conventions: Hospitality is important to the Guyanese and it is quite common for the visitor to be invited to their homes. Informal wear is widely acceptable, but men should avoid wearing shorts.
Language in Guyana: English is the official language, but Creole, Hindi, and Amerindian dialects are also spoken.
Money & duty free for Guyana
Exchange rates ( check for current rates)
Guyanese Dollar
€1 = G$261.5
£1 = G$326.77
US$1 = G$208.95
Currency & Money
Currency information:
Guyanese Dollar (GYD; symbol G$) = 100 cents. Notes are in denominations of G$5,000, 1,000, 500, 100 and 20. Coins are in denominations of G$10, 5 and 1. US Dollars are widely accepted throughout Guyana.
Credit cards: American Express, Diners Club, MasterCard and Visa are accepted by most larger hotels, restaurants, car hire and tour operators.
ATM: Foreign cards are now accepted at a few bank ATMs including the Scotia Bank in Guyana.
Travellers cheques: Accepted but not recommended for those who may wish to change money in a hurry. To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take traveller’s cheques in US Dollars. Visitors are advised to bring traveller’s cheques to cover the entirity of their stay.
Banking hours: Mon-Fri 08:00-14:00 and Friday 15:00
Currency restriction: There are no restrictions on the import or export of local or foreign currency. However, amounts exceeding US$10,000 or equivalent must be declared.
Currency exchange: Banks offer exchange facilities. Bureaux de change (cambios) offer free conversion of currencies.
Guyana duty free
The following goods can be imported into Guyana by travellers aged 18 years or over without incurring customs duty:
- 227g of tobacco (including cigarettes and cigars).
• 758ml of spirits.
• 758ml of wine.
• Other goods to the value of US$100.
Visiting Dadanawa
You should know
Dadanawa Ranch offers the opportunity for guests to truly unplug from the world of technology, sinking into a vacation where mountain views replace the television, and front porch chats replace phone calls.
Before coming to Dadanawa Guests should know:
- There are no televisions.
- We are too remote for reliable cell phone coverage.
- The ranch has Wi-Fi Internet access via a satellite system.
- We have a small on-site store that sells t-shirts, hats, sundries, postcards, and snacks and we have some boots, hats and rain gear to borrow.
- Visit our website in detail for further information and more details