Choosing
Commewijne or Jodensavanne: which should I choose?
Take Commewijne if you want plantation and indenture history reached by boat, seven hours at €95, ending with the sloths of Peperpot. Take Jodensavanne if seventeenth-century Jewish settlement history is the reason you came: it is a World Heritage site, inscribed in September 2023, roughly 50 kilometres upriver and reached by road. With one free day, most visitors should choose Commewijne.
Advice checked against our tour data on 2026-09-06.
At a glance
| What you want | Best fit | Time | Why | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plantation and indenture history | Commewijne plantations and river, €95 | 7 hours, 08:00 to about 15:30 | Fort Nieuw Amsterdam from 1747, and at Frederiksdorp the director’s house, the police post and the cells still stand in sight of each other. | The whole day is about slavery and indenture. Not a pleasant outing, and seven hours with part of it in full sun. |
| Seventeenth-century Jewish settlement and World Heritage | Jodensavanne. Jenny Tours at €82.50 today; ours is being arranged | Full day, typically | The ruined synagogue Beracha Ve Shalom, consecrated in 1685, and two cemeteries whose stones carry Hebrew, Portuguese and Dutch together. | Ours has dates being arranged and a price confirmed with availability. It is a ruin in the forest: foundations and gravestones, not standing buildings. |
| Getting there by boat | Commewijne | Boat at 08:30, road back | The crossing is the point: the Waterkant only still looks the way it was meant to when seen from the water. | An open boat and no shade on the crossing. Skip it if you get seasick easily. At Jodensavanne the boat is at most the final stretch. |
| Travelling with children | Commewijne, with one reservation | 7 hours | The afternoon at Peperpot gives a good chance of sloths, and that is the part children remember. | The morning is cells and plantation history, which is heavy going for young children. Colakreek at €85 is the easier family day. |
| Walking and heat | Commewijne, about 3 km spread over the day | 7 hours | The walking comes in short stretches at the fort, the plantation and Peperpot, with the boat and lunch in between. | Three kilometres in tropical heat is still three kilometres, and part of the day is in full sun. |
| Only one free day | Commewijne | 7 hours | The more complete day: river, fort, plantation, lunch and wildlife, on a departure time we actually control. | You will not see Jodensavanne at all, and of the two that is the one on the World Heritage list. |
| Two free days, doing both | Commewijne first, Jodensavanne second | Two full days | Commewijne shows the plantation economy at scale; Jodensavanne then reads as what a self-governing community inside that same colony was. | Two long days back to back in the heat. Put a city day or a rest day between them if you can. |
These are two different histories
Commewijne is about the plantation economy itself: coffee, slavery, and after 1863 indentured labour from India and Java. At Frederiksdorp the director’s house, the police post and the prison still stand in sight of one another, and that contrast is not meant symbolically, it is simply how it was built.
Jodensavanne is about one group inside that same colony. Sephardic Jews fleeing Portugal and Brazil were granted unusual freedoms in Suriname and from the late seventeenth century built their own settlement with plantations and a stone synagogue. It was also a slaveholding community. Both facts belong to the place, and neither cancels the other.
Distance and how you get there
Commewijne starts on the other side of the river. You sail at 08:30 and stand at Fort Nieuw Amsterdam by 09:15, roughly 20 kilometres from Paramaribo. The boat is part of the experience, not just transport.
Jodensavanne lies about 50 kilometres upriver in Para district. You go by road, with the last stretch by boat or unpaved track. So it is the other way round: at Commewijne the river is the route, at Jodensavanne it is the destination.
How long each day takes
Commewijne with us is seven hours, from a pick-up at 08:00 to your hotel at around 15:00 to 15:30, with boat, entries and lunch inside the €95.
Jodensavanne is sold in this market as a full day: Jenny Tours does exactly that at €82.50. Our own day trip is being arranged, so we deliberately quote no duration and no price that is not yet fixed.
Walking, heat and shade
On the Commewijne day you walk about three kilometres, in short stretches: the fort, the plantation, and the Peperpot tracks between the cacao trees. In between you are in the boat or at lunch, which is what makes the day bearable.
Jodensavanne is a ruin in the forest, with the synagogue foundations and two cemeteries. That means walking on uneven ground on a site that was not laid out to keep you out of the sun. Bring water, a hat and shoes you do not mind ruining, whichever of the two you choose.
With children
Of these two, Commewijne is the workable one, mostly because of the afternoon: at Peperpot the chance of sloths is good, though the howler monkeys and toucans are mostly a morning thing. That is the part children remember.
But be honest about the morning. It is cells, plantation history and indenture, which is heavy going. If you want a day children enjoy without reservation, take Colakreek at €85: swimming, hammocks, lunch.
One free day: take Commewijne
With a single day, Commewijne is the more complete choice. You get the river, a fort from 1747, a plantation whose buildings are still standing, lunch by the water and an afternoon with animals, all on a departure time we control ourselves.
What you give up is not trivial: of the two, Jodensavanne is the one inscribed on the World Heritage list on 19 September 2023. If that is the reason you came, reverse the choice and accept that Commewijne waits for another trip.
Two days: do them in this order
Commewijne first, Jodensavanne second. In that order you see how the plantation economy worked, and Jodensavanne then reads as what it was: a community with its own governance and its own synagogue, inside exactly that system, and slaveholding itself.
Do not run two long days back to back. Put a city day between them, the €40 walking tour for instance, or simply a day of nothing.
What each costs, and who to book with today
Commewijne is €95 with us for seven hours, including boat, entries and lunch. Jenny Tours sells Commewijne with dolphins at €70 and Jodensavanne at €82.50. On international platforms, Commewijne tours run from $169 to $295 per person.
For Jodensavanne they are simply the better booking today: a published price, a fixed product, years of experience. Our own version is being arranged, with dates being fixed and a price confirmed alongside availability. We would rather sell you their tour than a date we cannot deliver.
Frequently asked questions
Is Jodensavanne a UNESCO World Heritage site?
Yes. The Jodensavanne Archaeological Site was inscribed on 19 September 2023 and consists of two components: the Jodensavanne settlement itself and the Cassipora Creek cemetery. The stone synagogue Beracha Ve Shalom was consecrated in 1685.
How far is Jodensavanne from Paramaribo?
About 50 kilometres, on the Suriname River in Para district. You get there by road, with the last stretch by boat or unpaved track. Commewijne by contrast begins across the river: Fort Nieuw Amsterdam is roughly 20 kilometres away.
Which is better with children, Commewijne or Jodensavanne?
Commewijne, mainly for the afternoon at Peperpot, where the chance of sloths is good. The morning is still cells and plantation history. If you want a day with no reservations attached, Colakreek at €85, with swimming and hammocks, is the better choice.
Can you do Commewijne and Jodensavanne in one day?
No. Commewijne alone is seven hours, 08:00 to about 15:30, and Jodensavanne lies roughly 50 kilometres upriver in the other direction. That is two full days, preferably with a rest day or a city day between them.
What do Commewijne and Jodensavanne cost?
Our Commewijne day is €95 for seven hours, including boat, entries and lunch. Jenny Tours publishes Jodensavanne at €82.50 and Commewijne with dolphins at €70. On international platforms a Commewijne tour costs $169 to $295 per person.
Still not sure?
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