Guyana Expanding Visitor Access With New Flights and Tours

Among the most under-the-radar Caribbean tourism destinations, Guyana is highlighting the launch of new flight service this week, along with nature-based and cultural attractions that Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) officials say make the country attractive for visitors seeking to maintain safe social distancing practices.

JetBlue this week launched nonstop service between New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and Georgetown, Guyana’s Cheddi Jagan International Airport. Flights will initially operate up to four times weekly.

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In addition, Caribbean Airlines launched twice-weekly flights between Cheddi Jagan Airport and Toronto’s Lester B. Pearson International Airport in November, with connections available from Trinidad and Barbados.

Guyana’s international airports reopened to commercial flights in October, with carriers including JetBlue, American Airlines and Caribbean Airlines currently offering service from U.S. cities. Visitors are required to obtain a molecular biological PCR test with a negative result within seven days of travel to Guyana and complete a passenger locator form to enable contact tracing at least 24 hours prior to departing.

GTA recently introduced a series of community-based tours designed to deepen travelers’ “connection to and understanding of the Guyanese way of life,” said officials. The excursions include indigenous Amerindian Moraikobai and Wakapau village tours.

The villages’ individual tourism committees have worked with GTA to ensure that their one-day and overnight tour packages have completed training in hygiene and sanitation protocols guided by GTA’s official hygiene and sanitation protocol.

Other new excursions include a ‘Seven Curry Tour,’ which takes travelers on a culinary journey to discover seven types of curry, one of Guyana’s most famous dishes. Guests will join charismatic “singing chef” Eon John as he purchases ingredients in Georgetown’s bustling markets to prepare the dish. GTA is also offering a “Gordon Ramsay-inspired” tour featuring access to “one-of-a-kind local experiences.”