Sights are strung along the river between Parika and the Mazaruni, and all are reached by boat. A day tour picks four or five; staying overnight lets you see them without hurry.
1 Fort Island: Fort Zeelandia and the Court of Policy
A small island 16 km from the river mouth that was the seat of Dutch government in Essequibo. The brick fort of the 1740s, built in a lozenge shape with a redoubt, stands roofless among the grass. A short walk away, the Court of Policy — which served as council chamber, court, church and sale room — has been restored as the Dutch Heritage Museum.
Practical: Small entry fee for the museum. Allow 45 minutes–1 hour. A few hundred people live on the island.
2 Fort Kyk-Over-Al
On a tiny island at the junction of the Mazaruni and Cuyuni, a single brick arch is all that remains of a fort founded by the Dutch in the early 17th century. Its name means “see over all”, for its command of three rivers.
Practical: 15–20 minutes by boat from Bartica; a brief stop.
3 Bartica
A grid of numbered avenues on a point between the rivers, busy with miners, traders and boat crews. There is a market, a riverside promenade, a small beach and plenty of places to eat. It is not picturesque, but it has an energy unlike anywhere on the coast, and it comes alive for the regatta at Easter.
Practical: An hour is enough for a walk; stay overnight for the nightlife.
4 Marshall Falls
A boat ride up the Mazaruni and a walk of about 20 minutes through forest lead to a broad cascade over dark rock, with a pool below where you can stand under the water.
Practical: About 30–45 minutes by boat from Bartica. A small landing fee is usually charged. Wear shoes that can get wet.
5 Sloth Island
A forested island near Bartica run as a small nature resort, with boardwalk trails, rescued monkeys and parrots, and — less dependably — the wild sloths that give it its name. Day visitors come for lunch and a walk.
Practical: Day visits and overnight stays by arrangement with the resort.
6 Baganara Island
A private island resort a few kilometres south of Bartica with a lawn running down to a sandy river beach, kayaks and its own grass airstrip. It is the usual lunch stop for Kaieteur combination flights.
Practical: Day passes and overnight packages; arrive by boat or by air.
7 The Essequibo Coast and Lake Mainstay
Across the river mouth from Parika, the road from Supenaam runs through rice lands to Anna Regina and Charity on the Pomeroon River. Lake Mainstay, a black-water lake with a white-sand beach beside an Arawak village, is the main stop.
Practical: Speedboat from Parika to Supenaam (about 45 minutes), then taxi or minibus. A day trip or an overnight.
8 Riverside villages
Small Amerindian settlements and homesteads line the creeks and banks around Bartica, their houses raised on stilts. Some tours stop at one; go only with a guide who has the community’s agreement.
Practical: By arrangement.
Guided tours: Essequibo River & Bartica
Boat trip from €192 Essequibo River: 5-Island and Town Hopping Tour with Lunch
A long day by road and speedboat on one of South America’s great rivers: Fort Island and Fort Kyk-Over-Al, the mining town of Bartica, Sloth Island or Aruwai Resort, and a swim at Baracara Falls, with lunch included.
