(Guyana Chronicle) LEADING global travel and lifestyle magazine, Condé Nast, lists Guyana as one of the 20 most exciting places to visit in 2020.

“With new direct flights from New York to Georgetown on American Airlines and JetBlue, the country is getting more accessible just as it steps into the spotlight.” – Condé Nast.

The magazine said though it has plenty of reasons to stand out – as South America’s only English-speaking country, and with a strikingly diverse population of Indian, African, Chinese, European, and Amerindian descent – Guyana has long hovered under the radar. But this relative quietness isn’t going to last long. The 2015 discovery of oil offshore has led to surging interest in the country. What that means for Guyana is still playing out, but so far, its abundance of natural beauty has remained shielded from the masses.

According to the magazine, hotel options are decidedly rustic. “Intrepid travellers should base themselves in the colorful capital of Georgetown, at Cara Lodge, a charmingly preserved heritage hotel dating from the 1840s; from there, venture out to Kaieteur Falls, the world’s largest single-drop waterfall.” At community-owned and operated rain forest ecolodges in the interior, “you might go days before encountering another tourist (or any cell signal). When you’re ready to surround yourself with humans again, learn about Guyana’s massive East Indian community on a curry tour in Georgetown, or taste your way through distilleries as you learn more about the country’s centuries-old rum-making history.” “With new direct flights from New York to Georgetown on American Airlines and JetBlue, the country is getting more accessible just as it steps into the spotlight. You don’t need a crystal ball to predict big changes in Guyana’s near future. Our advice: Get there before a rumored Starbucks does,” the magazine stated.

Last month the Guyana Chronicle reported that Destination Guyana had won its sixth tourism award for 2019. This time, it won the Silver Prize in ‘Best of Adventure’ from the International Travel and Tourism Awards for its sustainable adventure practices framework communities have embodied. The award was presented at the World Travel Market in London on November 5.

In a brief statement, the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) had expressed or appreciation to its partners at Lotus UK for helping to make the award possible. The honour for ‘Best in Adventure’ recognises the destinations or businesses within the travel and tourism industry that have dedicated time in supporting and promoting adventure travel, through creative marketing and campaigns as well as increasing interest to their particular destination through this sector.

This year, Guyana was also named: The World’s #1 in ‘Best of Ecotourism’ and one of the Top 10 Sustainable Destinations at the ITB Berlin – the world’s leading travel and trade show in March 2019. In June of this year, the country was won First Place at the Golden City Gate Awards for its Welcome back to Nature and won first in Sustainable Tourism at the LATA Achievement Awards that same month. At the CTO’s Sustainable Tourism Awards Programme in August, Guyana was awarded first in Best in Destination Stewardship.