Tourist Attraction Re-Opens In Trelawny

With thousands of tourists and locals visiting the parish of Trelawny weekly, particularly the town of Falmouth, to conduct business or to have fun, there have been calls for more attractions to be opened in the parish.

Millions of dollars have been invested in the area in infrastructure, particularly access roads and the cruise ship pier in Falmouth, where thousands of tourists visit regularly, and attractions are necessary to lure the visitors away from the ships.

One Trelawny businessman, Johny Gourzong, has answered the call and has re-opened the Jamaica Swamp Safari Village, located along the main road, west of downtown Falmouth.  The facility, which is owned by the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo), has been leased to River Raft Limited, owned by Mr.  Gourzong, who operates ‘Rafting on the Martha Brae’ attraction.

Established in 1971, the Jamaica Swamp Safari Village is a wild life sanctuary, which sits on approximately 50 acres of the Salt Marsh wetlands, in Trelawny.  It also has a rich and deep history, with several scenes for movies being filmed there.

In an interview with JIS News, Mr. Gourzong explains that the facility y was re-opened in December 2011, after much refurbishing and upgrading.

“What is on offer inside is viewing and mingling with animals, birds and fauna from Jamaica as well as some rare and unique animals from across the region,” he notes.

“It is going to be a nice journey into wild Jamaica and the wild Americas,” he adds, prior to giving the JIS team a tour of the facility.

The first part of the journey involves a walk through the aviary, featuring birds of Jamaica, inclusive of some very rare ones, many of which are endemic to Jamaica. 

“This aviary is approximately 120 feet by 100 feet by about 35 feet high, so it is quite large. It is so large that the birds almost get lost inside here,” Mr. Gourzong says.

He describes the aviary as a “bird watcher’s paradise.

Also on show are animals and reptiles from Jamaica and the Americas, including the Jamaican Coney, the Agouti, Tayra, Grey Fox, Raccoon, Capuchin Monkey, Iguanas and snakes, among others.

However, the main attraction are the crocodiles  in the wetlands, which visitors  will see being fed and handled, and even get an opportunity to handle the young ones.

Mr. Gourzong says the attraction is open to visitors every day, including public holidays, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Mayor of Falmouth, Councillor Collin Gager, has expressed delight at the re-opening of the facility.

“I think it will add to the ambience of this town, and so we can say that we are seeing our own attractions being opened up.  We hope that other (businessmen) will follow suit,” he tells JIS News.

He says that if all the available attractions in the parish are opened, then cruise ship visitors to Falmouth will not have to be bussed out of the parish.

“It is something that not only tourists should come and see, but our own Jamaican people should pay a visit there,” he tells JIS News.

Small business operators in the town of Falmouth say the attraction is a welcomed addition, as it will provide employment and generate funds to the local economy.

By Bryan Miller, JIS Reporter