Îles du Salut (Devil's Island)

From 1852 to 1953 the Salvation Islands received tens of thousands of transported convicts — political prisoners, habitual criminals, and escape artists like Henri Charrière, whose memoir Papillon popularized the system. Disease, sharks, and currents made escape nearly impossible, and only a fraction of inmates survived to return to France.

Today Île Royale welcomes day-trippers to restored guard quarters, prisoner dormitories, and a cemetery still tended by former staff families. The tropical beauty clashes with rusting cells, and visitors often speak of an uneasy stillness in the hospital wing.

Reachable by catamaran from Kourou with advance booking; Devil's Island itself remains off-limits, but Île Royale and Saint-Joseph are open for guided walks.