I am fortunate to have had 2 trips to the East Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah on the island of Borneo. My brother Peter worked there for several years and my sister-in-law Olivia and her family are from Kota Kinabalu.
We first visited in 1998 and Pete arranged an amazing assortment of trips for us to explore the region and experience the people, jungle, and wildlife. We visited an Iban longhouse in the heart of the jungle and participated in a ceremony; saw bats streaming out of the Mulu caves at dusk; saw orang-utans at a rehabilitation centre in Sepilok; went snorkelling around amazing islands in Tunku Abdul Rahman Park; saw turtles laying their eggs at night and baby turtles hatching at Turtle Island Park; and proboscis monkeys swinging through the trees at the Kinabatangan River.
In 2001 we visited again primarily for Pete and Oli’s wedding in Kota Kinabalu. We explored the KK region doing various day trips but the highlight of this trip (apart from the wedding of course) was an overnight 4WD journey into a remote village in the jungle near Mt Kinabalu arranged by Oli’s father Daniel.
I will post more stories and photos as I get the time
If you are interested in trips to East Malaysia/Borneo see:
Explore Asia with Intrepid Travel
(a range of different travel styles – see my post on travel styles)
Peregrine Adventures (Comfort tours)
Geckos Adventures (for 18 to 30s)
Note: After people telling me they had booked an Intrepid Tour on my recommendation, I now have affiliate links with the Intrepid Travel group of companies and may receive a commission if you book a tour online within a couple of months after clicking through to these sites. So if you are enjoying my tips and stories and finding them useful in choosing your own travel, please click on these links and help me to bring you more ☺.
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