11-Day Wild Encounters of Borneo with Kuching - Small Group 2027
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Highlights
- Discover Sandakan, Sepilok, Kinabatangan, Kundasang and Kota Kinabalu
- Visit orangutan and sun bear sanctuaries, the Kinabatangan River, rainforest canopy walkways, Mount Kinabalu foothills and Ara Dinawan Island
- Explore Kuching and Bako National Park
- Visit Agnes Keith House and the Dusan community
- Sepilok: See conservation in action at Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center, where orphaned orangutans and those once kept as pets are cared for as they learn to return to the wild. Watch them feed on fruit and swing through the trees, then view the nursery where young orangutans practise the survival skills they need in the rainforest. Your visit directly supports United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 15: Life on Land.
- Sepilok: Meet the world’s smallest bear at the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Center, guided by founder and CEO Dr Wong. Learn how his team rescues and cares for sun bears threatened by habitat loss and the illegal pet trade, and see how each bear is given space to climb, forage and behave more naturally.
- Sepilok: Explore the Kabili-Sepilok Forest Reserve from suspension bridges and a 147-meter canopy walkway, with the rainforest rising around you. Look across the treetops, watch for rare birds and see the scale of Borneo’s lowland forest from above, where every sound, branch and movement draws you further into this protected habitat.
- Kinabatangan River: Glide along the Kinabatangan River with your guide helping you scan the banks, branches and shallows for Borneo’s Big Five: orangutan, proboscis monkey, pygmy elephant, rhinoceros hornbill and crocodile. From the water, you’ll see why this river is one of Sabah’s great wildlife corridors, linking rainforest, wetlands and mangrove habitats.
- Kinabatangan River: See the Kinabatangan after dark, when the river feels completely different. With your guide, scan the banks and branches for civets, flying foxes, palm civets and owls, using the boat’s quiet pace to pick up small movements, eye shine and the sounds that carry across the water after sunset.
- Sandakan: Step inside Agnes Keith House, the restored hilltop home of the American writer who wrote about life in North Borneo before and after the Second World War. Through its rooms, photographs and gardens, you’ll see Sandakan’s past through one family’s experience of this former British North Borneo capital.
- Sandakan: Sit down to lunch at the English Tea House, set beside Agnes Keith House on a hill above Sandakan. Expect colonial-style surroundings, garden views and a menu that nods to the city’s British North Borneo past, with familiar tea house favorites served in one of Sandakan’s best-known dining spots.
- At the Everything Pineapple Project, see how local pineapple is turned into handmade jams, chutneys and juices. Browse the products, taste the sweet and sharp flavors and learn how this small project uses a crop grown across Sabah in ways that support local makers.
- Kota Kinabalu: Get to know Kota Kinabalu through the places that shape Sabah’s capital. Visit the city mosque, pass the Atkinson Clock Tower and stop at a local market, seeing how coastal life, faith, trade and daily routines sit side by side in one of Borneo’s busiest cities.
- Ara Dinawan Island: Enjoy time away from the city on a small stretch of Sabah’s coast known for clear shallows and coral close to shore. Take the pace you want here, from quiet beach time to optional activities on the water, with space to enjoy the island without feeling rushed.
- Ara Dinawan Island: Enjoy a private beach barbecue lunch on Ara Dinawan Island, with grilled seafood, chicken, fresh salads, tropical fruit and cold drinks served close to the water. After time on the beach or in the sea, sit down with your fellow travelers and enjoy what’s been cooked over the grill.
- Kuching: Explore Kuching with your Travel Director, walking through a city shaped by river trade, Malay, Chinese and colonial influences. See the cat statue and cat fountain, visit a Chinese temple, follow the river promenade and view the mosque before sitting down to Sarawak laksa, a local favorite made with noodles, coconut, spices and fresh herbs.
- Bako National Park: Explore Sarawak’s oldest national park and one of the best places to see Borneo’s habitats packed into a small area. Your guide will help you understand how rainforest, mangroves, cliffs and beaches support different species, from long-nosed proboscis monkeys to plants that survive in poor coastal soil.
- Semenggoh: See rehabilitated orangutans at Semenggoh Wildlife Conservation Center, where those once orphaned or rescued are released into the surrounding forest. You’ll watch for them moving through the trees and feeding nearby, while learning how the center gives orangutans space to live more freely in their natural environment.
- Visit a Bidayuh longhouse and meet a community whose traditions are tied to shared living, food and family life. Sit down to a home-cooked lunch, see a community dance and explore the longhouse, learning how its spaces bring generations together under one roof.
- Kinabatangan River: Reach Kinabatangan Wetlands Resort by boat, passing fishing villages before entering the Lower Kinabatangan-Segama Wetlands, Sabah’s first RAMSAR site and Malaysia’s largest. Set among ancient mangrove trees, the timber-built resort places you deep in a protected wetland, reached on foot through groves of nipah palms.
- Sandakan: Follow Sandakan’s streets with your Travel Director and taste the flavors locals know well. Try roti kosong, a plain flatbread often served with curry, kueh, colorful bite-sized cakes or sweets and teh tarik, Malaysia’s pulled milk tea known for its frothy top.
- Try playing Sarawakian instruments with members of the Bidayuh community guiding you. Hear how the rhythms support local dance and celebration, then have a go yourself as your hosts show you how the instruments are held, played and used in community life.
- Mount Kinabalu: Meet the Dusun community in Kiau Village, where coffee growing supports local families in the foothills of Mount Kinabalu. Fresh coffee gives you your first taste of the village before you sit down to a home-cooked lunch with your hosts, hearing how farming, food and daily life are connected here.
Dates & Prices
Price in USD (per person, based on double occupancy)
Itinerary
Sandakan, Malaysia
Sandakan, Malaysia
Sepilok, Malaysia
Sandakan, Malaysia
Sandakan, Malaysia
Kinabatangan, Malaysia
Kinabatangan, Malaysia
Kinabatangan, Malaysia
Sandakan, Malaysia
Kundasang, Malaysia
Kundasang, Malaysia
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
Ara Dinawan Island, Malaysia
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
Kuching, Malaysia
Kuching, Malaysia
Kuching, Malaysia
Kuching, Malaysia
Includes & Excludes
Price Includes
Additional Notes
- DAY 1: Complimentary arrival transfers from Sandakan Airport (SDK) depart at 14:00 and 18:00 on the first day of the tour. We recommend flights to arrive 2 hours prior to the last complimentary transfer time. Flights to arrive prior to 16:00.
- DAY 11: Complimentary departure transfers arrive at Kuching International Airport (KCH) on the last day of the tour at 08:00 and 14:00. We recommend flights to depart 3 hours after the first transfer arrival time at the airport. Flights to depart after 11:00.
- ENTRY INTO MALAYSIA: All guests entering Malaysia must submit their Malaysian Digital Arrival Card (MDAC) a minimum of 3 days before arriving. Note that first-time visitors will not be able to use the auto-gates as their passports need to be verified at the counter manned by Immigration personnel. These visitors will be able to use the auto-gates upon arrival and departure for subsequent visits.
- MOTORCOACH NOTE: Various vehicles without onboard washrooms are used, depending on the group size; however, the Travel Director will arrange regular comfort stops during longer journeys to ensure guests' comfort.
- LUGGAGE ALLOWANCE: Each guest is permitted one bag with maximum dimensions of 58 linear inches (147 cm), the total of length, width, and height - and a weight not exceeding 44 lbs (20 kg). Guests may also bring one personal item, such as a purse, backpack, or similarly sized item that fits comfortably under the seat in front of them or the overhead compartment weighing no more than 15 lbs (7kg).
- RECOMMENDED PACKING LIST: Insect repellent, raincoat, good walking shoes, sunscreen, sun hat, binoculars, flashlight, swim wear, sandals, personal toiletries, and extra light cotton clothing.
- SMALL GROUP SERIES: This trip is featuring exclusively small-group departures, operating with a maximum of 18 guests for the entire series.
- GROUND HANDLER: This trip is operated by Intrepid.
Policies
Touring: By air-conditioned / air-ventilated motor coaches. Please note that on some Regional European First Class Tours and London sightseeing, motor coaches without toilet facilities are used. In the Middle East and South America, air-conditioned / air-ventilated motor coaches (or minibuses) without toilet facilities are used. If due to circumstances beyond our control coaches are used otherwise than as advertised, a refund of $10 per person will be made.
- Over 45 days: $US200
- 45 - 22 days: 25%
- 21 - 8 days: 30%
- 7 - 1 days: 50%
- Departure day or later/no show: 100% The refund amount will be credited directly to your TakeTours wallet as credits for future use. Or the refund can also be forwarded directly to your credit card with a 6% handling fee.
Tour Prices:Are based on costs, charges, tariffs, rates, prices, taxes, levies and exchange rates as at time brochures went to print. Should these change, the price of your vacation may increase. No surcharges in respect of cost or currency fluctuations will be made once payment for the deposit of your land tour is received. This does not apply to fuel surcharges and any taxes, charges or levies imposed by any government or their agencies. In exchange for these guarantees, no refund will be made if costs are reduced. Please note that if the total tour price increases by more than 10%, passengers will have the right to cancel their tour within 7 days of notification of the surcharge without penalty.
Tour Cancellation: We reserves the right to cancel or re-schedule any tour departure in accordance with operating requirements or circumstances beyond its control. If cancellation is made any time prior to departure* of the tour, our only liability will be to refund to the passenger the amount it has received for the tour booking.
We are not responsible for any other travel arrangement affected due to our cancellations.
Travel Insurance: We recommend that all passengers purchase comprehensive travel insurance. Certain countries have a requirement for foreign visitors to have valid medical insurance on entry. We cannot be held responsible if a passenger is denied entry for being unable to provide details to the authorities of such insurance. We do not employ staff doctors or nurses. Should you need medical attention, it will be at local facilities, at your expense. We are not responsible for any costs incurred as a result of medical services, or for the quality of medical care or medical services you receive.
Complaints procedure: Should you have a complaint in respect of your vacation, you should inform your Tour Director/Representative immediately. If the matter cannot be resolved after the Tour Director's/Representative's best endeavors to do so during the holiday.
Responsibility
1. The Operators shall be responsible to the passenger for supplying the services and accommodations described on the website, except where such services cannot be supplied or the itinerary used is changed due to delays or other causes of whatever kind or nature beyond the control of the Operators. In such circumstances, the Operators will do their best to supply comparable services, accommodations and itineraries and there shall be no refund in this connection.
2. Where the passenger occupies a motorcoach seat fitted with a safety belt, neither the Operators nor their agents or co-operating organizations or service providers concerned will be liable for any injury, illness or death or for any loss or damages or claims whatsoever arising from any accident or incident, if the safety belt is not being worn at the time of such accident or incident.
3. Transportation companies, are not to be held responsible for any act, omission or event during the time passengers are not on transportation or conveyances. We rely on international convention which may apply to the services provided by us, our suppliers or agents with respect to any claim of any nature brought by you against us as a result of the provision of those services. International conventions which apply may include: Warsaw Convention 1929, (as amended by Hague Protocol and Montreal Protocol) in relation to air travel, or Montreal Convention; the Berne Convention for rail travel; Athens Convention 1974 for carriage by sea; the Geneva Convention for carriage by road and the Paris Convention 1962 for Hotels. We are to be regarded as having all benefit of these conventions on limiting our liability in relation to any claim for death, injury, loss, damage and delay to passengers and luggage. Enrollment in and payment for a tour shall constitute agreement and acceptance by the passenger of the terms and conditions set forth in this brochure which cannot be varied except in writing by an officer of the Company.
4. In the case of computer or human billing error we reserve the right to re-invoice passengers with correct billing.
5. We are not responsible for omissions, printing and/or typographical errors, in brochures, on Internet sites correspondence or invoices or in any other media where such information may be presented. We reserve the right to make corrections as required. The terms and conditions listed remain in effect until replaced. These terms and conditions replace all previous versions.
- The Operators shall be responsible to the passenger for supplying the services and accommodations described on the website, except where such services cannot be supplied or the itinerary used is changed due to delays or other causes of whatever kind or nature beyond the control of the Operators. In such circumstances, the Operators will do their best to supply comparable services, accommodations and itineraries and there shall be no refund in this connection.
- Where the passenger occupies a motorcoach seat fitted with a safety belt, neither the Operators nor their agents or co-operating organizations or service providers concerned will be liable for any injury, illness or death or for any loss or damages or claims whatsoever arising from any accident or incident, if the safety belt is not being worn at the time of such accident or incident.
- Transportation companies, are not to be held responsible for any act, omission or event during the time passengers are not on transportation or conveyances. We rely on international convention which may apply to the services provided by us, our suppliers or agents with respect to any claim of any nature brought by you against us as a result of the provision of those services. International conventions which apply may include: Warsaw Convention 1929, (as amended by Hague Protocol and Montreal Protocol) in relation to air travel, or Montreal Convention; the Berne Convention for rail travel; Athens Convention 1974 for carriage by sea; the Geneva Convention for carriage by road and the Paris Convention 1962 for Hotels. We are to be regarded as having all benefit of these conventions on limiting our liability in relation to any claim for death, injury, loss, damage and delay to passengers and luggage. Enrollment in and payment for a tour shall constitute agreement and acceptance by the passenger of the terms and conditions set forth in this brochure which cannot be varied except in writing by an officer of the Company.
- In the case of computer or human billing error we reserve the right to re-invoice passengers with correct billing.
- We are not responsible for omissions, printing and/or typographical errors, in brochures, on Internet sites correspondence or invoices or in any other media where such information may be presented. We reserve the right to make corrections as required. The terms and conditions listed remain in effect until replaced. These terms and conditions replace all previous versions.
Q & A
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