Most meals included – (B,L,D) denotes Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 1

Arrive to Kuching, Malaysia (KCH). You will be met at the airport and transferred to the arrival hotel. Our accommodations will be at the Pullman Kuching 5-star hotel. The rest of the evening will free for you to rest or to explore the area around the hotel.

Day 2 (B, D)

Our group will meet in the morning for breakfast and orientation to go over the details of our trip. We'll head to the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre early in the afternoon to view semi-wild orangutans in a natural setting. This orangutan rehabilitation centre receives orphaned or rescued orangutans and trains them to survive in the wild. Over 20 orangutans live in the forest within the nature reserve and they often return to the centre to receive supplemental feeding. The rangers will teach us about the purpose of the centre and their conservation objectives.

Day 3 (B, L, D)

Our day will start early as we travel to the village of Bako and then to the Bako National Park, which is situated on a coastal peninsula. We'll take a half hour boat journey where we'll have a chance to see crocodiles, sea eagles, and other shore birds. After exploring the trails and searching for wildlife, we'll return to Kuching mid-afternoon.

Day 4 (B, D)

This morning we'll take an internal flight to Sandakan with a brief layover in Kuala Lumpur. After settling in at our resort in Sandakan, we'll proceed to the Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary. This privately run sanctuary is located within an oil palm estate and offers a unique chance to see proboscis monkeys. As there is insufficient food from the oil palm plantation alone, the monkeys receive a supplementary diet. The afternoon feeding time commences at 4:00pm when groups of proboscis monkeys from the nearby forest and mangroves and head to the wooden platform for a meal.

Labuk Bay offers a unique opportunity to get close to these normally shy creatures. Silver leaf monkeys and hornbills are also sometimes seen at Labuk Bay. Before dinner, we'll go to the flying squirrel platform near our resort to see if the red giant flying squirrels are emerging from their nests. Dinner and overnight accommodations will be at MY Nature Resort.

*Flight from Kuching > Kuala Lumpur > Sandakan

Day 5 (B, L, D)

Early in the morning, we'll venture to the Rainforest Discovery Centre (RDC), an education centre located within the Kabili Sepilok Forest Reserve. The centre features a 480-foot long canopy walkway, which is up to 90 feet above the forest floor. The walkway and towers offer a unique way of seeing Sabah’s rainforest and are an excellent place for bird watching. We'll also visit the Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary, where captive orangutans are reintroduced into the wild, and the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre (BSBCC). This centre houses over 30 sun bears and is involved in sun bear conservation, welfare, rehabilitation, and education.

Around noon, we'll take a 1-hour boat cruise up the Lower Kinabatangan River, passing pristine mangrove forests and searching for wildlife. When we arrive at Abai Jungle Lodge, our accommodations for the night, we'll enjoy lunch, relax, and explore the surrounding area on the nature boardwalk. We'll take another in the afternoon to search for proboscis monkeys, birds, reptiles, and other wildlife. As night falls, we'll witness the glittering of fireflies on the mangrove trees and return to the lodge for dinner.

Day 6 (B, L, D)

Our journey begins on another boat trip this morning for bird watching and wildlife viewing at the nearby Pitas Lake. We'll cruise upriver to Sukau, check-in at our next hotel, and then we'll continue up the Kinabatangan River to the Menanggul River in search of proboscis monkeys, birds, and other wildlife. Dinner and overnight accommodations will be at the Kinabatangan Riverside Lodge.

Day 7 (B, L, D)

We'll enjoy some bird watching and wildlife viewing at the nearby Ox Bow Lake this morning, and then we'll return to the lodge for breakfast. In the afternoon, we'll go on an excursion to the Gomantong Cave, the largest birds' nests cave in Sabah. Wild orangutans are also usually spotted around this area.

Day 8 (B, L, D)

After breakfast, we'll depart for the Borneo Elephant Sanctuary (BES). BES is Sabah’s natural-habitat refuge developed specifically to meet the needs of endangered elephants. It was developed and designed specifically for sick or injured elephants. We'll learn about the centre's conservation plan and how they manage their elephant population.

Day 9 (B, L, D)

After breakfast, we'll drive to Lahad Datu and check-in at the Borneo Rainforest Lodge. After lunch, we'll attend a brief orientation about the activities we'll enjoy in the Danum Valley. We'll also have a guided walk on a nature trail (1/4 mile boardwalk) and a canopy walkway that stretches almost 1,000 feet. If weather allows, we'll be able to go for a night drive in search of nocturnal animals!

Day 10 (B, L, D)

Following breakfast, we'll depart for a trek along the “Coffin Trail” that leads to an ancient Kadazan-Dusun burial site. After returning to the lodge for lunch, we'll go on another jungle trek in search of wildlife or we'll opt for a relaxing session of tubing down the Danum River. After dinner, we'll take a night walk in search of more nocturnal creatures.

Day 11 (B, L, D)

Today, we'll do various walks in the vicinity of the Borneo Rainforest Lodge to search for and photograph wildlife. We may continue on to a nearby waterfall as well. After dinner, we'll have the option of taking another night walk or a night drive.

Day 12 (B, L)

This morning will feature a leisurely breakfast followed by time at own leisure. After lunch, we'll check-out of the hotel and head to the Lahad Datu airport for our flight to Kota Kinabalu. Our overnight accommodation in Kota Kinabalu will be at the Grandis Hotel.

*Flight from Lahad Datu > Kota Kinabalu

Day 13 (B)

We'll transfer to the airport (BKI) this morning and say our final farewells to the beautiful Bornean adventure we had! Flights home should be booked from Kota Kinabalu International Airport, Malaysia (BKI).