Upon your arrival in Sandakan, you will be met at the airport, and transferred to the Sepilok Nature Lodge.

Check into your chalet and enjoy an evening meal at the hotel’s Lake Bistro, with breathtaking views over the water and the surrounding rainforest.

Sepilok Nature Lodge

Dinner

Get ready to encounter Borneo’s spectacular wildlife… Your first stop is the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. Learn about this fascinating species and the centre’s incredible conservation work, before heading out to try and spot some orangutans.

Explore the network of boardwalks, where you may manage to spot some orangutans in the trees above you, but make sure to get to the observation platform for 10am. This is the orangutans’ feeding time, meaning there’s a good chance you’ll spot some.

Then, head just over the road to visit the Borneo Sun Bear Conservation Centre, where you’ll learn about and encounter the world’s smallest species of bear!

After lunch you will be taken to Sandakan jetty for a 2½ hour boat journey to Sukau Rainforest Lodge along Sabah’s longest river, the Kinabatangan. Enjoy an afternoon river cruise in search of more wildlife and birds before soaking up the views of the riverbank over dinner followed by a welcome presentation by an expert naturalist.

Sukau Rainforest Lodge

Breakfast, lunch and dinner

It’ll be an early start this morning for a cruise up the Kinabatangan River to Kelenanap Oxbow Lake. The Kinabatangan River is rich with wildlife, and it is one of the best places to spot Borneo’s ‘Big 5’ wildlife: orangutans, proboscis monkeys, saltwater crocodiles, rhinoceros hornbills and pygmy elephants.

Enjoy a delicious lunch and learn about Borneo’s incredible wildlife from your expert guide, before heading back onto the Kinabatangan River for an afternoon cruise, with the chance to spot different wildlife to the morning, so keep your eyes peeled!

Sukau Rainforest Lodge

Breakfast, lunch and dinner

The following day entails another morning river cruise, this time exploring the Menanggol River. The river is a hot spot for macaques and orangutans, and is one of the best places to find proboscis monkeys.

That afternoon you’ll visit the fascinating Gomantong Caves. Traverse the network of boardwalks through the limestone cave system, the walls of which are a source of the edible birds nests that are an expensive delicacy.

At around 6pm each evening, a dramatic bat exodus takes place, as millions of bats come out hunting, with the swiftlets returning to the cave. Around the caves is also a great place for birdwatching, with common sightings like serpent eagles and hawks.

Sukau Rainforest Lodge

Breakfast, lunch and dinner

This morning, you will be transferred to the Danum Valley for a 3 night stay at Borneo Rainforest Lodge.

Settle into your chalet, before a welcome presentation and an afternoon rainforest trek. You will explore the resort’s nature trails and wander amongst the treetops on the canopy walkway. After dinner at the on-site restaurant, you will venture out on a night drive, in search of nocturnal animals.

The next day is similarly packed full of exploring. Trek the Kadazandusun burial trail and take a refreshing dip in the ‘jacuzzi pools’. You’ll head back to the lodge for lunch, before a riverside trek that afternoon. After dinner you will then embark on a night walk for more wildlife spotting.

On your last full day at the Borneo Rainforest Lodge, you will embark on both a morning jungle trek and an afternoon walk, searching for any wildlife you haven’t yet managed to spot.

Borneo Rainforest Lodge

Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Spend a relaxed final morning at Borneo Rainforest Lodge, before you are transferred to Lahad Datu Airport after lunch. From here, you will fly to Kota Kinabalu, and you’ll be transferred to the Shangri La Tanjung Aru for the night.

Check out one of the resort’s three restaurants that evening and perhaps take a dip in the pool, or treat yourself to a cocktail at the sunset bar.

Shangri La Tanjung Aru

Breakfast and lunch

Enjoy a morning at your leisure at the Shangri La Tanjung Aru. Take a dip at the resort’s several pools or the private beach, or perhaps luxuriate with spa treatment.

You will then be transferred to Jesselton Point Jetty for a 15 minute boat ride over to Gaya Island. The Gaya Island Resort is your home for the next 5 nights, and your time on is free to enjoy at your leisure, Gaya Island offers plenty to explore however!

The area around Gaya Island, the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park, is fantastic for snorkelling or scuba diving. The marine park is a protected area and is situated within the Coral Triangle: the world’s marine epicentre.

Alternatively, opt for a guided nature walk through the rainforest, embark on a fishing excursion, or kayak through the mangroves that line the island’s fringes.

Gaya Island Resort also offer crafting workshops, where you can learn about traditional crafts and create your own souvenir. Alternatively, indulge in a treatment at the resort’s spa, or unwind in a poolside cabana or on the private beach.

Gaya Island Resort

Spend the final morning of your Borneo holiday at your leisure, before taking the short boat ride back to Jesselton Point Jetty. From there, you will be transferred to Kota Kinabalu Airport for your flight home.