Family Rainforest Adventure in Borneo

8 nights 9 days from

£5500 for a family of 4

£9,500 for two families (4 adults, 4 children)

£12,500 (6 adults, 6 children)

This is a private trip and we can run it any time of the year

Email [email protected] for more details

Every year I spend a month in New Guinea and every year my children beg me to take them with them. My children are young ( 3 girls aged 7, 8 & 8 when we went) and New Guinea is a very, very long way away, expensive and not easy to travel in, so I took them to Borneo instead and they loved it. Malaysian Borneo is a fast developing with excellent healthcare and infrastructure and one of the most biodiverse rainforests on the planet. This is one of the most rewarding rainforest & tropical experiences for children – the infrastructure is highly developed and it is easy to see large animals – Orangutans, Proboscis Monkeys, Turtles laying eggs & hatching, crocodiles & spectacular birds. The wildlife can be seen without having to go for long, hot, sweaty, muddy walks at dawn. Most rainforests tend to be rather quiet and it is easy to spend a day and only catch a glimpse of monkey high up, or a colourful bird through binoculars for a few seconds, and unless your children are truly obsessed by nature they may find this frustrating, on this trip to Borneo the nature hits are spectacular and keep coming day after day, the hotels are comfortable and with only three locations on most day if there is a grouchy child/parent who would rather chill by the beach/pool/lie in a hammock they can.

Three Nights in Sepilok Rainforest

The trip starts with three nights in a rainforest hotel some 30 minutes from the airport, the sprawling hotel complex is filled with wildlife and has an enormous swimming pool, it is five minutes to the Orangutan Sanctuary, Sunbear Sanctuary and Rainforest Discovery Center

The Orangutan Sanctuary – no two visits here are the same, try to visit at least twice, a raised walkway through the jungle leads to a platform where twice a day food is put out and rehabilitated wild Orangutan’s should emerge from the rainforest, sometimes accompanied by macaques. There is plenty of other wildlife to see here – including rhinoceros hornbills.

The Sunbear Sanctuary rehabilitates what has to be the cutest tiny bears in existence

The Rainforest Discovery Center is at the centre of over 10,000 acres of protected rainforest, and includes a spectacular 360m long walkway through the jungle canopy. Come here for daytime walks along extensive trails to see the giant trees, spectacular foliage, birds, monkeys and more but the highlight has to be a dusk walk on the canopy and a walk, with powerful torches through the forest – expect to see flying squirrels, slow lorries, macaques, reptiles, frogs, butterflies, turtles, strange insects and birdlife galore

Selingan Island – Giant Sea Turtles – Two Nights

30 minutes to an hour by boat from the port (20 minutes from the hotel) are the transnational Turtle Islands Marine Park. The island is tiny, a picture postcard tropical paradise, there is a beautiful beach with excellent snorkelling (snorkels available to hire), though our children preferred to build an extensive sand castle, populate it with hermit crabs and collect sea shells. In the evening everyone waits in the central dining room (lots of board games available) until the ranger spots a turtle then we all rush out to watch, the eggs are transferred to the protected hatchery and newly hatched turtles are released into the sea. We also saw turtles hatching naturally during the day on the beach and swimming of!

Kinabatangan River – Two Nights

We leave the island early in the morning, visit the enormous market, stock up on extraordinary tropical fruits and visit the great Chinese Temple and local museums before heading by minibus to the Kinabatangan River (2 – 4 hours drive depending on stops/traffic etc). We will spend two nights in a beautiful lodge on the river, accessible only by boat, from here we can take morning and evening cruises to look for Orangutans, Proboscis Monkeys, Giant Saltwater Crocodiles, Enormous Monitor Lizards, Gibbons, Macaques, Eagles, Fish Owls, Hornbills and much more. From the lodge we can take a guided walk through the rainforest in the day and by night – wellington boots provided.

Last Day in The Rainforest –

We leave the river and stop for lunch at a palm oil plantation where the owners have fallen in love with Proboscis monkeys and preserved a tract of rainforest for them and they are everywhere! Back to the rainforest hotel for the last night.

What’s Included?

Everything! All food, soft drinks, transportation, guides, admission fees & airport collection

Bring

Binoculars, raincoats, hot weather clothes, insect repellent, that’s about it! If you’ve forgotten it you can probably get it in Sandakan – or send our guide!

Food

The hotels we stay at all serve a variety of local and western food, our guides will also go to the market and get the largest variety of tropical fruits for us to try. Sandakan has an enormous variety of restaurants and if you prefer we can leave the hotel and try almost any food! (possibly extra cost if you want a lobster feast)

How to get there

Fly to Sandakan, via Kuala Lumpor and we will pick you up.

As you will change at K.L. if you have time your children will probably enjoy a few days exploring this beautiful city, or if you transit via Qatar or Dubai those countries are also very child friendly