Itinerary Details
1 Arrive Kuching, Malaysia
The craftspeople of Kuching are the guardians of ancient artisanal skills, and riverfront Carpenter Street is filled with deft hands carving wood, weaving mats, sculpting clay or stitching beads in stalls and studios.
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2 Kuching | Longhouse And River Cruise
Just out of town, a remote Annah Rais community is centered around a traditional bamboo longhouse, where friendly local families invite visitors for tea. Sailing the Sarawak is a great way to tap into the area’s history and witness local life on the riverbanks. Visit a traditional bamboo longhouse to immerse yourself in the local Bidayuh culture and take a tea break with a local family. Later, follow in the footsteps of the English adventurer James Brooke as you sail up the Sarawak River on a traditional boat cruise.
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3 Kuching | Orangutan Encounter
Meet the undeniably adorable orangutans at Semenggoh Orangutan Wildlife Center, a research center focused on the conservation, biology and behavior of these majestic tree-dwelling animals. Admire the extraordinary landscape of limestone karsts, along with the otherworldly Wind Caves and Fairy Caves on a guided exploration.
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4 Kinabalu | Soaring Peaks
Kinabalu National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site set in the leafy foothills surrounding Mount Kinabalu, the highest peak between the Himalaya and New Guinea. The national park’s thriving botanical gardens are best seen with a local naturalist.
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5 Kinabalu | Poring Hot Spring
Visit Poring Hot Spring in search of the largest flower in the world, the rafflesia, and hear from your specialist guide about why – along with its rarity, size and unusual appearance – it is the flower’s strange life cycle that makes it so fascinating.
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6 Sepilok | Rainforest Canopy Walk
The small town of Sepilok is home to the Rainforest Discovery Center, which has a spectacular 678-yard-long canopy walkway perched 88 feet up in the rainforest tree line. It’s also home to Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center, where afternoon feeding of these long-limbed animals is a highlight. The center’s boardwalk also provides close-up encounters.
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7 Kinabatangan | Northern Sanctuary
Lodges here are designed with elephant passes built into their boardwalks; fellow guests may include proboscis monkeys, orangutans and gray gibbons. A river cruise with a naturalist guide is an immersive, inspiring way to connect with one of Borneo’s most interesting ecosystems.
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8 Kinabatangan | Safari Cruise
Teeming with life yet totally tranquil, early morning and late evening cruises on Kelenanap Oxbow Lake offer the best wildlife-spotting and birdwatching opportunities. An in-house naturalist provides expert insight into the many species that inhabit this ecosystem.
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9 Danum Valley | Species And Spirits Mingle
The Danum Valley’s Sugpan tribe believed that the higher you’re buried, the closer you are to heaven, and Sabah’s lowland rainforest is rife with stories of spirits and ancient burial sites.
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10 Danum Valley | Nocturnal Safari
Set off on an exhilarating night safari accompanied by a local guide, whose knack for spotting nocturnal species such as sambar deer, civet cats, frogs and leopards is invaluable.
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11 Danum Valley | Tranquil Falls
Leopards, orangutans, slow lorises and the critically endangered Bornean pygmy elephant call sacred Coffin Cliff home, and its many walking trails lead the way to waterfalls, rivers and pools in between thickets of the world’s tallest tropical tree. Trek to Fairy Pools and Merchant Pools for a refreshing swim and some relaxing time by the waterfalls.
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12 Gaya Island | The Coral Triangle
Pulau Gaya is an island within Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, a marine park of coral reef, mangrove forest, cliffs and caves. The island’s 1,300ft-long white-sand beach invites you to go off-grid and decompress. Look up to see red giant flying squirrels gliding through the air or look down to spot the enormous elephant foot yam flower.
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13 Gaya Island | Vibrant Reefs
Gaya’s private beach is surrounded by crystal clear waters and a coral reef irresistible to scuba divers and snorkelers: among the colorful coral, spot catfish, clownfish, turtles, pufferfish and barracuda.
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14 Depart Kota Kinabalu
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