Birding in Borneo (13 days)
The third largest island on the planet, Borneo has vast tracts of tropical rainforest extending across varied topography with huge biodiversity. On this specialist private tour you will be looked after by an expert birding and wildlife guide, and taken to a range of bountiful habitats that support exotic and endemic species in the Malaysian state of Sabah, in the north of the island. The trip starts at Sepilok, home to the famous Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, with time spent at the canopy walkway and observation towers for your first opportunity to spot the Bornean Bristlehead, along with many others including kingfishers, pittas and hornbills. The next leg of the trip is a three-night adventure in the Deramakot Forest Reserve, widely considered the best place in Borneo to see nocturnal wild cats such as the elusive Clouded Leopard and Marbled Cat, along with many sought after bird species such as the Sunda Frogmouth and the Brown Wood Owl. Continue this overland journey to Malaysia’s largest freshwater swamp along the Kinabatangan River to explore the many tributaries and ox bow lakes that wildlife and birds flock to. This aquatic environment is a particularly good area for hornbills, kingfishers and the Bornean Ground Cuckoo, Asian Paradise Flycatcher and presents further opportunity to spot a Bornean Bristlehead. The finale is a three night stay in the Danum Valley Conservation Area, one of the largest protected areas of virgin rainforest in Borneo and a perennial favourite for wildlife enthusiasts. This pristine habitat is further enhanced for birders by a 260m walkway that provides an excellent platform for watching the canopy. Danum Valley is a haven for pittas, babblers, flycatchers, hornbills and the Bornean Green Magpie.
Guide Price
From £4,895 per person based on a shared room for departures in May.
Day by Day Itinerary
Click on each day to expand the itinerary detail. Or click on the print itinerary button above to preview the tour in full.
Flight: MH3 London Heathrow - Kuala Lumpur 10.25 - 06.45 (overnight)
Flight: MH2710 Kuala Lumpur - Sandakan 10.35 - 13.20
Meet & greet: Upon arrival at Sandakan airport, you will be welcomed to Borneo by your private English-speaking guide, and then transferred to your hotel in nearby Sepilok to check-in.
Afternoon visit to the Rainforest Discovery Centre: This afternoon, you will be taken on a visit to the Rainforest Discovery Centre which has an information centre focusing on the flora and fauna of Sabah, and an impressive canopy walkway. The exhibition covers a wide range of subjects, from various plant groups and adaptations to forest types and the fauna found in Borneo. The Canopy Walkway is about 343 m long and 25 m high at its highest point, with 2 towers (named Bristlehead and Trogon respectively) and a single-column shelter. At dusk there is a very good chance of viewing the Borneo Giant Flying Squirrel gliding from tree to tree. Join a night walk at the centre to seek opportunity in encountering the bizarre looking Western Tarsier! Among the wildlife that can be seen there include civets, slow lorises, flying squirrel, mouse deers, as well as several bird species such as Oriental Bay Owl, Barred Eagle Owl, Boobok, Reddish Scops Owl that resides in the lower part of the tropical forest.
Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Sepilok Nature Resort (Chalet Room)
Morning visit to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre & Sun Bear Conservation Centre: This morning you will visit Sepilok, home to one of only four Orangutan sanctuaries in the world. Founded in 1964 the Centre helps once captive Orangutans learn to climb and fend for themselves in the wild with the hope that one day they may return to the forest. To start the tour there is a short film shown at the information centre giving some background on the history of the project, and the day to day work being carried out. Then proceed on foot along raised boardwalks through the rainforest to a series of platforms where milk and bananas are provided twice a day to the semi-wild Orangutans who are in the process of returning to the forest. There is an excellent chance that Orangutans and several species of monkeys will arrive in numbers, which is a spectacular sight and provides the opportunity to photograph these amazing creatures at close range.
After visiting the Orangutans, continue to the nearby Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre (BSBCC), where there are around 28 rescued bears. Sun bears are the smallest and least known members of the bear species, and their populations are rapidly diminishing in Southeast Asia. Habitats are being destroyed by deforestation and sun bears are being brutally killed for commercial exploitation. Baby sun bears are one of the cutest young animals in the world, so after their mothers are killed they are captured as pets and are locked in tiny cages. The mission of the BSBCC is to rescue these captured Sun Bears, and promote conservation through animal welfare, conservation, rehabilitation, research and education.
Road journey to Deramakot: After this morning's excursions set off on the four-hour road transfer to Deramakot. The first half of the journey, lasting around two hours, will be on a smooth sealed road up to the town of Telupid. At Telupid you will change to a 4WD vehicle for the final 70km into the forest reserve. This will take a further two hours and will be on a logging track which is uneven and bumpy in places. Arrive at the reserve lodgings late this afternoon.
Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Deramakot Forest Reserve Lodge (Standard Room)
Meals: Breakfast & Dinner
Exploring Deramakot Forest Reserve: During these days you will be exploring the Deramakot Forest Reserve. Deramakot is a commercial forest reserve managed by the Sabah Forestry Department that practices ‘Reduced Impact Logging’, developing a management system aimed at responsible production of timber for logged over forest land and the first natural tropical forest in the world to be certified as a ‘Well-Managed Forest”. It has been certified since 1997 by the Forest Stewardship Council, making it the longest certified rainforest in the world.
Deramakot is famous as one of the best wildlife watching destinations in Sabah where 75% of Sabah’s mammals can be found within its 55,067 hectares of mixed dipterocarp forest. With great opportunity and luck, you might encounter with several of the iconic species such as the Bornean Orangutan, Bornean Pygmy Elephant, North Bornean Gibbon, Maroon Langur, the elusive Clouded Leopard, Slow Loris, Malaysian Sun Bear, Otter Civit, Marble Cat, Moon Rat, Helmeted Hornbill, the colourful Rhinoceros Hornbill and much more. The activities include daytime and night-time safaris in 4x4 vehicles which gives you the best opportunity to see a wide range of wildlife. It is also an excellent place for bird watching with a record of more than hundred species of lowland bird species in the reserve including babblers, bulbuls, all 8 species of hornbills, banded pitta as well as the endemic Bornean Bristlehead.
Accommodation: Stay 2 nights at the Deramakot Forest Reserve Lodge (Standard Room)
Meals: Breakfast
Early morning forest walk: Wake up before dawn for a final walk in the forest reserve, offering one last chance to catch any elusive wildlife sightings. Return to the lodge for breakfast, then check out.
Road journey to Sukau: Depart after breakfast for the transfer to Sukau, along the Kinabatangan River. Begin with a 2-hour bumpy 4WD drive back to Telupid, then change back into a private car for the drive on sealed highways across to Sukau, a further journey of around 2.5 hours.
Afternoon private river cruise: This afternoon you will be taken on a private cruise along the Kinabatangan River in search of the local wildlife. There is the chance of seeing orangutans, macaques, red and silver leaf monkeys, elephants, crocodiles, civet cats, otters and proboscis monkeys. The local bird life includes egret, kingfisher, oriental darter, bee-eater and hornbill.
Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Borneo Nature Lodge (Standard Room)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Full day private wildlife excursions on the Kinabatangan River: After breakfast you will set out on a full day’s discovery of the Kinabatangan region and its wildlife. The Kinabatangan is Malaysia's second longest river which stretches 560km (350 miles) from its headwaters in the mountains southwest Sabah, to its outlet at the Sulu Sea, east of Sandakan. The area is known for its high-diversity habitats including its limestone caves, dryland dipterocarp forest, riverine forest, freshwater swamp forest, oxbow lakes and salty mangrove swamps near there coast. The river is also the best place to see the majestic Bornean endemic Proboscis Monkey.
Activities in the area includes cruising along the Kinabatangan River that will give you opportunities to see their wide selection of abundant wildlife that makes the place their home such as the Bornean Pygmy Elephants, Silvered Langurs, Proboscis Monkeys, Long-tailed Macaques, Pig-tailed Macaques, Orangutans as well as large numbers of bird species such as the rare endangered Storm’s Stork, Lesser Adjutant, Slaty Woodpecker, White-bellied Woodpecker, Sunda Pygmy Woodpecker, Sunda Frogmouth, Bornean Falconet, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Crested Serpent Eagle, Brahminy Kite, Grey-headed Fish Eagle, Crested Goshawk, Ruddy Kingfisher, Stork-billed Kingfisher, Common Kingfisher, Blue-eared Kingfisher, Mangrove Whistler, Mangrove Blue Flycatcher, Bornean Ground Cuckoo, Little Green Pigeon, Cinnamon-headed Pigeon, Imperial Green Pigeon, Large Green Pigeon, Thick-billed Green Pigeon, Common Iora, Straw-headed bulbul, Red-eyed Bulbul, Olive-winged Bulbul, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Temminck’s babbler, White-chested Babbler, Greater Coucal, Asian Palm Swiftlet, Edible-nest Swiftlet, Trogons and much more.
Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Borneo Nature Lodge (Standard Room)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Private road journey from Sukau to the Danum Valley: After breakfast you will be transferred by road to the Danum Valley Conservation Area, a journey of approximately 3.5 hours. This journey involves a change of vehicle in Lahad Datu to a 4x4.
Afternoon / evening activities: After lunch you will taken by your private guide to the ‘treetops’ as you experience the sights and sounds of the jungle from a suspended walkway in search of the local wildlife. In the evening there may be the opportunity to experience a night-time drive in a jeep in search of nocturnal animals. Please note the night safaris are operated by the lodge in dry weather only, and is a shared excursion with other guests with a limited number of spaces.
Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Danum Valley Field Centre (Standard Room)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Full days wildlife & birding activities: After breakfast each day your private naturalist guide will describe the wildlife excursions on offer for you to choose from. Danum Valley Conservation Area situated within a 130 million year old primary rainforest set amidst magnificent mixed lowland rainforest, immensely rich in biodiversity including plants, birds and wildlife. The forest holds about 340 species of birds and 124 species of mammals, which makes them a haven for bird watchers, mammal watchers and nature enthusiasts alike.as There are a considerable amount of trails which are accessible by foot to seek opportunity in finding the elusive ground birds such as the Argus Pheasant, Chestnut necklaced Partridge, Pittas and Babblers whereas some of the trails which are close to the river streams also offer varieties of Kingfisher species as well. At night you will have an opportunity to join a night safari to try your luck to encounter with some of the nocturnal bird species and amazing mammals such as the Philippine Slow Loris, Sambar Deer, Island Palm civet, Banded Palm Civet, Bornean Striped Palm Civet, Sunda Leopard Cat, Binturong, Barred Eagle Owl, Buffy Fish Owl, Brown Wood Owl, Oriental Bay Owl, Sunda Frogmouth and Large Frogmouth.
Accommodation: Stay 2 nights at the Danum Valley Field Centre (Standard Room)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Morning excursion: This morning there will be the opportunity to take a trek along the Hornbill Trail.
Road journey from Danum Valley to Lahad Datu: After breakfast and some time to explore the area further you will be transferred to Lahad Datu airport in a private vehicle.
Flight: MH3015 Lahad Datu - Kota Kinabalu 13.35 - 14.30
Private transfer: On arrival, you will be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel to check-in and relax for the rest of the day.
Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Hyatt Regency Kinabalu (Deluxe Room)
Meals: Breakfast
Private transfer: After a day at leisure your guide and driver will transfer you to the airport.
Please note that you will have to check out of your hotel room in the morning but will be able to store your luggage and use the shared facilities until it is time to transfer to the airport. If you wish to book a late checkout from your room, please speak to your consultant at the time of enquiry.
Flight: MH2631 Kota Kinabalu - Kuala Lumpur 19.05 - 21.40
Flight: MH2 Kuala Lumpur - London Heathrow 23.30 - 04.55 (overnight)
Meals: Breakfast
