Highlights

  • Seek out rare wildlife in the rainforests of Borneo
  • Go tribal amid the longhouses of Batang Ai
  • Visit Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre
  • Relax in style at a luxury beach resort
  • Compare the ancient and ultra-modern in pulsating Sinagapore

This tailor-made adventure pairs the ancient cultures and 21st-century delights of one of Asia’s city greats with the very best of Malaysian Borneo’s unique natural world. It all begins in Singapore, with a luxury stay in a converted warehouse, located in one of the city’s trendiest neighbourhoods. Then, having ticked off the temples of Chinatown and Little India, and sipped Singapore Slings in Raffle’s iconic Long Bar, you’ll fly across the South China Sea to arrive amid Borneo’s jungle verdure. Here, between tribal longhouse visits and Kota Kinabalu’s acclaimed foodie scene, you’ll be treated to a host of wildlife encounters, from a tour of the world-renowned Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre to jungle walks in the Danum Valley and a scenic cruise along the Kinabatangan River – a region known for its populations of pigmy elephants and proboscis monkeys.


Day 1

Depart UK

As with all of our holidays, this one begins in truly relaxing style with an included access to a VIP UK airport lounge, followed by your overnight flight to Singapore.


Day 2

Arrive in Singapore

Arriving in Singapore, you’ll be met for an included private transfer to your hotel – a converted 19th-century warehouse in vibrant Robertsons Quay.

You’ll have the rest of the day to explore, perhaps taking in the multi-tiered temples and bustling hawker markets of Chinatown and Little India, exploring the Gardens by the Bay with its 21st-century ‘Supertrees’ linked by elevated walkways or indulging with afternoon tea or a Singapore Sling at the iconic Raffles Hotel.

Gardens by the Bay, Singapore

Gardens by the Bay, Singapore

Little India, Singapore

Little India, Singapore


Day 3

Fly to Kuching

Bookended by a pair of private transfers, your morning flight sees you out across the South China Sea to Kuching in the Bornean state of Sarawak. Check into your hotel, then spend a leisurely day exploring the city on foot.

It’s an eclectic mix of Chinese shophouses, colourful temples and narrow streets, which spill out onto a pretty riverfront park – the ideal spot for an evening stroll.

Stay: The Ranee Boutique

Breakfast included

Kuching, Sarawak

Kuching, Sarawak


Days 4 – 5

Tribal culture in Batang Ai

Today’s included transfer is a scenic affair, cutting through swathes of cultivated farmland dotted with rural villages to reach the small town of Lachau and then the port of Lubok Antu. Having paused to take lunch en route, you’ll then board the ferry to arrive at your lakeside hotel, hidden among the ancient rainforests of Batang Ai. It’s a delightfully scenic base from which to explore the region’s rich tribal heritage, which you’ll showcase on an expert-led tour on day five. Heading out on a motorised longboat, your guide will bring you out across the lake, tracing its verdant shoreline to reach a remote longhouse on the Engkari River.

Here, you’ll be treated to a cultural performance, enjoy a blowpipe demonstration and have some time to relax and mingle with the locals before retracing your steps to arrive back at your hotel in time for dinner.

Stay: Aiman Batan Ai Resort & Retreat

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner included

Batang Ai, Borneo

Batang Ai, Borneo

Traditional handicrafts, Batang Ai

Traditional handicrafts, Batang Ai


Day 6

Return to Kuching

Leave Batang Ai this morning, returning to Kuching by lake and road, and stopping for an included lunch at one of the rural roadside villages. Check into your hotel and spend the rest of the day at leisure.

Stay: The Ranee Boutique

Breakfast included


Day 7

Kota Kinabalu

Transfer to Kuching Airport this morning for the short flight to Kota Kinabalu on Borneo’s beach-fringed north coast. Having checked into your hotel, via another included private transfer, you’ll enjoy a day at leisure to take in the sights and sounds of Sabah’s capital.

Perhaps take a journey through the city’s rich culinary landscape, with everything from street-food markets to high-end restaurants, or call into the superb Sabah Museum to learn about the region’s indigenous cultures. Or, you might simply choose to relax, making the most of your hotel’s spa and swimming pools, which boast wonderful sea views.

Stay: Le Meridien Kota Kinabalu

Breakfast included

View, Le Meridien Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia

Le Meridien Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia


Days 8 – 9

Sepilok’s Orangutans and Kinabatangan

After breakfast and a short flight to Sandakan, again bookended with included private transfers, you’ll be treated to a real trip highlight. Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre is Malaysian Borneo’s flagship conservation project, where orphaned and injured orangutans are rehabilitated and, if all goes well, released back into the wild. It’s vital work, which you’ll learn more about through a fascinating video presentation before you head, in the company of the centre’s trained staff, to a feeding platform in the neighbouring lowland forest where you’ll watch the young residents tucking into their morning meal – a truly magical experience.

After your Sepilok experience, a scenic transfer will bring you out through green countryside to Borneo Nature Lodge on the banks of the Kinabatangan River where a programme of including touring, including a naturalist-led river cruise, will see you into the wilds in search of hornbills, proboscis monkeys, pigmy elephants and orangutans.

Stay: Borneo Nature Lodge

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner included

Baby Orangutan, Sepilok Orang Utan Sanctuary, Malaysia

Baby orangutan at Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary

Pygmy elephants, Kinabatangan River, Borneo

Pygmy elephants, Kinabatangan River


Days 10 – 11

Wildlife in Danum Valley

Enjoy a relaxing breakfast at the lodge overlooking the river before transferring to Lahad Datu in Sabah’s remote southwest. It’s then time to meet your guide for a further two-and-a-half-hour off-road transfer to Borneo Rainforest Lodge, deep in the Danum Valley. This region of virgin rainforest is utterly spectacular, and your accommodation, which comes complete with unobstructed jungle views, makes the absolute most of it. Consider an upgrade to a Deluxe Cabin to enjoy the added luxury of a private balcony complete with bathtub, for relaxing soaks to the sounds of the forest. In all, it’s a truly special base for two unforgettable days of adventure, with everything from guided nature hikes to canopy walkways and river tubing excursions bringing you to the very best spots for wildlife viewing.

Indeed, with your expert guide at the helm, you’ll be in for the very best chance of spotting gibbons, orangutans, red and silver leaf monkeys and a whole host of birds, reptiles and insects. There’s also the chance to learn something of the valley’s human intrigue with a hike to Coffin Cliff – an ancient burial site – or take a refreshing swim in the delightfully secluded ‘Jacuzzi Pool’, complete with its very own waterfall shower.

Stay: Borneo Rainforest Lodge

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner included

Danum Valley, Borneo, Malaysia

Danum Valley, Borneo


Days 12 – 14

Time to relax in Kota Kinabalu

Enjoy a final morning in Danum Valley before lunch and an included transfer back to Lahad Datu where you’ll board a flight to Kota Kinabalu, sweeping over a landscape of jungle and rivers. It’s then time for three days of unashamed relaxation as you check into the Shangri-La Rasa Ria with its sprawling golden sands, indulgent spa, 18-hole golf course and spectacular nature-reserve setting.

If you do feel like getting out and about, there’s the magnificent Kinabalu Park, home to Malaysia’s highest peak, as well as the Poring Hot Springs and, just off the coast, the coral-fringed islands of Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park.

Stay: Shangri-La Rasa Ria

Breakfast included

Kota Kinabalu, Malaysian Borneo

Kota Kinabalu, Borneo

Kota Kinabalu, Malaysian Borneo

Kota Kinabalu, Malaysian Borneo

Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia

Coast near Kota Kinabalu


Days 15 – 16

Depart for UK

After a final breakfast at your hotel, transfer to Kota Kinabalu Airport in time for your overnight flight home. 

Breakfast included


About the itinerary

"I've put together this itinerary as the ideal contrast between Southeast Asia's urban and natural worlds. Singapore is everything you could want from a big-city experience, with its unique blend of ultra-modern innovation and ancient traditions, all set alongside one of the continent's finest food scenes. It's also a superb base for exploring the wider and wilder regions around it, in this case Malaysian Borneo, whose ancient rainforests, home to the likes of orangutans, gibbons and proboscis monkeys, are just an hour-and-a-half flight away."

Andy Austen

Destination Specialist

Pricing information

Guide price from £4,150 pp

Enquire