Malaysian Borneo – Sabah

Introducing Malaysian Borneo – Sabah

The mere mention of the word Borneo conjures up a host of vivid images: thick jungle teeming with wildlife; wild rivers flowing through tunnels of overhanging trees; orang-utans swinging through forest canopy; craggy mountains soaring above the steaming lowlands; remote longhouses inhabited by the descendents of head-hunters.

Incredibly, all of these images are accurate – you’ll find all this and more in Malaysian Borneo – but you’ll also find some things that may surprise you: prosperous cities with international restaurants; first-class resorts complete with spas and golf courses; efficient public transport and an increasingly extensive network of paved roads – even suburban sprawl and traffic jams to go with it.

The two states of Malaysian Borneo, Sabah and Sarawak, have their own distinct personalities and attractions. Sabah is a nature-lover’s paradise, the place to see some of Borneo’s famed wildlife: orang-utans in Sepilok, proboscis monkeys along the Kinabatangan, and hornbills just about anywhere there’s jungle. It’s also home to one of the world’s best dive sites: Pulau Sipadan, the coral-fringed summit of an oceanic pinnacle in the South China Sea. And then there’s Mt Kinabalu, that 4095m freak of a mountain that dominates northern Borneo with its peculiar crown of granite towers.

Sarawak, in contrast, offers boat trips up winding jungle rivers; visits to the longhouses of Borneo’s indigenous peoples; vast cave chambers inside limestone mountains; and the historical and cultural attractions of Kuching, Sarawak’s capital city.

Last updated: Mar 24, 2009