KALIMANTAN TRAVEL TIPS

There have been a fair few questions about Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) on this forum recently, so rather than replying each time briefly, I decided to write a longer standard post on the region.

PLANNING & INFORMATION

The First Question: Visit Malaysian Borneo or Kalimantan?
Well, which one you should choose depends on what you want and need.
Malaysian Borneo is far more visited than Kalimantan, because its attractions are well-promoted and developed for tourism, nice accomodation and food are easy to find, English is widely-spoken and getting around is fast and comfortable.
Kalimantan is rather different. If you go there you had better speak at least some Indonesian, be prepared for often slow and uncomfortable transport, basic accomodation, people who stare at you and don't speak more English than "Hello Mister!" and, most troubling... more »

Renting a boat Raja Ampat

Im from Denmark and im looking for a way to rent a boat in Raja Ampat. I cant find anything else than liveboards and they are to expensive.

One last question about onward tickets...

Even when one buys a RT ticket, for example, from K.L. to Cebu, one is still yet expected to buy a throw-away ticket to use that back-end of the R.T. ticket when returning to K.L. from Cebu....is this correct? What a pain in the ass air travel is becoming...

Togean vs wakatobi

HI,

I am now in Sulawesi and struggling between going to Togean Islands or Wakatobi.
I am looking for interesting cultural sights, villages, nice dive/snorkel spots, inexpensive lodging and food. I dont want to be surrounded by tourists and resorts.

Then I want to head to Alor and travel along the archipelago all the way west to Sumatra.

Thanks for the advice and tips, I need them urgently.

Cheers!

Gregory

Spare days in Cebu (WHALE SHARKS?)

HI ALL!

My Little Sis and I have a few spare days in Cebu and are trying to decide how best to spend them. We haven't booked accommodation so we're quite flexible. Was looking at the Cebu Hash House Harriers run for Saturday, which leaves a full day Sunday and most of Monday to explore. Something energetic or nature-oriented would be awesome!

Wondering if anyone can give us some pointers about the whale sharks?
Practical tips like who to go with, whether it's a manageable day trip, where to stay...? There's a lot of info online but your local knowledge would be greatly appreciated!

Also wondering if there is anyone with a bit of a marine biology or conservation flair who can tell us a bit more about the operation. I see the supplementary feeding concerns a lot of people. Research on Australian populations seems to suggest the species is seasonally migratory (thought to be f... more »

7 weeks in South East Asia

Hi all,

This is my first time going to SEA and I was hoping for some itinerary adivce as Im going solo. Right now Im trying to hit singapore, KL, Bali, All of thailand, especially the southern islands and Full moon, and hopefully Angkor wat and finishing in Hong Kong. I have 7 weeks roughly. What would be some good suggestions on how to get around and between places and what order I should try to be places? I was thinking Singapor-KL-Bali-Bangkok-Angkor-Thai Islands/full moon-Rest of Thailand- HK. does that sound like a good plan for 7 weeks? Thanks for any help! Cheers!

Edited by: smithglobetrotter

Bali and Lombok in June

Hi All,

I've previously got some great advice from the thorntree forum when planning our other travel adventures so I've decided to post again in the hope for some more help please.

My husband and I are flying into Bali on 5th June for 16 days. I'm still in the process of deciding exactly where to go but i think that we will spend roughly a week each in Bali and Lombok.

First question to you all - I've been looking up the weather forecast recently and it seems to be more rainy than I was expecting for May and the prediction for early June still looks like there is going to be daily rain.
- Anyone currently in Bali/Lombok is the rain affecting what you able to do in terms of trekking/ volcano climbing?

• Is it usually just one shower at a similar time every day and life returns to normal or is it more substantial than that and can affect a whole afternoon/day??

tangkahan north sumatra

hi i was wondering anyone had any contact details for black tiger lodge (Bamboo river) it would be much appreciated