Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre
Sepilok
Around 25km north of Sandakan, and covering 40 sq km of the Kabili-Sepilok Forest Reserve, this inspiring, world-famous centre welcomes orphaned and…
Must-see attractions in Sabah
Sabah
This small reserve has forested hills rising dramatically from the surrounding plain. If getting into the Maliau Basin or Danum Valley feels like too much…
Sabah
This hill, 2km north of the Batuh Putih bridge, features three caves housing the ancestors of local Orang Sungai (People of the River). Because the…
Sabah
Borneo's loveliest beach is a long, almost-pristine stretch of white sand, lapped at by clear waters. The waves are gentle and great for swimming. You…
Sabah
Imagine a cathedral-like inner chamber shot with splinters of sunlight and a cave floor swarming with cockroaches, and you have the Gomantong Caves. The…
Sandakan
A beautiful rainforest garden marks the site of a Japanese POW camp and the starting point for the infamous WWII 'death marches' to Ranau. Of the 1793…
Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park
Sabah
The islands of Manukan, Gaya, Sapi, Mamutik and Sulug, and the reefs in between, make up the 49-sq-km Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park. Only a short boat…
Semporna
Also known as the Semporna Islands Marine Park, this 350-sq-km protected area, a short boat ride from Semporna, comprises eight islands and two reefs…
Borneo Sun Bear Conservation Centre
Sepilok
The wonderful BSBCC provides care to rescued sun bears (44 at the time of writing), the world's second-most endangered bear. It's possible to see the…
Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary
Sepilok
A local palm-plantation owner has created a private proboscis monkey sanctuary, attracting the floppy-conked locals with sugar-free pancakes at 9.30am and…
Kota Kinabalu
With its three-hour tours, Mari Mari showcases various traditional homes of Sabahan ethnic communities – the Bajau, Lundayeh, Murut, Rungus and Dusun –…
Sandakan
This atmospheric two-storey colonial villa, Newlands, tells the story of American writer Agnes Keith and her British husband Harry, the Conservator of…
Kota Kinabalu
Built in classical style, this mosque is far more attractive than the State Mosque in both setting and design. Completed in 2000 it can hold up to 12,000…
Kota Kinabalu
This centre features 1.4km of wooden walkways passing through a 24-hectare mangrove swamp, where you can expect to see scuttling fiddler and mangrove…
Sepilok
The RDC, about 1.5km from SORC, offers an engaging education in tropical flora and fauna. Outside the exhibit hall filled with child-friendly displays, a…
Sabah
Near the top of the Crocker Range, next to the main highway, 20km north of Tambunan, this park is devoted to the world's largest flower. The Rafflesia…
Sabah
About 15km northeast of Tenom and originally set up as an orchid centre, this vast park has become a major research facility and tourist attraction,…
Sabah
Well worth a peek, this museum showcasing traditional Dusun culture is located inside a traditional bamboo dwelling. Inside you'll find antique Chinese…
Mt Kinabalu & Kinabalu National Park
At Kundasang, beside the KK–Ranau Hwy, 10km east of Kinabalu National Park headquarters, is this poignant memorial conceived in 1961. It commemorates the…
Sabah
Pulau Kuraman, Pulau Rusukan Kecil and Pulau Rusukan Besar are uninhabited islands lying southwest of Labuan that are now protected by the federal…
Sandakan
Sandakan's Chinese Cemetery is huge. As you wander along the cemetery, you'll notice the graves become older and more decrepit – many have been claimed by…
Sabah
A pretty tea plantation huddles in the mountains near Ranau, producing the famous Sabah Tea. Contact the garden to arrange tours of both the plantation…
Signal Hill Observatory Platform
Kota Kinabalu
Up on Signal Hill, among the art deco mansions at the city-centre's eastern edge, there's an unmissable UFO-like observation pavilion. Come here to make…
Kota Kinabalu
KK's Night Market is an unmissable immersion into local culture. It's authentic, bustling, aromatic and noisy. At the southwest end you will find stalls…
Pialungan Sandakan-Ranau Death March Memorial
Sabah
In 1945 Sabah-occupying Japanese sent 641 British and 1793 Australian POWs on a series of forced marches from Sandakan to Ranau. Only six – all…
Sabah
This museum provides a good (if dry) introduction to the island's history and culture, from precolonial days through British and Japanese occupation, WWII…
Sandakan
A poignant piece of Sandakan's ethnic puzzle, this cemetery was founded in the 1890s by Kinoshita Kuni, known as the successful madam-manager of Sandakan…
Sandakan
Wrapped in the usual firework display of reds, golds and twining dragons, festooned with lanterns illuminating the grounds like a swarm of fireflies, this…
St Michael's & All Angels Church
Sandakan
One of the very few surviving pre-WWII buildings, this pretty stone church (1893) sits as a relic of colonial times and a monument to Christian worship on…
Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project (KOCP)
Sabah
Inside Sukau village this conservation camp, run in partnership with a French NGO, is dedicated to studying and protecting the orangutan. It also…
WWII Memorial (Labuan War Cemetery)
Sabah
A dignified expanse of lawn with row upon row of headstones dedicated to the nearly 4000 Commonwealth servicemen, mostly Australian and British, who lost…
Sabah
Partially eroded by the elements, the stone skull topping this squat stone container, resembling a postbox, gives a clue as to its past use. Back in…
Sabah
There's a small monument to Private Thomas Leslie Starcevich, an Australian WWII veteran. In 1945 Starcevich single-handedly overwhelmed a Japanese…
Sabah
Around 26km northeast of Tambunan, this gorgeous 17m-high waterfall plunges into a deep pool below, perfect for a refreshing dip. There's a spartan hostel…
Sabah
At the Tampat Do Aman guesthouse, this worthwhile museum aims to preserve traditional Rungus culture, with detailed displays on marriage and funeral rites…
Sabah
Mr Foong Choon Sang founded this coffee factory in 1986 and became a local legend, growing Malaysia's best coffee – a lowland robusta bean. Come here to…
Kudat Turtle Conservation Society
Sabah
Run by Roland, the Kudat Turtle Conservation Society is based at the south end of the Bavang Jamal beach. There's an education centre nearby and it's…
Sabah
This pretty park offers refuge to a wide range of species (580, apparently) in three geodesic domes, and a swath of rainforest. The birds look a little…
Sabah
On the coast just east of the centre, the Labuan International Sea Sports Complex houses a decent little museum with a good shell collection and displays…
Poring Hot Springs
Part of the Poring Hot Springs complex, this centre boasts 1200 species of orchid, all of which are unbelievably found within Kinabalu National Park. It's…
