Borneo

I also think Kuching is the best choice for a quick taster of Borneo. The city itself is Borneo's nicest and most interesting, and there is a variety of attractions nearby. Both Bako and Kubah national parks are good for day trips. You can see free-ranging (not wild!) orangutans at Semengoh or ones in enclosures in the Matang Wildlife Center. "Interacting with them" is and should be officially forbidden though - leave that for zoos (like the Singapore one that offers a breafast with orangutans program).

Lazslo - thanks for that information. I'm glad Kuching makes the most sense, also seems to be a relatively cheap flight from Singapore.

Do you have any familiarity with Mt. Santubong? Also, other than Organutans....we don't have much on the agenda. Are there any activities or culturally unique things you might be able to recommend to us? Clearly Kuching would have more to offer than just Oranutans and I welcome any suggestions you might have.

Thanks for the response !!

The city itsef, with its museums and great Bornean handicraft stores, is worth a day.
Bako and Kubah NPs are both worth a day, and you could also do a brief longhouse visit. Gunung Gading NP is also worth a trip if a Rafflesia is blooming during your visit.
I am not familiar with Santubong.

Thank you !

I would add a side trip from Kuching to Mulu NP:
http://www.molon.de/galleries/Malaysia/Sarawak/Mulu/

Fly in and out by plane, will take you a couple of days and is definitely worth it. Much more interesting than the Kubah NP.

Agree with Laszlo. Ask at the information centre in Kuching if there is a rafflesia blooming and where it is, so you know if its feasible to visit. With just five days I'd stick to one or two of the day trip parks Laszlo has described and spending the rest of your time in Kuching. Santubong is also good to visit - they do have their cultural village there which is interesting even if it is set up for tourists. There are a couple of beachy places to stay at, and it's just a taxi ride from Kuching (about an hour, I think). The beaches aren't fantastic but it depends on where you come from as to whether you will appreciate them or not.

I don't think you have enough time to visit Mulu NP - it will eat up all of your five days.

Mulu NP is doable as an overnight trip from Kuching.

Day 1: MH3823 11:20-12:55 Kuching-Mulu (or MH3752 09:10-10:45); spend the afternoon visiting the Lang and Deer caves + the rainforest; overnight in Mulu NP
Day 2: morning spent visiting the Wind and Clearwater caves; MH3822 13:15-14:50 Mulu-Kuching

On some days you could even do it as a daytrip, by catching an early flight from Kuching and a late flight from Mulu. Or fly in the (late) evening Kuching-Miri, next day catch the 9:20am flight to Mulu, then fly back to Kuching in the late afternoon.

To me, squeezing Mulu into a 5 days long Kuching trip by taking extra flights to get there and back in a day or 2 just to see some caves would seem a crazy idea. It is about as far as one can get from Kuching in Sarawak. It would also cost quite a lot. One could also visit Australia or Japan in 2 days from Kuching, taking 4 flights, but that doesn't mean one should.
A short trip to an already interesting region is much better spent visiting nearby attractions in a more leasurely way than spending a good part of 2 days on planes and in airports.
But, to all their own.

There are direct flights between Kuching and Mulu - so it's only two flights.

Easy to get in and out, and Mulu is one of the highlights of Malaysia and a UNESCO world heritage site