Riverbank construction at Borneo Rainforest Lodge
 

We are booked for a 4 day stay next month at the Borneo Rainforest Lodge. Today I received an email saying in part:

"We wish to inform that due to the recent unexpected heavy rain, riverbank preventive works in front of the Royal Chalet will be carried out for 6 months from December 16, 2011 to June 2012. There is an urgency for such preventive work at this area as further erosion may jeopardize the structure of the riverbank and its surrounding area. The works will start from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm daily and we will do our utmost to minimize the noise disturbance."

Two things bother me about this. The first is that the construction noise and activity might scare off the local fauna from coming near the Lodge. My impression from various trip reports is that one of the charms of the Lodge, quite apart from the daily hikes, is the chance to observe animals along the river while sitting on the deck of one's cabin. The second is that this work started two months ago and the first mention of it was made only after our reservation was made and deposit taken.

If anyone has been to the BRL in the last two months, I would be interested in hearing your take on the impact of the construction.

I'd email them back and ask about the expected impact on your ability to see wildlife from the lodge and chalets. I'm not sure where the "Royal Chalet" is in relation to the lodge or the other chalets.

Kathie: They enclosed a map and the Royal Chalet is at the opposite end of the property from the lodge. In addition to the Royal, the work area includes chalet #17 and 18, which are the last two Deluxe riverview chalets at the other end from the lodge.

I do intend to email them but I expect a response to the effect that "everything will be okay."

I am planning to go in May. Could you let me know after your trip the impact of the work?

thank you!

Sure. We'll be there next week. For what it's worth, this is the response I got when I inquired:

"No worries. Wildlife do wander around nearby the main lodge. Our guide will surely inform our guests should there are one nearby."

I'm looking forward to your report. Have a wonderful time!

I stayed in one of the chalets you mentioned near the end of the property right next to the river. Although there was a nightly visit by the Bornean fireback pheasant and a daily visit by a subspecies of maroon langurs, much of the wildlife we saw was on in a bit. Lesser mouse deer were common in the interior of the compound as were bearded pigs and langurs. The area is rife with birds everywhere. So I would suspect the email you got was more or less accurate. Elephants rarely are seen there anyway so no worries about scaring them off. But I would imagine the quality of the down time, watching that splended river and that splended rainforest gallery will be greatly diminished and not worth paying extra for to stay in those chalets. They were truly nice though. My wife wanted to stay permanently!

Thanks Coke. I'm going to request a chalet as far from the construction as possible.

Another question for you, Kathie, or anyone else who's been to BRL. Is it worth paying the extra charge for a private guide?

When we were there every party had a private guide, so I never had the experience of going with a small group. But given the necessity to be very quiet and watchful to see wildlife, I expect you'd see more with a private guide than in a group.

If it definitely worth the money for a private guide. We had Denny and were there for a whole week. We saw so much wildlife with his help and were even lucky enough to see a sloth bear.

Can you advise the amount of tip expected from a guide?