Side Trip to Borneo
 

My wife and I will be visiting Singapore and Malaysia later in May. We have an opportunity for a side trip to Kota Kinabalu staying at the Shangri-la Tanjung Aru Resort. As I am unfamiliar with this area can anyone tell me Kota Kinabalu? I would be interested in information on local not to missed sights as well as possibly day trips. Thanks....

Loads to do in KK, but can only talk from experience about the Orang-utan reservce on the NE Coast at Sipilok (sp?)- great day out although involves a flight - Orang-utans are just amazing. Have had friends who climbed Mount Kinabalu - they reported a good but not great experience and toughter than people make out - they were fit and still found altitude sickness and exertion took the edge off the experience but your call. Jungle trekking is normally fun too esp with a good guide. This is an off the beaten track trip so although hotel is nice - it's pretty basic in Sabah. Have fun

To visit Sepilok sanctuary you need to get to Sandakan, about a one hour flight. The orangutans are well worth the effort.
You can do a day trip to Kinabalu Botanical Gardens in the foothills of the mountain(they call it gardens, but it's pretty much rainforest) another great day out.
We loved KK

Take a look at "Kathie's Borneo Trip report" posted in late 2005. KK itself is a rather gritty town. Consider wherther you want a real staying in the rainforest seeing the oraungs in the wild experience. If you do, the Danum Valley conservation area is teh palce to go. If you want to see oraungs and are ok with seeing those in "rehab" (though they never make it in the wild) a place like Sepilok is fine. Either place is a plane ride away and will take a couple of days at least. After we were in teh Danum Valley, the Kinabalu Park was a huge disappointment. The problem was we'd be in the pristine rainforest, and Kinabalu Park, while nice, is in no way pristine.

The Shangri-la Tanjung Aru Resort is lovely. You will have options to visit nearby islands for snorkeling or diving if that interests you.

You can also see our Borneo photos at www.marlandc.com

Dear Kathie,

Did you find 'tiger' leaches in Danum Valley please?

I, too, enjoyed the Shangri-la Tanjung Aru Resort.

Pat

Yes, we did find tiger leaches there. You can see photos of both kinds of leaches we encountered in our trip photos.

We didn't stay at the Shangri-La, but talked with people who did and loved it!

Kathie, I really enjoyed your pictures and write up. The wife was enthused until the part about the leaches. That thought may change as time gets closer. One question about the leach socks. Do you wear them with long or short pants and are they effective? Thanks again...

You wear the leach socks with long pants. The purpose of the leech socks is to be able to see the leaches as they are climbing up your leg before they attach to you. So, yes, as long as you are vigilant, they are effective. As for wearing the leach socks with shorts... There was a German man at the lodge when we were there. He was wearing shorts, and I noticed he had bandages at the back of each knee. Only later I figured out that he had worn leach sock with shorts, and had watched the front of his legs, but not the back... Also, the story about the man who discovered the leach on his penis... he had been wearing leach socks with shorts.

I was a bit freaked out about the leaches when we were first starting to consider the trip. So I read everything I could about leaches. I did a lot of reading about (current) medical uses of leaches. All of that effectively desensitized me. The leaches were actually fascinating.

There's definitely loads to do in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. Kota Knabalu, Sandakan (Sepilok), Lahad Datu (Danum Valley) and not forgetting the infamous Sipadan, Mabul and Kapalai islands - a scuba diver's ideal dive jewel. You get to either climb Mt Kinabalu, visit the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Center, experience one of the world's oldest rainforest in Danum Valley or just explore the beauty of the underwater world - it's all available in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo.

-Charles
www.excitingborneo.com

Charles, since advertising is not allowed on the forum, kindly remove your commercial website address from your future postings (Fodors will remove the ones you've posted). We're glad to have your input, but without the advertising, please.