Malaysia
We’ve compiled the best of the best in Malaysia - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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1. Agnes Keith House
On a hill overlooking town and Sandakan Bay, the home of author Agnes Newton Keith is a trip back in time. American-born Keith came to Sandakan in the 1930s with her British husband, a North Borneo Company official, and wrote books about her experiences. "The Land Below the Wind" introduced Sabah to many Europeans, and "Three Came Home," chronicling Keith's captivity in a Japanese prison camp during World War II, is Keith's best-known work. The 1950 Hollywood film version was partially shot in Sandakan. Keith's two-story wooden villa, destroyed during World War II and rebuilt identically when the family returned in 1946, includes period photos and memorabilia evoking the highs and lows of Keith's time in Sabah. The house was nearly destroyed again during the 1990s before the Sabah Museum restored it. The grounds include exquisitely tended gardens and an observation pavilion with sweeping views of the town and harbor.
Jalan Istana, Sandakan, Sabah, 90709, Malaysia089-221--140Sight Details
Rate Includes: RM 15, Daily 9--5 -
2. Gomantong Caves
These limestone caverns are Sabah's best known source of swiftlet nests, used to make bird's nest soup, Chinese medicines, and other luxury products. The caves are filled with rickety rattan and bamboo scaffolding that villagers use to harvest nests from crevices on cave roofs and walls. Mainly composed of congealed saliva, the most coveted white nests can fetch upwards of US$250 per pound. The dense forest around the caves is full of wildlife and walking trails. Venturing into the caves themselves means wading through bird droppings thick with insects in the dark. The caves are about 2½ hours from Sandakan and are included in some local tours.
Gomantong Hill Lower Kinabatangan, Sandakan, Sabah, MalaysiaSight Details
Rate Includes: RM 30 -
3. Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary
An irony of deforestation and plantation development is that surviving forest areas become home to a wide variety of wildlife that once occupied a far larger range. The Kinabatangan River flows through rain forest, freshwater swamps, and mangroves, harboring monitor lizards, reticulated pythons, pigtailed macaques, proboscis monkeys, orangutan, and even elephants. Bird life includes such spectacular creatures as the Asian paradise flycatcher, stork-billed kingfisher, brahminy kite, and several species of hornbill venerated by Borneo's indigenous people. Several tour operators offer Kinabatangan trips via Sukau, a village about two hours from Sandakan by boat or road.
Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia -
4. Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary
This unique facility provides a rare opportunity to check out the endangered and extremely odd-looking proboscis monkey. Found only on Borneo, it's recognizable by its potbelly and distinctive long, bulbous nose. The sanctuary spans hundreds of acres of mangrove forest that had previously been slated for development as an oil-palm plantation. The combination of plantations and deforestation has made the proboscis an endangered species; some estimates say fewer than 5,000 remain. Because of their specialized diet (proboscis monkeys break down their food in a complex digestive process—thus the big bellies), they can't be moved. Efforts are currently underway to protect more of the monkeys' habitat. At Labuk Bay, observation platforms allow good views of the proboscis, as well as silver langurs, maroon-leaf monkeys, and several bird species. The sanctuary is about an hour's drive from Sandakan.
Mile 19 Jalan Labuk Junction SPS 3, Sandakan, Sabah, 90000, Malaysia089-672--133Sight Details
Rate Includes: RM 60 -
5. Rainforest Discovery Centre
The centre highlights the rain forest ecosystems' contribution to biodiversity and has a fabulous botanical garden, perfect for picnicking. The center is within the Kabili-Sepilok Forest Reserve, with its Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. Buses direct to Sepilok depart from Sandakan's Jl Pryer bus terminal, with minibus and taxi service also available for the 25 km (15 mile) trip. The last bus from Sepilok to Sandakan leaves at 4.30 pm sharp.
Kabili Sepilok Forest Reserve, Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia089-533--780Sight Details
Rate Includes: RM 15 -
Recommended Fodor’s Video
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6. Sandakan Heritage Trail
Tourism authorities have developed this walking tour, which begins at the Masjid Jamik and takes in all the significant historic sites and attractions. A leaflet is available to guide you.
Lebuh Empat, Sandakan, Sabah, 90000, Malaysia089-229--751 -
7. Sandakan Memorial Park
At the site of the World War II Japanese POW camp, where the infamous "death marches" to Ranau began, Sandakan Memorial Park commemorates the 1,800 Australian and 600 British soldiers imprisoned here—of which only six escapees survived—along with local residents who risked their lives to assist them. Today, the grounds are a quiet wooded area dotted with rusting hulks of machinery from the camp's forced labor program. A pavilion at the center of park includes testimony from the survivors, plus photographs from guards, inmates, and liberators.
Mile 8 Jalan Labuk Utara, Sandakan, Sabah, 90702, Malaysia089-275--400Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Daily 9--5 -
8. Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre
This 10,600-acre rain forest reserve is the world's most popular place to see orangutan in their natural habitat. Asia's only great ape, the orangutan is the human's third-closest relative (behind chimpanzee and gorilla), sharing 97% of our DNA. A full-grown male may stand five feet tall (a female, about half that) and have an arm span of eight feet. Once found throughout Southeast Asia, orangutan have become critically endangered as their habitat has been destroyed by deforestation. Sepilok prepares illegally captured animals for reintroduction into the wild. Twice-daily feedings, at 10 and 3, give orangutan-in-training a chance to chow down and show off. Guided hikes through the forest are available. There's also an excellent exhibit on orangutan and other endangered species, plus a worthwhile video.
Jalan Sepilok, Sandakan, Sabah, 90000, Malaysia088-248--698Sight Details
Rate Includes: RM 30 -
9. Tourist Information Centre
Staffed by some of the friendliest folks in Borneo, Sandakan's tourist information centre has extensive information on attractions in and around town.
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10. Turtle Islands National Park
Three islands—Selingan, Bakungan, and Gulisan—and their surrounding waters comprise this marine wildlife reserve where, throughout the year, endangered green and hawksbill turtles come after dark to dig nests and lay their eggs in the warm sands. The eggs are then gathered by rangers and transferred to hatcheries to keep them from poachers who sell the eggs as delicacies. Wildlife officials permit visits to the islands. You can take a one hour speedboat ride north from Sandakan, by organized overnight tour only, and places are limited. Most Sandakan tour operators can arrange trips.
Sabah Park Jetty Jalan Buli Sim-Sim, Sandakan, Sabah, 90719, Malaysia089-212--711Sight Details
Rate Includes: RM 60
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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