Top experiences in Sabah, Malaysia

Sabah is a Malaysian state located in the northwest corner of Borneo, the third largest island in the world. Borneo of course is famous for its biodiversity with lush rainforests, exotic wildlife, picture-book beaches and coral-rich waters. Many of these treasures are concentrated in Sabah, which is one of the reasons why travellers love it so much.

So what should be on your to-do list when planning a trip to Sabah? It’s likely to be the holiday of a lifetime so planning your trip and deciding what to do when you get there is important. Here are some tips to help you on your way.

Borneo is an incredible travel destination, whether you want a touring adventure full of wildlife encounters and cultural experiences, or you’re drawn to the idea of a super-luxe beachfront spa resort. Luckily, the state of Sabah gives you plenty of choice for both, but which holiday style is for you?

Escorted tours take all the effort out of travelling - your trip will be expertly planned with everything arranged and booked in advance. You’ll also be travelling with a group of likeminded people and led by an experienced tour guide. But if you’d rather chill out on the beach, Sabah has some fabulous beach-front hotels. You can even add an independent tour to your beach holiday, for the best of all worlds.

There are a lot of amazing things to do in Sabah, but these are some of the ones we like best. Remember, an escorted or private tour like Wild Borneo or Highlights of Borneo may include the chance to tick off several of these adventures in one holiday.

Mount Kinabalu is the highest mountain on Borneo, soaring over 4,000m into the Sabah sky. The mountain itself and the National Park surrounding it is World Heritage listed for its incredible biodiversity, supporting many thousands of different species of endemic plants and animals.

Mount Kinabalu

If you don’t fancy the hike to the summit - which can be tough even for experienced climbers - there are countless footpaths and walking trails in the foothills of Mount Kinabalu. Walking these with a local naturalist guide is the best way to learn about Sabah’s rich plant and animal life.

Kinabalu National Park is also known for its Botanical Gardens and Poring Hot Springs where, if you’re lucky, you might see the world’s largest flower, the rafflesia. With a span of between 60 and 100cm, it’s an impressive sight. The park also has a Butterfly Garden which is home not just to butterflies but also exotic birds and flying lizards.

Borneo is known for its orchids, and over 1,500 different species grow in the jungles in and around Sabah.

Sabah Agriculture Park started as a centre for growing and studying orchids, but now its ornamental grounds and landscaped gardens have become a tourist attraction in themselves. The park also has a museum dedicated to bees and a ‘living crop’ museum displaying many plant species that are grown for medicinal use.

Sabah Agricultural Park

The Gomantong Caves are buried deep in protected rainforest in the north of Sabah.

Although the caves are the largest and most impressive in Sabah, they are best known for their resident population of bats (over two million of them) and swiftlets, whose nests are sustainably harvested twice a year to make birds’ nest soup. A raised board walk circles the vast, cathedral-like inner chamber from which (along with bats and swiftlets) you might also spot freshwater cave crabs, giant centipedes and scorpions.

Gomatong Caves

Outside captivity, the proboscis monkey is only found on Borneo. With their floppy noses and characterful faces, they are a popular attraction for visitors to Sabah. But they are also an endangered species, mainly due to loss of natural habitat.

Probiscis monkey

Sabah’s first proboscis monkey sanctuary, Labuk Bay aims not only to protect and preserve the animals but also the forests they live in. Today, the sanctuary covers 500 acres of coastal mangrove forest and provides a safe haven not just for proboscis monkeys but also other indigenous wildlife like silver leafed monkeys, hornbills and slow lorises. Visit at feeding time to see the monkeys close-up and learn about the work being done to conserve them.

Sun bears are the smallest of all the world’s bear species. So-called for the yellowish patch of fur on their chests, they live in the tropical forests and rainforests of Southeast Asia. However they, too, are threatened by human activities like poaching and logging.

Sun bear

Sabah’s Sun Bear Conservation Centre provides a safe natural environment where the bears (often orphaned or rescued from the pet trade) learn to climb, forage, make nests and socialise before being released back into the wild. Elevated walkways and viewing platforms allow visitors to watch the bears living free range in the forest.

The orangutan is Borneo’s most iconic animal, and Sabah is one of the few places left in the world where you can still see orangutan in the wild. But these majestic great apes with their undeniably human characteristics are now critically endangered. The Sepilok Orangutan Centre in Sabah is an inspiring, world-famous centre for the rescue and rehabilitation of orphaned and injured orangutans.

Orangutan mother and baby

About 100 adult orangutans roam freely in the protected rainforest reserve, and about 25 youngsters are cared for in the nursery. Visitors use walkways and viewing platforms to watch orangutans living in the reserve, and coming for fresh fruit and sugar cane at feeding time.

Exploring Sabah’s famously bio-diverse rainforest at ground level is exciting, but at the Rainforest Discovery Centre you can also get a birds-eye view.

Rainforest Discovery Centre sky walk

Eight towers connect a series of elevated walkways weaving through the tropical jungle canopy that’s home to more than 300 different species of bird as well as other forest animals including civets and flying squirrels.

Although Sabah is known for its wildlife and tropical rainforests, the state also has some cosmopolitan, culturally rich cities that offer a different experience altogether. Kota Kinabalu is Sabah’s capital, with all the shopping malls and swanky restaurants that come with it. But with its street food stalls, bustling waterfront and noisy night markets, you don’t need to look far in Kota Kinabalu for an authentic Southeast Asian encounter.

Kota Kinabalu's floating mosque

Sabah’s second city, Sandakan was once the colonial capital of British Borneo. Today it’s a jumping off point for travellers heading to the Kinabatangan River (popular for wildlife and river safaris) and the town of Sepilok, but you can also visit the original settlement from which Sandakan grew in 1879.

Known as Sim Sim, this traditional Malay stilt village is connected by wooden planks and walkways and gives a vivid glimpse of daily life for local fishermen and their families.

Saga offers a range of escorted tours, independent itineraries and luxury beach holidays in Sabah, Borneo. Browse and book today or call us and we can put together a bespoke, tailor-made holiday just for you.