From longhouses to beach bungalows

Route: Kuching - Bako National Park - Lemanak - Similajau National Park - Kuala Lumpur - Cameron Highlands - Penang - Langkawi

An impressive itinerary featuring the best East and West Malaysia have to offer. This combo trip will take you to remote South Borneo and more developed areas on the Malaysian peninsula. The trip starts out in in Kuching on Borneo and after a drive of only a few hours, you'll find yourself in the jungle. Keep on the look-out for the big-nosed Proboscis Monkeys and enjoy the view of a coastline scattered with giant rocks. Further into the interior of Borneo you'll meet the indigenous people of this area and you'll visit the Iban tribe. Afterwards you'll fly to a small hidden park of overwhelming natural beauty. We were quite impressed with the magical mangroves while we were here and we even spotted a few turtles and dolphins.

You'll then fly to Kuala Lumpur, landing in the middle of the largest city in Malaysia. Eventually you'll leave this exciting city and drive your hire car to the higher elevation tea fields. Your next travel destination is Penang; enjoy local meals and cycle through colourful Georgetown during a bike ride. Before returning home, you'll take a boat to tropical Langkawi where you can sit back, relax and think back on an amazing journey.

Duration	20 days / 19 nights	Accommodation	Mid-class hotels, beach resorts and jungle lodges. Generally, comfort level 3 (see accommodation).
Price	£1554 per person - based on 2 people sharing	Includes	Hire car, other transport, accommodation and breakfast, English speaking guide, lunch and dinner on Borneo, park entrance fees on Borneo
Transport	Hire car, minibus, boat and domestic flight	Excludes	International Flights, Other meals

Day 1 - Kuala Lumpur - Kuching

Most flights from London to Kuala Lumpur arrive in the morning. On your arrival, you'll immediately catch a connecting flight to. The driver and guide, who will be travelling with you for the next few days, will be waiting for you at the airport. Once you've settled into the car, you'll receive all the necessary travel information and ideas for your trip through Borneo. After you've checked into your hotel, you'll have the rest of the afternoon left to explore Kuching. Kuching, which literally means 'cat' in Bahasa Malayu, is also known as 'Cat City'. It's quite a fun, charming city with a great atmosphere. There are plenty of great places to eat by the waterfront and behind your hotel. You might also enjoy crossing the river and visiting some of the colonial buildings on the other side. After a long day of travel and new impressions, we're sure you'll sleep like a baby.

Day 2 - Kuching

After you've had a chance to sleep away some of your jet lag, you can wake up to a delicious breakfast buffet at your hotel. You'll have the entire day to explore the city. One of your Borneo travel options is to go for a long walk along the lively waterfront. This is a meeting place in Kuching, where you can enjoy great tasting food at one of the many food stalls. The typical, advert clad taxi boats will be waiting to take you across the Sarawak River for an excellent view of the city. You can also visit one of the Chinese temples, take in some culture at the famous Sarawak Museum, or perhaps visit adorable orangutans. The orangutan refuge is approximately a 20 minute drive from Kuching. In the evening you can either dine in your hotel or perhaps try a few more local treats at some local food stalls.

Day 3 - Kuching - Bako NP

After you've had breakfast, your guide and driver will be waiting in the hotel lobby to pick you up around 9am. After about 40 minutes you'll arrive at a small village named Kampung Bako made up of houses built on poles. This village's name carries the name of the park you'll eventually reach: Bako National Park. One of the first things you'll notice when you reach the park is the presence of bizarre rock formations standing proudly in the surf. A boat will take you past the rock creations and then you'll continue on a 30 minute boat ride to the mangrove forest. At one point you'll here your skipper calling out, 'We're almost there'. However, you'll be hard pressed to find anything resembling an entrance to a national park..... until the skipper navigates through the mangroves a little further and a pier appears.

Borneo travel ideas - The proboscis monkey

Borneo travel ideas - Bako National Park

Day 4 - Bako NP - Kuching

If you would like to see a lot of monkeys and other animals on your Borneo travels, it's best to wake up early. After breakfast you can choose which route you would like to follow and head out to explore the jungle. Some of the paths can be a bit slippery, so you'll want to wear proper shoes for walking for your hike through the jungle. All around you you'll see extraordinary trees and plants, such as Venus Fly Traps. Your journey will take you to a deserted beach where you can go for a quick refreshing swim before returning to the jungle. Depending on the route you take you'll either be back at park headquarters at in time for lunch or in time for a late lunch. After you've finished lunch, a boat will take you through the mangrove forest and back to the village of Kampung Bako. A bus will be waiting to take you back to civilisation in Kuching. Once you reach Kuching, you'll check into your hotel and you can head out for a bite to eat before going to bed.

Day 5 - Kuching - Lemanak

After an early breakfast you'll head out deeper into the jungle with your guide. You'll travel in a small group for approximately 4 hours until you reach one of the more remote locations in Sarawak known as Lemanak. You'll drive past rubber, cocoa and pepper plantations... each of which you'll get to visit. Along the way you'll stop off at a colourful market in the town Serian where you can purchase all types of products with origins in the jungle. This is the perfect place to buy a few small gifts, such as cigarettes and fruit, for the chief of the longhouse you're going to visit. Around noon, you'll have lunch in one of the local restaurants.

After lunch you'll leave the mainland behind and you'll board a motorised 'perahu', a wooden jungle boot. During the boat ride past wooded shores, where you'll hear monkeys screeching from time to time, you'll see local life play out before you. You'll sail straight through the tropical rainforest beneath an enormous roof of leaves for about an hour, until you eventually reach 'Iban' territory.

Day 6 - Lemanak

After breakfast, you and your guide will head out to explore the area surrounding the longhouse. Your guide will give you a glimpse of life in the area and tell you more about it. Out of Borneo travel ideas for the afternoon? Why not go for a walk through the jungle or perhaps you may even want to try your hand at fishing 'The Iban way' using a fishing net. It may look like a piece of cake; however you'll see that it will take quite some practice to catch more than a few floating branches. Eventually you'll walk back through the rainforest to the jungle lodge. Walking through the humid forest is sure to create an appetite. No worries though, our cooks will prepare a delicious meal for you including all kinds of local delicacies. This meal is sure to please your taste buds... In the evening you'll visit the Iban once again and as always these gracious people will greet you with a smile. You'll spend the night in a jungle lodge.

Day 7 - Lemanak - Kuching

After you wake up to a tasty breakfast, you'll say goodbye to the friendly Iban tribe. A wooden boat will take you on a relaxing trip across the Lemanak River and eventually you'll reach the shore where a (mini) bus will be waiting for you. You'll spend the next four hours or so driving through the green landscape. Along the way you'll take a rest break to freshen up for your return to Kuching. You'll be dropped off at your hotel and you'll have time to relax and visit local food stalls for a bite to eat.

Borneo travel ideas - A different way of life

Borneo travel ideas - Similajau National Park

Day 8 - Kuching - Bintulu - Similajau National Park

In the morning you'll fly into Bintulu on a domestic flight. You'll be picked up at the airport and approximately 30 minutes later you'll reach Similajau National Park. Once you arrive, you'll have to fill out your contact information at the park office and afterwards you can drop off your luggage in your wooden chalet. After lunch you and your English speaking guide travel into the Borneo jungle. A wobbling extension bridge will take you to the start of the walking trails on the other side of the river. You'll walk past the watery mangrove forest which has been covered by wooden boards for some part to keep you from getting wet feet. If you look more closely at the mud in the mangrove, you'll see crabs scurrying all around you. The water in the mangrove slowly flows towards the dense jungle ahead of you. At some point you may have to stop in your tracks to allow a lizard to slowly cross over before you. Groups of playful monkeys are always screeching and jumping around from branch to branch and watching you from high above in the roof of leaves. Before returning to the park entrance you'll walk on to an elevated view point where you'll have an incredible view out over the South China Sea. This is a great place to relax in the cool breeze before continuing on your way. As the sun slowly sinks into the horizon, the beach is a wonderful place for a relaxing evening stroll before heading back to your chalet.

Day 9 - Similajau National Park

After breakfast you'll head out on foot towards the golden sands of.... Golden Beach. With a little luck you'll dolphins early in the morning; they especially come here to play during the months March and September. You'll spend the entire rest of the day in the heart of the jungle and your guide will tell you all about the animals and birds you encounter. He'll also show you and tell you more about the many medicinal trees and plants that grow here, such as the 'Tongkat Ali', which is known as 'Super Viagra' by the locals. Early in the evening you'll arrive back at Park Headquarters. After dinner you can enjoy the splendour of the setting sun and if you're here between July and September you may even see sea turtles coming up on the beach to lay their eggs in the evening.

Borneo travel ideas - Street market in KL

Day 10 and 11 - Similajau National Park - Bintulu - Kuala Lumpur

Undoubtedly, this morning you'll be awakened by jungle sounds.... as you would be every morning spent here. A chorus of birds singing and leaves crackling will be the background music during your breakfast. After breakfast, your guide will take you to Bintulu airport where you'll catch a flight to Kuala Lumpur.

On your arrival one of our representatives will be waiting for you. A car or mini van will take you to your hotel in Kuala Lumpur where a travel information package will be waiting for you with all necessary information and vouchers for your journey through West Malaysia. Today and tomorrow you'll have all the time you need to explore the vivacious city of Kuala Lumpur. The ever popular 'Petaling Street' is close to your hotel and is excellent for seemingly endless walks through small side streets and alleyways. A few top attractions you don't want to miss during your stay are the world's highest towers, the Petronas Towers, the neo-colonial Anglo-Moor style train station and the hyper modern Masjid Negara-mosque. Kuala Lumpur also has a lot to offer travellers who are more 'West' oriented; from fast food restaurants to large air conditioned shopping malls suitable for seemingly endless shopping sprees.

Day 12 - Kuala Lumpur - Cameron Highlands

Your hire car will be dropped off at your hotel in the morning. A car hire representative will explain the in's and the out's of the car to you and will give you a map. If you're not certain on how to find your way out of the mad traffic of Kuala Lumpur, you can ask him to drive with you some of the way. From Kuala Lumpur it's a 180 miles drive north Tanah Rata, which should take you about 3 to 4 hours to reach. On the way to the Cameron Highlands you’ll notice the temperature gradually begins to drop the higher you get. You’ll be staying on the edge of Tanah Rata, one of the three larger towns in the area and with a lot more local charm than nearby Brinchang.

Once you’ve checked in it’s a 20-minute walk to the town centre where you can wander round the little souvenir shops or grab a bite to eat in the evening. Make sure you try the ‘steamboat’ a kind of Cantonese fondue in the Restaurant Mayflower, or head next door for a great Indian curry.

Day 13 - Tanah Rata

After breakfast in the wonderfully kitsch dining room you’ll be picked up at the hotel by our local guide, usually the jolly Subramaniam or Maniam, and otherwise one of his colleagues. Depending on the weather you’ll drive to the tea plantations where Maniam will tell you all about the history of the plantations and the surrounding area.

After touring the tea plantations Maniam will take you to a viewpoint where you can admire the view across the green, rolling hills – if the weather’s clear that is. On the way back you’ll go on a short walk through the jungle of Mossi Forest. The path can be slippery in places so make sure you wear sturdy shoes or boots. By this time you’ll probably fancy a cuppa, so following a winding road downhill you’ll head back to the tea plantations and the most famous tea factory in the area, the Boh Tea Estate (closed Mondays). Maniam will give you a tour of the estate and show you how the tea leaves, freshly picked from the fields, are processed into the more familiar brown brew. In the afternoon you'll visit a butterfly farm where you'll see the most exotic, colourful butterflies fluttering around. Later that evening, head back into town for another lovely dinner in one of the many restaurants in Tanah Rata.

Day 14 and 15 - Cameron Highlands - Penang

This morning after breakfast you'll leave the Cameron Highlands and you'll head out to Penang. As you reach lower altitudes, you'll notice that the temperature will start to climb once again. The ride down to lower elevations is simply beautiful. Malaysia's west coast has excellent roads and it should only take you approximately 5 hours to drive to Penang. Eventually you'll leave the mainland by driving across an amazing 13 km long bridge, the Penang Bridge, to your hotel where you'll spend the next two nights. Your hotel is located in central Georgetown and is within walking distance of all local attractions.

There are several ways to see the sites in Penang. We suggest taking on one of the Trishaws: a Malaysian bicycle taxi. We're sure you'll also enjoy hiring your own bicycle to see the sites; bicycle hire should only cost you approximately £4 per day. The hotel you're staying at offers fine dining; however you may enjoy tasting local delicacies in Penang as well. Try one of the Nyonya dishes, which offer a delightful mix of Chinese and Malaysian cooking. While we're on the subject of food, we definitely recommend having a quick bite to eat at one of the local food stalls. You'll find quite a few at the 'Datuk Keramat Hawker Centre', which is also known as 'Padang Brown'. You'll often find a typical night market here as well. Be sure to ask your hotel's concierge when these markets take place, it differs from time to time.

Borneo travel ideas - A type of rickshaw

Borneo travel ideas - On the Borneo travel trail

Day 16 - Penang - Langkawi

After an early start and a satisfying breakfast, you'll catch a taxi cab to the harbour. At 8:15am your boat will set sail for Langkawi and it will take approximately 3 hours for you to reach your destination. On arrival at the island you'll find a crowd of taxi drivers all waiting to take you to your hotel. After 30 minute drive you'll reach your resort which is located on a beautifully long and white sandy beach. After you've checked into your hotel you'll have time to enjoy the warm sands beneath your feet or you could dive into the azure blue water of the sea. In the evening a wide variety of local dishes will be offered to you at the many food stalls in Pantai Cenang, the most well known and enjoyable beach area on the island.

Day 17 and 18 - Langkawi

You could spend the rest of the day chilling out on the beach, but if you want to do something a little more active there’s plenty to do on or in the water like catamaran sailing or kayaking. Further inland you can take a cable car (approximately £2) to the top of the Gunung Mat Chingchang, the second highest mountain on Langkawi, rising up from the dense green rainforest. If you want to discover the underwater world without getting wet, visit the aptly named Underwater World in Pantai Cenang, one of the largest aquariums in Asia. You can also take a snorkelling trip to one of the nearby islands, visit one of the museums or go hiking to the hot springs of Telaga Air Hangat.

In the evening you can have dinner at the hotel, but Langkawi is famous for its good restaurants so there are plenty of alternatives. The beautiful Bon Ton Restaurant just north of Pantai Cenang has an amazing view and the food (fusion) is delicious. You’ll need to take a taxi, but it’s worth the ride. Every evening there’s a Pasar Malam (market) on Langkawi, just ask at the hotel which village has a market that day. Save your appetite for the market where you can indulge in freshly grilled satay, corn cobs, sweet ‘kuih’ and other Malaysian specialities.

Borneo travel ideas - Relax at the end of your trip

Day 19 and 20 - Langkawi - Kuala Lumpur - London

Finally, the time has come to say goodbye to an impressive country... Malaysia. In the afternoon you'll catch a domestic flight back to Kuala Lumpur. If you decide to fly with Air Asia you'll change planes in Kuala Lumpur where you'll board your international flight. If you decide to fly with KLM or Malaysia Airlines then you'll have a short layover in Kuala Lumpur before flying back to London. As you lay back into your chair in the air plane you'll be able to pass one more glance on an illuminated Kuala Lumpur.

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