Luxury Borneo orangutan holiday with kids: jungles, beaches and monkeys

Itinerary in brief:

• 2 nights Kuala Lumpur
• 6 nights Kota Kinabalu
• 3 nights Sandakan
• 3 nights Gaya Island

Day 1: Depart UK

Depart the UK from your chosen airport.

Included: International flight

Day 2: Arrive Kuala Lumpur

On arrival in Kuala Lumpur you will be met at the airport and driven to your hotel where you will check into your hotel for two nights. Malaysia has so many different cuisines to choose from - why not head to Little India for dinner where you can feast on fusion curries and soft naan breads?

Included: Transfers, hotel

Day 3: Kuala Lumpur

This morning we’ve included a half day tour of the city just to give you a flavour of Kuala Lumpur on your short stopover. You’ll explore the colourful spectrum of Malaysian architecture, culture, crafts and heritage by visiting important monuments and squares throughout the city, passing by the Petronas Towers and visiting the Moorish Railway Buildings. The rest of the afternoon is at your leisure so why not cool off by the pool before heading to the Night Market for a street food dinner.

Included: Breakfast, hotel, touring

Day 4: Fly to Kota Kinabalu

After breakfast, you’ll be driven to the airport to catch a short flight over to Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, where you will be taken to your hotel and check in for six nights.

Included: Breakfast, transfers, flight, hotel

Days 5 - 9: Beach

Settle in and enjoy the beach from your luxury resort, Shangri La Rasa Ria. We’ve booked you a room in the Ocean Wing, which has its own pool area for you to relax and unwind in. This hotel also has a popular kids club with activities ranging from pony rides and kayaking to sand castle building and treasure hunts! Parents can sit back and enjoy the hotel facilities with a good book while kids make the most of the spiral slide going into the pool. The resort is a little way out of Kota Kinabalu so you’ll probably eat at the resort – we recommend Naan for delicious Indian food and the Kozan Teppan-yaki for Japanese.

Included: Breakfast, hotel

Day 10: Fly to Sandakan

After a week of relaxation at the Shangri La Rasa Ria, you’ll be driven to the airport for a short flight to Sandakan, where you will be taken to your hotel and check in for one night.

Included: Breakfast, transfers, flight, hotel

Day 11: Orangutans & Kinabatangan

After breakfast, you will head off to see the orangutans! Kids and adults alike will love meeting these amazing animals; you’ll watch them being fed bananas and papaya by the rangers before wandering the platforms with your camera. Next door you’ll also visit the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre and meet the rescued bears that Winne the Pooh was based on! After a morning at the bear sanctuary, you’ll take a cruise to Abai along the Kinabatangan River. Pass mangroves and rhizophora trees as you sail deeper into the rainforest looking out for birds and monkeys in the dense jungle.

On arrival at the lodge, you’ll check in for two nights before enjoying lunch and a briefeing about the next couple of days. In the afternoon, you will set off for a river expedition cruise, keeping an eye out for wild orangutans, proboscis monkeys and birds as you slowly make your way along the water. As it gets dark you might see fireflies along the river banks, before taking a night time stroll along the boardwalks, looking for nocturnal animals and insects.

Included: Breakfast, transfers, hotel, touring

Day 12: Kinabatangan River

The dawn chorus of monkeys howling and birds chattering will wake you early this morning so you’ll a morning cruise to the oxbow lake before visiting some small fishing villages to learn about the local way of life. After brunch at the resort you’ll head out on another cruise along the Kinabatangan, looking for the rare pygmy elephants that make their home along the river as hornbills swoop overhead. After dinner, you’ll take another cruise to look for wildlife, especially some of the nocturnal creatures like slow loris that lurk in the trees.

Included: Breakfast, hotel, touring

Day 13: Fly to Kota Kinabalu

Today is your last day in the jungle, so take one last wander round the nature boardwalks with your binoculars for one last glimpse of a wild orangutan or a leaf monkey! After check out, you’ll take a boat back along the coast to Sandakan before being driven to the airport for a short flight back to Kota Kinabalu. On arrival, you will take the boat over to Gaya Island, where you will check into your hotel for three nights.

Included: Breakfast, transfers, flight, hotel

Days 14 & 15: Gaya Island 

You time on Gaya Island is yours to enjoy how you wish. You could go kayaking through the clear water, snorkel on the colourful house reef or just relax by the pool all day!

Included: Breakfast, hotel

Day 16: Depart Borneo

Your time in Borneo has come to an end today, so after breakfast you will be taken back by boat to Kota Kinabalu Airport in time for your flight home.

Included: Breakfast, transfers, international flight

Day 17: Arrive UK