Borneo Adventure specializes in Borneo tours and travel packages focusing on Sarawak, Sabah and Brunei. Established in 1987, we offer over 100 tours.
Is Borneo Adventure legit?
Borneo Adventure (borneoadventure.com) has a 4.6 out of 5 rating on OK.one, based on 18 user reviews collected here. It is listed under Travel & Vacation and its reputation is excellent. 89% of reviews are 4 stars or higher and 6% are 1 star; The business has replied to 50% of negative reviews; 2 of them were added in the last 12 months. Last updated 2026-10-25.
The "3D2N" Package is a Marketing Gimmick – Rigid Schedules, Mediocre Food, and Zero Hospitality
If you are considering the 3-Day, 2-Night package at the Kinabatangan Riverside Lodge, be prepared to be treated like an operational inconvenience rather than a paying guest. While the lodge itself is officially marketed as a "clean and comfortable lodge offering 39 rooms", the reality of the itinerary is incredibly restrictive, rushed, and designed entirely for the operator's convenience, completely ignoring the comfort of families with children.
The Illusion of a 3-Day Package & Misleading Logistics
The biggest scam of this package is the term "3 Days, 2 Nights." This is practically not a 3-day experience. All of your actual activities conclude by 7:00 PM on Day 2. On that second day, our kids were woken up at 5:00 AM for a morning cruise that ran from 6:00 AM to 10:00 AM, which was later followed by a final evening cruise from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM.
By Day 3, you are treated like cargo that needs to be shipped out to make room for the next group. The official itinerary recommendations specifically advise you to book flights out of Sandakan from "12:30 PM onwards." Because of this misleading recommendation, and knowing my flight was at 11:45 AM, I had to book an unnecessary overnight stay at a hotel in Sandakan. I lost a full day of my vacation that could have been spent traveling directly to Kuala Lumpur!
To make matters worse, despite that mid-day flight recommendation, the guide initially tried to force our family into an 8:00 AM departure back to Sandakan. Arriving in Sandakan by 10:00 AM with exhausted kids and luggage would mean sitting stranded in a hotel lobby for four hours waiting for a standard 2:00 PM check-in time.
Abysmal Food and Hidden Costs
For a supposedly premium nature package, the food was extremely poor, limited, and badly managed. Dinner started at 7:30 PM, and the main protein (grilled chicken) was completely finished in just 30 minutes by 8:00 PM. We were left with nothing but beans, eggplants, cabbage, some fruit, and a slice of cake for dessert.
Furthermore, basic refreshments are treated as an opportunity to nickel-and-dime guests. There are no drinks included with your meals; you have to pay out of pocket for a simple can of soda or bottled water. To put this in perspective, our recent stay at The Barat Resort in the Perhentian Islands was miles better—we could order a la carte anything at any time, and they offered fresh local coconuts for just 13 Ringgit, alongside a wide selection of other drinks.
The "Packed Breakfast" Insult
The final straw was the operator attempting to cancel our proper Day 3 hot buffet breakfast (which is supposed to be served between 8:00 AM and 9:00 AM). Instead, the guide told us we would be handed a shortened, packed breakfast box to eat on the transfer boat just so they could stick to their rigid 8:00 AM turnover schedule.
The Resolution: You Must Stand Your Ground
I absolutely refused this ridiculous Day 3 schedule. I explained that my kids were exhausted from the 5:00 AM wake-up the day before, and I firmly requested a 10:00 AM or 11:00 AM departure. The guide said he had to "speak to his boss." Eventually, they relented and agreed to a 10:00 AM departure. They allowed us to pack at night, leave our bags outside the room at 9:00 AM to be loaded into the van by the staff, and finally served us the full, proper hot breakfast on the lower deck that we actually paid for.
Conclusion
Unless you are prepared to aggressively advocate for your family's basic comfort, this lodge will rush you through a cheap buffet and push you out the door the second your final cruise ends. The rigid schedules, misleading flight recommendations, and poor food management completely overshadow the wildlife experience. Save your money and find an operator that actually values genuine hospitality over an assembly-line schedule.
We chose the 2-day, 1-night package with Borneo Adventure and it was a simply wonderful and unforgettable experience. Our guide (Freda) was precise, punctual, patient with our two children, and attentive to every detail. It was a wonderful two days; we saw all the animals we hoped to see and went on some wonderful treks. The night safari experience was wonderful. A total of 10 out of 10!
The guides (Tion and Shirou) were simply perfect. They played a key role in making our group stay memorable and enjoyable. Always punctual, kind, clear in their explanations, and attentive in helping us understand every natural, cultural, historical, geographical, and human aspect. Truly impeccable - congratulations!
Borneo Adventure made the trip as seamless as possible. Unfortunately, we stayed in Damai Beach , which is great, but very far. It was difficult getting transport from there to be on time. We missed one morning session to Semmegoh because of taxi issues, and they were able to resschedule us for the afternoon session with ease. Our guide to Bako was very helpful throughout the tour and helped me carry my backpack while I carried my 3 year old! I would just add to make sure they are also on time as there is always traffic, so better to leave earlier than they request to ensure you see the animals.
Reply from Borneo Adventure2025-07-18
Thank you Daven for your review. We are pleased that you enjoyed your tours to Semenggoh and Bako.
Susan at Borneo adventure was fantastic at helping us organise our trip around Sabah. We had a fantastic time and saw lots of wildlife. All the guides were very knowledgeable. The Borneo Rainforest Lodge was amazing.We wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this company and would use them again if we return to Borneo
Wow what a trip! We like to express our appreciation to Susan who organised our trip.
She made our 7/8 day trip (Seligan Isalnd, Labuk Bay, Sepilok, Kinabatangan River Cruise and Tabin wildlife reserve.) into an unforgettable and amazing experience. Everything went smoothly. Drivers and pick ups were well organised and we felt safe all throughout our adventure. Hotels they organised were amazing too.
We were lucky to see, turtles mating in the sea, female turtle laying her eggs and releasing hatchlings into the sea. We saw 7 orang utans in the wild plus gibbons, a pigmy elephant and many other mammals (even a rare sighting of a sunbear in Tabin as he ran across the track, the other guides were so jealous) and birds. Such a special experience to see them in their natural habitat.
Everybody was very nice and went out of their way to make it a perfect trip: friendly and experienced tour guides with a special mention to Sonny and Din who were very knowledgeable, keeping us safe and great at spotting all the wildlife we saw.
We definitely would love to come back one day and do Sarawak would recommend Borneo Adventure to anyone who wants a real adventure with a bit of luxury!
Reply from Borneo Adventure2025-07-11
Thanks for reviewing your tour to Sabah. We are happy to hear that you saw such a wide range of animals and had an amazing experience.
Borneo Adventures was an excellent company to work with. I originally planned our trip to Borneo for March 2020. Due to Covid, they completely refunded our family, which we really appreciated. I stayed in touch with one of their contacts during that difficult time and we rebooked our trip for March 2025. They are extremely responsive, helpful and professional. We loved the trip design and everything went flawlessly. I highly recommend this tour company.
Reply from Borneo Adventure2025-07-11
Thanks for your review Terri. Glad you eventually made it to Borneo and enjoyed your trip.
We like to express our appreciation to Borneo Adventure
We like to express our appreciation to the Borneo Adventure team.
They made our 4 day trip (Labuk Bay, Sepilok and Kinabatangan River Cruise) into an unforgettable and wonderful experience.
We saw a orang utan in the wild and our trip was made ;-)
The wildlife in general was amazing, what an experience to see them in their natural habitat.
All was perfectly planned, timed and organised. All was smooth and relaxed, we didn't have to worry about a thing. Everybody was very nice and went out of their way to make it a perfect trip: friendly and experienced tour guides (with a special mention to Jerome and Abbas), the skippers, cooks and cleaning staff.
We definitely would love to come back one day and would recommend Borneo Adventure to everyone.
With Edgard, a guide who perfectly mastered his subject. Very experienced, he spotted the animals, probocsis, vipers, lemurs, etc. and showed them to us even though we had not seen them. Very friendly and very professional, he explained to us how animal life works in the jungle as well as the flora cycle. I highly recommend.
Food was mostly chinese & cold sometimes, nanga sumpa guesthouse in Batang Ai was terribly
Reply from Borneo Adventure2023-10-04
We have no record of a Joske Vandormael staying at Nanga Sumpa Lodge. In fact, no guests stayed at Nanga Sumpa Lodge on the 30 September. It was empty. Did you stay at a homestay run by a local villager?
Borneo Adventure were very professional and dedicated, as well as having everything that we wanted to do on our trip around Borneo.
Disney Jaboh was simply the best at organising and arranging our complicated and fairly lengthy tour of Borneo. He was there to meet us and knew all the relevant people to make a difficult itinerary possible. He quite simply is a legend!!!
Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary
Sun Bear Centre
Kinabatangan River Abai
Longhouse Experience
Semenggoh Wildlife Centre
Give Disney Jaboh a pay rise!
The guide was very helpful, prepared. He told a lot and interestingly about the fauna and flora of the national park. I appreciate that the tour was not canceled as 5 out of 6 people canceled. Interesting, exciting trip - one day in Baku. It could be longer, becouse its not enough time to see everything.
What an experience. A journey to what really matters!
If you really want to immerse yourself in nature and culture then book Borneo Adventure. These guys understand that mass tourism and one-fits-all deals don't lead to outstanding experiences. It all started when Paul and Tonno picked us up from the hotel and created a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Paul mentioned that the main thing is not to see orangutans, but to get in touch with nature and appreciate their habitat. We ended up being lucky enough to see 2 of them but even if we hadn't seen any this trip would have been one of the best of our lives. Thank you for your efforts and for making us friends of the Iban!
Was a wonderful trip that met our complete expectations. Well organised with an absolute gem of a guide (thank you Abbas) I would highly recommend this tour to anyone.
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