Memorable trip in beautiful nature, service-minded organizers, and a few hickups
Arrival and reception was good, the owners of Rustic Borneo met us the first evening for dinner. Sandakan and Sepilok We had a good guide (Adrian) that also doubled as driver for the first two days around Sandakan and Sepilok. The rainforest discovery centre was a rather good introduction and surprisingly uncrowded. The cruise on the Kinabatangan river was rainy but rather good although we failed to understand the enormous fascination with the proboscis monkeys. Sure, they're interesting but we though less time could have been spent on them. The accommodation by the river Borneo Nature Lodge was good, both with regard to facilities and service. The visit to the Gomantong cave was kind of interesting but what we will remember is that we were lucky to see no less than four wild utangutans! Two mothers with their youngs. Our stay at the Sepilok Forest Edge resort was unfortunately really bad. There was nothing wrong with the facilities but the staff lacked all sense of service and did not want to take responsibility for anything. Our rooms were poorly cleaned and after trying to make them clean my room three times they still failed to change the sheets. Rustic Borneo later apologized, took responsibility and rebooked our second night to a good resort (further down). Turtle Island The operations at Turtle Island are a monopoly which does not do justice to the great resource that the island is. The service and food was rather bad (especially considering the price), you are required go to the island in the early morning and spend all day there for no good reason (you're all just waiting for the turtles that come at night), the guide (Idil) had bad English and treated us like a bus load of schoolchildren even tough we were just five people. We would have been just as well off without our guide since he did nothing most of the time. As anybody visiting can see , the operations could be greatly rationalized and improved if the people in charge would decide to try. Apart from the monopoly problems, the adult turtle we saw was majestic and the new-born turtles were really cute and energetic. The conservation work seems a lot more serious than the tourist operations. In short, great potential with the amazing sea turtles but you have to weigh it against the price and poor service. Sepilok Orangutan Conservation Centre We unfortunately had the same guide as on Turtle Island so he wasn't of much use. The orangutan feeding was ok but we were a lot less interested since we had already seen them in the wild. It was also rather crowded. However, in the evening we took the nightwalk and was treated to flying squirrels, snakes, frogs and poisonous insects, guided by a knowledgeable park ranger. Due to the problems with accommodation earlier, Rustic Borneo had quickly rebooked us to a resort right next to the Centre which was very good, great service and facilities. Kinabalu The Cottage Hotel was ok. Service and food not great, room spacious. Biggest issue was that they insisted on using some strong smelling stuff for cleaning the floors, including in the restaurant. However, accommodation just around new year so close to the park seemed rather limited. The plan was to climb the mountain as two os uf did. Great although rather exhausting experience. On the way down from the top we did the Via Ferrata adventure course. I can recommend the longer version is you have the strength. The Mountain Torq staff that arranges the via ferrata was professional and safety was good. Unfortunately, one of us did not feel well and could not climb. Rustic Borneo then (in the morning of the 31st of December) swiftly arranged transportation to Kota Kinabalu and a hotel there. No extra charge as compensation for earlier hotel trouble! Kota Kinabalu We had a few relaxing days in a villa at the Nexus resort before going home. I went for a one day dive trip which I enjoyed. We also visited the KK markets and city centre. In conclusion, it was a good trip. Lots of things to see, lots of nature, a great mountain, lots of activities and quite a bit of relaxation at the end. There were a few problem during the trip but many of these cannot be blamed on Rustic Borneo and when they could influence the situation they took responsibility and worked swiftly to deal with the issue. We normally do not travel using a tour organizer but Borneo is hard to get around without your own transport and Rustic Borneo gave us a good price and helped us design our own tour just for the three of us.