Borneo vacations 2024 & 2025

One of Borneo’s key experiences is wildlife spotting. You can travel by boat along the Kinabatangan River looking for proboscis monkeys and rare pygmy elephants. Or, you can head deep into one of its many national parks to search for wild orangutans. It’s also an island suited to active adventures, from jungle hikes to a two-day climb up Mount Kinabalu, a 4,095 m (13,435 ft) peak that juts up from the north of the island.

While the natural world is often the focus, there are plenty of opportunities to experience Borneo’s cultural side, too. You could stay in a longhouse as a guest of the Iban people, take a street-food tour of Kuching, or stay in a family home in Bako National Park. You can read about these experiences in more detail in our highlights guide to Borneo.

If you only choose one place to visit in Borneo, it’s hard to beat the Kinabatangan River, a forested sanctuary of oxbow lakes, rainforest, and mangroves. A cruise here will showcase the best of the island’s wildlife. This pairs well with a stay at Sandakan, a town which hosts three sanctuaries that showcase Borneo’s rich ecosystems: Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre, and the Rainforest Discovery Centre.

To dive deeper into the rainforest, Mulu National Park hosts some of the world’s largest bat populations in its cathedral-like caverns. Danum Valley offers an exclusive jungle experience in comfort, while Deramakot Forest Reserve is a remote scientific research station well off the tourist trail. Our specialists can help you choose the places to go in Borneo that suit you best, but as a starter, you can read more about these destinations here.

The easiest way to see orangutans in Borneo is to visit Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, where you’ll encounter rescued youngsters and adults at close quarters as they come to feed at large wooden platforms set into the forest. As part of your visit, there’s an exhibition and video that explains the orangutans’ lifestyle, and the best part — a viewing room in the nursery where you can see babies fling themselves enthusiastically around a rope playground.

However, there’s something very special about seeing an orangutan in the wild, and arguably the best way to see orangutans in Borneo is in one of the national parks, including Danum Valley, Tabin Wildlife Reserve, and Deramakot Forest Reserve.

We’ve created a sample itinerary focused around some of Borneo’s best orangutan-spotting experiences, while Borneo specialist Sophie writes in more detail about the best ways to spot orangutans in our orangutan guide.

Borneo is home to a long list of other wildlife including sun bears, multiple species of crocodile, and enough bird species to fill entire guidebooks. Some animals, including proboscis monkeys, with their bulbous noses, hornbills, and flying squirrels are relatively easy to spot.

Others, including clouded leopards, Sumatran rhinos, and Borneo bay cats, are much harder to spot, and you’ll need the help of an experienced wildlife guide to stand the best chance of a sighting. The World Land Trust estimates that there are between 1,000 and 1,600 Bornean pygmy elephants left, which you’re most likely to see by the banks of the Kinabatangan River.

The waters that surround the island are also rich in life, including green and hawksbill turtles, soft corals, and rare Borneo sharks, a shy species that rarely grow longer than 70 cm (2 ft).

While you’re exploring the wilds of Borneo, you’ll usually stay in lodges set among the trees or stilted over the river. They have their own experienced wildlife guides who’ll help you explore the surrounding area. For a more immersive cultural experience you can stay in an Iban longhouse as a guest of the local community, or in a homestay in a Malay fishing village.

To relax, there are a number of beach resorts near the town of Kota Kinabalu, or you could stay on Gaya Island, a jungle-covered island off the island’s north coast, which is home to a small selection of secluded beach escapes. Our specialists have hand-picked some of the best places to stay in Borneo on our accommodation page.

You should try to book your trip to Borneo around 6 to 12 months in advance, particularly if you're planning to visit during the busiest (and less rainy) period between June and September. The best wildlife lodges and riverside retreats book up early, especially along the Kinabatangan River and Danum Valley.

If you'd like to avoid the busy season, our specialists can suggest the best times and places to visit away from the crowds, giving you an even more intimate wildlife-spotting experience.

It takes around 24 hours to fly to Borneo from the US, depending on your departure airport. You can’t fly to Borneo direct, but there are regular connections to Kuching or Kota Kinabalu via Singapore from most large airport hubs, including LAX, JFK, and SFO.

The time zone in Borneo is UTC +8.

The best way to travel around Borneo depends where you are. To cross the vast swathes of jungle and farmland, domestic flights are ideal, especially if you’re visiting Danum Valley or Deramakot Forest Reserve. If you’re exploring the Kinabatangan River, boats are your only option. Around the towns and cities, we can arrange for a private car, although most places are small enough to explore on foot.

You don’t need a visa to enter Borneo if you’re staying less than 90 days. Your passport must be valid for at least six months after the date of your departure from Borneo and have at least one blank page. If you’re not a US passport holder, you can check the visa requirements here.

Your doctor can provide you with immunization advice for Borneo, but we recommend you’re up to date with the recommended vaccinations for your home country. You can also check the recommended vaccinations by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

There isn’t a risk of yellow fever in Borneo, but you’ll need to carry a yellow fever vaccination certificate if you’re arriving from any countries where there is a risk, including if you’ve transited for more than 12 hours through an airport in a country at risk of yellow fever.