The perfect shot!
Getting right into the heart of the wilderness and coming back with beautiful raw footage of nature… it is an unforgettable experience, especially for those who visit Sabah (the northern portion of Borneo Island). Here, virgin rainforest, rolling hills, mesmerising islands and wonderful animals are just begging to be recorded so you can relive the experience over and over again.
Before you start documenting your adventures here however, remember: at some places in Borneo, you will need to pay a camera fee.
Don’t worry – the proceeds from these fees go to a good cause. They are used to maintain the pristine beauty and sanctity of these locations as well as the welfare of local wildlife. In other words, you’ll be helping out with conservation efforts while also taking a memorable piece of Borneo back with you. It’s a win-win situation for everyone!
So if you are travelling through Sabah, this applies to the following popular destinations:
1) Poring Hotsprings
2) Luanti Fish Spa
3) Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre
4) Selingan Island
5) Gomantong Caves
6) Labuk Bay Proboscis Sanctuary
7) Maliau Basin
The Poring Hotsprings – a popular destination for tourists and locals alike, Poring is not too far from Kinabalu National Park. It’s where you go for a relaxing dip in naturally heated groundwater pools or a thrilling walk through high suspension bridges and canopy walkways. For the latter, you will need to pay a small fee to record anything, but it’s pretty affordable – and well worth the cost.
If you’re heading to Poring / Kinabalu Park anyway, why not make a stop at Kampung Luanti? Wade into the clear waters of Moroli River and be amazed/terrified as swarms of fish, specially trained by the villages here, gently nibble on your dead skin. It’s a pretty cool experience, with only a tiny fee needed for a whole group of visitors to whip out their cameras and capture the excitement.
Located in the Sandakan district, the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre is a nursing home for rescued orphaned baby orangutans. Filmmakers in particular will need to pay a sizeable sum, but it’s all for a good cause – ensuring that these tiny great apes are able to learn the basics of survival and live a normal life once they are released back into the wild.
Azure waters, white sandy beaches, endless blue skies… it’s no wonder that Selingan Island is popular not only with tourists, but with wildlife as well! It’s a safe haven for the endangered green and hawkbill turtles, who have made the island their nesting place. Your contributions go a long way towards ensuring their survival.
Those already in Sandakan may be tempted to go to the richly biodiverse Kinabatangan area – where the Gomantong Caves are. Home to swiflet birds (whose nests are harvested here), bats, insects and various other wildlife, it’s a living and breathing cave system that everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime.
The Probosics monkey is pretty hard to miss – you could see those impressive noses from a mile away! Like the orangutan, you can only find these guys in Borneo – and, sadly, just like their cousins they are also an endangered species. Many live peaceful lives at the Labuk Bay Proboscis Sanctuary though, and you’ll only need to pay a small fee to snap some beautiful shots.
Deep in the heart of Sabah, lies Maliau Basin. Shrouded in thick fog and filled with virgin forest, plunging waterfalls, and exotic animals, it’s easy to see why Maliau Basin is also called the Lost World of Sabah. It is truly remote and isolated from civilisation – which makes it perfect for nature lovers in search of something deep and personal with Sabah’s mystical wilderness.
