A class experience
We did two tours with Borneo Eco: Kinnabalu park 2D1N and a daytrip to Mari Mari Cultural Village. Both tours were very well prepared and executed. We had a very passionate, knowledgeable and attentive tour guide (Popoi). For this type of experience the tour guide makes a very big difference so we are very happy to have chosen Borneo Eco! Cindy at the booking office was very reactive and helpful in making the practical arrangements beforehand.
Loved every minute - Do not hesitate to book! You will not regret it ❤️
We booked our Kinabatangan River stay with Borneo Eco Tours. The booking process and communication was straightforward and Lisa always answered any queries we had over email quickly and gave us all the information we needed to make the most of our trip. This included booking us an extra night and arranging all the transfers to align with flight times. We were met by Fernando at our accommodation in Sepilok and he took us around the Orangutan and Sun Bear centres, he was great fun and really knowledgeable. We also met our tour guide for the whole trip here, Fahran, who escorted us from Sepilok to Sukau Lodge. We spent 3 nights/4 days with Sukau Rainforest Lodge and I have to say it’s one of the best travel experiences of my life. It was so magical staying in the rainforest and the variety of wildlife we saw was incredible, from Pygmy elephants crossing the river to a flanged orangutan to a Rhinoceros Hornbill looking for a nest. The room and food were exceptional but what truly makes the whole experience are the staff, they were friendly, kind, knowledgeable and always kept you up to date on what your personal itinerary was. A particular shout out to Fahran and Soleil who were so kind, helpful and shared so much knowledge and wisdom about the rainforest, the wildlife and the local communities. Also to Arnold who climbed the 500+ steps with us at Gomantong Caves and whose excitement at finding a flanged male orangutan was totally contagious. We loved chatting with the staff at dinner and in the shop, and loved learning more about the culture and communities on the Kinabatangan river. We were so sad to leave but will remember this trip forever! We hope to be lucky enough to visit again one day in the future ❤️
Best trip ever
We’ve just come back from a trip across Malaysia. This tour was part of the trip and I can honestly say it was the best experience we’ve ever had. Every part of the process was professional, helpful and courteous. We were a party of 9, so a lot to organise, but the booking process was simple. All parts were delivered on time with no issues. The sukau rainforest lodge is gorgeous. It’s simple as you would expect but the standards are exceptional, the tour guides are amazing and everyone we encountered was knowledgeable and professional. We did lots of boat tours and saw different animals at different times. Food was simple but good quality. We really loved how everyone in Borneo was very mindful and respectful of the animals around us, and made sure animal welfare was always on their mind. More than I can say for some idiot adults that weren’t following the rules at some times. All in all, highly rated and I would be giving it 7 stars if I could.
Borneo Wildlife Safari
Awesome experience. Well planned and coordinated. We enjoyed our time with Borneo Eco Tours and would recommend them.
Incredible experience on the Deramakot Forest Wildlife Safari!
My partner and I had the most incredible experience on this tour! We did a 3-night wildlife safari in the Deramakot Forest reserve and it was certainly a life highlight. From the beginning, we were very looked after. We were picked up from our hotel in Kota Kinabalu by our Captain, Joe and our guide, Eddie. The drive into the forest takes about 7.5 hours plus some stops, which made it all the more convenient as part of the tour. The accommodation is modest and decent, and we found the meals provided were fantastic. Eddie and Joe were incredibly flexible and provided their expertise to maximise opportunities to see the amazing wildlife in Borneo. Being a private tour, we were able to extend our safari outings sometimes while skipping others as we wished. One of the highlights was an extended night safari where we managed to see so much wildlife, including a leopard cat, a porcupine, and a slow loris to name a few! We had an amazing experience watching a pair of rhinoceros hornbills. Eddie and Joe were kind enough to lend us binoculars (we didn't bring any) to see them close up and set up a tripod so we could capture them on video! We followed the sound of the gibbons, getting off the 4x4 onto a trail to try and find them. The beautiful, dense rainforest meant we couldn't spot them in the end, but getting closer and listening to them in their habitat was so special. If you are looking a memorable trip to the Borneo rainforest, I highly recommend booking with Borneo Eco Tours!
Incredible Experience with Borneo Eco Tours – Highly Recommend (U.S./Couple/30s)
My partner and I (Americans in our 30s) had an awesome trip with Borneo Eco Tours. More U.S. travelers need to explore Borneo! For the value, the price felt like a great bang for your buck considering the quality of accommodations, guiding, and wildlife activities. What impressed us right away was how responsive and helpful our travel consultant William was. From the very first email he was on top of everything, answering all of our questions quickly and clearly. One of the biggest advantages of booking through them is that they own Sukau Rainforest Lodge, so even when other companies were sold out, they were able to fit us in. That alone was a huge relief since Sukau ended up being the highlight of our trip. We stayed in villa cabins at both Sukau Rainforest Lodge and Utan. It was also awarded as a Nat Geo lodge which interested me as I work for Nat Geo. The whole experience was very well organized, eco-friendly, and rooted in the local community, which was important to us when choosing who to travel with. Our main goal was to see wildlife. We were lucky enough to spot the “Big 5” of Borneo. Seeing orangutans in the wild was the big draw for me, but the river safaris were great and loved seeing the pygmy elephants. During our week we saw such a mix of travelers — couples, families, friends, even solo travelers. What we also appreciated was Borneo Eco Tours’ use of more eco-friendly boats. Many river operators still rely on noisy two-stroke engines, which can pollute and disturb wildlife. They however have Sukau boats with electric motors that are quieter and less disruptive allowing for a much closer, gentler experience with the animals. It’s the kind of forward-thinking, sustainable practice we hope becomes the standard across Borneo. The government needs to make this a requirement moving forward.
Kinabatangan Safari
we went for a 3 day 2 night Kinabatangan Wildlife Safari trip with Borneo Eco Tours, taking in Sepilok and a river safari over two nights. We had two weeks in Malaysia in total and this amount of time felt about right. Our guide, Jad, was with us for the whole trip. Jad was fantastic, very kind and knowledgable, and he did his absolute best to make sure we saw as much wildlife as possible. Without a guide you would miss a lot of the wildlife. The Sukau Rainforest Lodge is a lovely place to stay in.
Once in a lifetime experience.
The most incredible trip! Vincent was an incredible guide, and the whole experience was just just wonderful. We saw all the big 5, including over 60 wild elephants crossing the river. I would recommend them thoroughly and if found back to Borneo in the future, would definitely use them.
Incredible Borneo Experience with a Truly Professional Eco Tour Company
We chose the Sabah Rainforest Safari having looked at a number of other tour operators. First to say Borneo Eco Tours are hugely professional with outstanding service and accommodation is high quality. They have a genuine commitment to the environment and the wildlife with sustainability and eco friendliness a key consideration throughout. The tour itself was excellent and we absolutely loved both the Sukau and Utan Rainforest lodges. All the guides were brilliant and very knowledgeable without exception. So I need to give a special mention to our guides Gerard, Yamin, Jay and Isam who really made our tour. We saw 4 out of 5 of the Borneo Big 5, with orangutans being the only ones we did not see in the wild but did obviously at Sepilok. I was so glad our tour included the Utan Rainforest as this was well worth the long bumpy road. The only thing was the start of the tour felt slow and rather long drawn out staying too long in Kota Kinabalu and would have liked to have flown to Sandakan directly after Mount Kinabalu rather than the early morning flight the next day which meant we were tired for Sepilok and the boat trips. The botanical garden at Mount Kinabalu is stunning and well worth the trip. A mention also to Oviera in the office too who was hugely helpful throughout our booking process. I highly recommend this company to anyone wanting to do a Borneo tour.
Authentic and professional tour company, with a wonderful offering
Our family with children aged 7 through 11 absolutely loved the tours and service offered by Borneo Eco Tours. They get very high marks with me (an experienced traveler with the family) for their professionalism and authenticity. They provide great information on their tours beforehand and the communication prior to the trip with the team is excellent. They have a wonderful offering, with great experience, and are rooted in the community and respectful of the beautiful natural environment. This is just not some cynical package tours operator but an authentic outfit in for the long run. We had great guides and conversations and company from other visitors in our 3-day visit to the beautiful Sukau Rainforest Lodge (thanks Vincent!). Our kids (and the parents) loved just as well the farmstay in the village next to the Kiulu River, this was such an nice get-away (thanks a lot to our young local guide Leo!). When a traffic hiccup in the busy KK rush hour prevented us from going to a guided tour and dinner at the night market, the team handled this very gracefully and provided a prompt reimbursement. The flexibility and attendance was great, and made us feel very welcome indeed!
