Borneo

I flew to Borneo with Malaysian Airlines, via Kuala Lumpur. The journey time was 12 hrs to Kuala Lumpur then another 2.5 hrs to the capital of Borneo, Sabah. Borneo is a very green country, with great beaches and a wonderful rainforest, home to the Orang Utan.

The main town in Sabah is Kota Kinabalu. ‘KK’ has several great beach hotels as well as those in the city. KK is very busy, with two large shopping centers, plus lots of stalls were the locals sell most things, including clothing, leather goods, fruit and vegetables, as well as plenty of crafts.

The place comes alive at night ~ there is a great seafood restaurant were all the locals go; bars like Shambles, the Irish bar attached to the Hyatt Regency Hotel, which is open to late and has live music and dancing. The @tmosphere Modern Dining is a revolving restaurant located on the 18th floor on KK’s tallest building, not for the faint-hearted, although the food was amazing! The building is accessible by road or by boat.

There are opportunities to to on fishing trips, or perhaps take an island-hopping excursion on one of the luxury yachts. Other places to see includes the English Tea House, where you will find fish and chips on the menu, and croquet on the lawn along with the resident peacocks.

The world-famous Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilition Centre is home to the country’s apes, pigmy elephants and probosic monkeys. You will be charged to take photos of the animals (about £3) and these payments go towards the up-keep of the centre. To get to the Tea House and the Orang Utan Centre, you will need to get up early for the flight from KK to Sandakan, which takes about 40 mins.

My recommendation for an ideal holiday would be to spend perhaps two or three nights staying in one of the luxury hotels such as the Hyatt Regency, which is in the heart of the city. The hotel has 288 rooms, some with ocean views, and all with en-suite facilities; an outdoor swimming pool and a Fitness Centre. Golf and other activities can be arranged on request. Another great hotel is The Magellan Sutera, with its luxury accommodation and beautiful décor, located about a 5-minute taxi ride into city. All the rooms have good views, and other facilities include a great Spa, three swimming pools and excellent restaurants.

Located about 30 minutes away from KK is The Nexus, a large hotel surrounded in a tropical setting, offering three fantasic restaurants, one of which specialises in wonderfully fresh seafood. It also has one of the best golf courses on the island, set in stunning scenery, whilst the Spa is amazing and again, one of the biggest in the vicinity. The standard rooms were a good size and all offered en-suite bathrooms, satellite TV and a mini fridge.

Other hotels I visited during my visit were all to 5* standard ~ The Shangri-La Rasa Ria Resort, offers 330 rooms, all with stunning décor. This would be an excellent resort for families, offering a great kids club, as well as an 18-hole golf course, beautiful white sand beaches, and a 64 acre nature reserve, complete with Orang Utans! The Shangri–La Tanjung Aru Resort is situated on the outskirts of KK, and is a very large hotel with eight restaurants and bars, two swimming pools, a golf course, private beach and health club.

Borneo is a nice year-round destination, although humidity can be quite high at certain times of the year. Consequently I would say the best time to visit would be between April and November. The currency is Malaysian ringitt and the time difference is +7/+8 GMT. I must admit to being rather uncertain what to expect on this trip, but I had a really great time, and I think there’s plenty here for all!