Malaysia - Sandakan Hotspot Eco Tours

Flying from Kota Kinabalu (KK) to Sandakan is easy, fast and inexpensive. This tour was very well organized by Mr Lai of Sandakan Hotspot Eco-Tours. Leaving from KK early morning on day 1, I was met as well as other tourists at Sandakan airport by Hadi, our professional and agreeable tour-guide. After a quick breakfast at a local cafe, we arrived at the Sepilok Orang-Utan Reahabilitation Center, one of only 4 such centers in the world. You get to see orang-utans coming at feeding time on their free will as they are free in nature. You also get to see the newly rescued orang-utans getting some training to be able to survive later in the wild. After a great visit there, we had a nice buffet lunch at a local restaurant and our comfortable A/C bus took us to the Gomantong Caves. We were very fortunate to visit during the 6 weeks a year when bird nests collectors are at work. It gave an extra interest to this huge cathedral-type of cave. Then, we drove to the Sungai Kinabatangan, Sabah's longest river. After checking-in at Borneo Natural Bilit Sukau Resort where I was quite surprised at how nice the bungalows were: I did not need the A/C as the cool temperature and fans where just right. Nice traditional style but clean and spacious. Rooms with personality! After a quick snack, we went for a late afternoon river cruise to spot many types of birds, proboscis monkeys, macaques, and perhaps crocodiles and pygmy elephants. You realize then that your eyes are much better than your camera at distinguishing the creatures often far away and in the shade! After this 2h1/2 hour trip we came back at the resort for a buffet dinner with the many other tourists (most backpackers-type) that came for a day tour or overnight like I did. Shortly after dinner, we were invited to join a night walk around the property to see some animals sleeping like insects and birds. After a great night of sleep, I got up early again, this time to go to a 6am river tour, giving us more chance to see the wild animals clinging to the jungle bordering the river with infamous palm oil trees fields beyond! I let you watch the video to see what animals we did see … After a breakfast on our river tour return, a big bus took a lot of us to diverse destinations, sometimes to connect with other buses. Back at Sandakan airport mid-day, I was back in KK by 4pm on day2. A busy but really fun 2-day tour! I recommend and thank Mr Lai of Sandakan Hotspot Eco-Tours for his support and our great guide, Hadi. Filmed in August 2018.