7 reasons to visit the Malaysian island of Sabah

In Sabah, wilderness, wildlife and culture are inseparable – and these adventures prove it.

You’re drifting along a jungle river at dawn, eyes scanning the rainforest canopy for signs of movement. Suddenly, there they are. A long-limbed infant clings to the red fur of its mother – an orangutan, munching thoughtfully on durian. It’s a rare sighting, but only the start of what Sabah, the northern state of Malaysian Borneo, has in store.

Whether you’re whisking your partner away to an island dive among turtles or clutching the hand of your own little one at street-food feasts, here are seven ways to experience the island.

Getting there

Malaysia Airlines makes every journey smoother.

Malaysia Airlines operates non-stop flights from Australia’s major cities to Kuala Lumpur – including triple-daily services from Melbourne and Sydney. From there, the national carrier offers up to 14 daily connections to Kota Kinabalu, Tawau and Sandakan on Sabah. With a generous baggage allowance included, there’s plenty of room for binoculars.

1. Spot the ‘Big Five’ on river cruises

See Borneo’s famous orangutans. (Image: Simone Millward)

Sail through the oxbow lakes and mangrove swamps of the Kinabatangan Biosphere Reserve, and listen for the ‘ooks’ of its famous inhabitants: the critically endangered Bornean orangutan. But on this river, you’ll encounter far more than these great apes.

The other members of the ‘Big Five’ creatures of the Kinabatangan Biosphere Reserve include the sweet pygmy elephants, the pendulous-nosed proboscis monkeys, the rhinoceros hornbills with their bright curved horns, and saltwater crocodiles half submerged in the muck-slicked banks.

2. Sleep at community eco-lodges

Coming back from a river cruise is the start of the Kinabatangan story. Instead, stay with cooperatives such as KOPEL, which operate a veritable network of community-led eco-lodges, homestays and activities that support rainforest conservation and the livelihoods of the indigenous Orang Sungai people.

If you can’t stretch your time to get your hands blissfully dirty replanting forests and clearing invasive species alongside KOPEL, there’s no need to sweat (extra problematic, in this jungle heat). Whether it’s a riverside stay at Miso Walai Village, hammock-swinging at the off-grid Tungog Rainforest Eco Camp, or a jaunt from Supu Adventure Camp in a limestone karst rainforest, each stay does wonders – for you, for the Orang Sungai, and for their floodplains.

3. Wander the wildlife sanctuaries

Spot the unique features of the proboscis monkeys.

Pay homage to Sabah’s remarkable species at its world-renowned sanctuaries, all in the same place.

Start at the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, where nurseries of orphaned orangutans rescued from logging and the pet trade learn to climb, forage, and return home. Right next door is the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre, where the world’s smallest bear, whose fur is marked by that golden splash, is cared for as part of long-term rehabilitation and release programs. Next, spot the oddly tumescent noses and portly, old-man potbellies of proboscis monkeys swinging through the trees greet you at along the 620-metre skywalk at the Rainforest Discovery Centre.

Take a step deeper into the world of scientists in the Danum Valley and Maliau Basin Conservation Areas, where guided treks and night drives take you closer to what comes next for these rare animals: freedom.

4. Make an island getaway

Dve into island waters. (Image: Colin Meg)

Humid mists give way to salty air out on Sabah’s islands, where there’s a beach for every taste. The cast of the original Survivor were filmed scrabbling among the volcanic mud pools, coral-fringed coast and jungle trails of Pulau Tiga. Sabah’s conservation quest continues over on Selingan Turtle Island, a sanctuary where you can watch green and hawksbill turtles nest under the stars and even help release hatchlings with local rangers.

Sheer drop-offs into blue-lined infinity reveal swirling tornadoes of barracuda and reef sharks at Sipadan Island to those lucky enough to snag one of its limited diving permits. And for romantics, Pom Pom Island’s eco-resort is made for fin-spotting by day and a few Sabah smooches by night.

5. Taste local food

Try the delectable local cuisine.

With roots as wide-ranging as Chinese, Malay, Peranakan, Indian, Bajau sea-nomad and ethnic Kadazan-Dusun, Sabah’s food culture was never going to be anything short of spectacular.

The nation’s street-food carts jig happily between the sea and the forest – and the best place to taste them is Kota Kinabalu’s Gaya Street, where the Api-Api Night Food Market turns Friday and Saturday evenings into a carnival of grilling satay, oyster omelettes and sweet juices.

Stay up late feasting with picnicking locals, and rise early for the Gaya Street Sunday Market, when the same pavements fill with UFO tarts, mountain coffee and baskets of fruit fresh from the highlands, and the nighttime entertainers hand over to masseurs from the Sabah Society for the Blind.

6. Ride the Papar Train

The journey isn’t over for your taste buds just yet. Instead, get on the colonial-era Papar Train, stomach grumbling. For 45 minutes, this stretch of the North Borneo Railway – built by the British to transport tobacco, rice and rubber from plantation to coast – carries you and your storytelling guide all the way to the town of Papar.

Once you’ve been thoroughly welcomed by a local band playing traditional instruments, follow your guide to Papar Market, where stalls are piled high with golden fritters, handmade kuih, and handicrafts begging to be slipped into your bag for the flight home.

7. Architecture of the urban jungle

Gaze on the stunning Kota Kinabalu City Mosque. (Image: Mo Jo)

The gifts of Sabah’s natural world were always going to slip into the creative bloodstream of its people. A final stop in the city takes you to the floating Kota Kinabalu City Mosque, a serene confection of blue domes and slender minarets rising above a tranquil lagoon, its reflections glowing pink at sunrise and sunset.

As the first certified green building in Borneo, the Sabah Art Gallery carries that same harmony. All you have to do is stand in the basket-shaped structure, surrounded by indigenous motifs and thousands of artworks, and feel the people, the art, and the living world of Borneo existing as one.

Book your flights with Malaysia Airlines and start your Sabah adventure at malaysiaairlines.com.