Borneo tour with Danum Valley Traveller Reviews

We had the most fantastic wildlife holiday in Sabah, Allan is so enthusiastic, welcoming and accomodating. We'd enjoyed an independent trip to Sabah several years before, but this did not even fractionally compare to the one organised by Wildlife Trails. From carefully planned logistics to get us to the remote areas to appointing expert local guides, the whole experience couldn't have been more perfect. The itinerary was a nicely balanced mix of forest treks, jeep safaris and boat rides, both during the day and after dark. We saw a huge list of mammals, reptiles, insects and bird life, the highlights being some great encounters with wild orangutan and seeing pygmy elephants both in the forest and swimming across the great Kinabatagan river. With the help of our fantastic mammal expert guide, Mike, we also saw nocturnal civets, cats, slow loris and flying squirrels amongst so many other species. And of course the ever present hornbill varieties and some truly colourful bird life. The accommodation was described as basic, but was far from it. We always had clean and comfortable ensuite rooms, and were provided with 3 full meals a day which were plentiful and tasty, plus ever available tea & coffee. Allan is experienced in putting together a group of like minded clients, and our group was no exception. He is sympathetic to both the group and each individual's interests and needs, and it was a joy to travel in such close company, something that can be a potential worry for usually independent travellers. Overall we would not hesitate to recommend Wildlife Trails, and we are already planning another trip with them in the near future.

Wildlife Trails are a friendly, helpful Company, who have a worthy reputation built on recommendations from regular and repeat clients. They offer specialist itineraries which are well researched and expertly guided. We highly recommend them and will be traveling with them again in the near future.

This was a place I had dreamed of visiting since childhood and it did not disappoint. This was the first time I had travelled with a small group and I was fortunate that my 5 travelling companions were generous and easy to get along with - as were our guides, Mike and Theo. They spent time getting to understand our interests, our aspirations for the trip and to observe our capabilities and limitations in order to tailor the activities to suit the group. We had a mixture of walking, driving and boat safaris during daylight hours and at night. Mike and Theo did a fantastic job of showing us an incredible array of wildlife. Their skills were astonishing and we saw animals that I still don't know how they managed to spot. We had plenty of space in the boat from Borneo Nature Lodge, unlike some of the more crowded boats we saw elsewhere, and for drives we had the use of purpose built open backed vehicles which meant everyone had a good view in every direction. In addition to Mike and Theo we also had the benefit of experienced rangers and drivers. Although I am a keen photographer I had not expected to take any decent photographs at night, but Mike was particularly adept at lighting subjects so that we could all take photos with whatever kind of camera we had and II came home with better images than I thought I would. We stayed in four different forest areas (Danum Valley, Kinabatangan River, Deramakot and Imbak Canyon) before spending our last couple of days in Sepilok. The accommodation was billed as "modest" in places, but everywhere we stayed we had our own rooms, en suite facilities and sufficient access to power and sockets to charge camera batteries and laptops, even though in most places the power went off later in the evening. I particularly enjoyed Danum Valley Field Centre and Deramakot where there were relatively few visitors and those that were there were a mix of tourists, students and scientists. The experience felt more immersive there than at a tourist lodge. Imbak Canyon was special because it is primarily a scientific study centre and less visited by travellers. All four places were largely off grid there being no internet and little phone signal in some places. I personally found that enhanced the whole experience. Everyone was incredibly friendly and helpful wherever we stayed. The cook at Deramakot even made us cakes for the next leg of our journey. The food was mainly local dishes which were very good and there was plenty of it. Mike met us at Lahad Datu airport and accompanied us during the first three stages of the trip. He then handed the baton to Theo who accompanied us throughout the remainder of the trip and got us to the airport to return home. They saw to all of the transport and all of our meals so we did not have to worry about logistics at all. Even when the road to Imabk Canyon was blocked arrangements were made with no fuss to transfer us and our bags to another pick up on the other side of the blockage to continue our journey. Transfers between forest areas were in vehicles suited to the terrain and the drivers all felt very safe. In all, this was an excellent trip and I would certainly go back and do it all again.

I was looking for a photography trip, but couldn't find one which was going to the places I wanted to go or was within my budget. I spoke to Allan on the phone and he gave me an idea of what I could expect from this trip which was not specifically a photography trip. There was no hard sell and the trip was everything he described it to be and more. The advertised itinerary did not include Imbak Canyon, but Allan was happy to canvas the others in the group to see how it might be added in which it was. The trip was well organised and both the accommodation and partner organisations were well chosen. It was a hassle free, stress free trip from the point of booking right up until I came home. It is clear that the company is run with passion for wildlife and travel and that they have a wealth of experience to draw upon in creating memorable wildlife trips.

Our first visit to Borneo did not disappoint from the accommodation to wildlife sitings. We had no specific wish list however the knowledgable guides, Mike & Theo, worked tirelessly to maximise the experience with pre-dawn & night walks, drives & river cruises. The list of wildlife seen is too long to list here but one of the highlights was seeing a herd of pigmy elephants swimming across the Kinabatangan river in front of us. The accommodation exceeded our expectations for what was described in some cases as ‘basic’, no shortage of hot showers with en-suite facilities along with comfortable beds throughout. The vehicles used for drives were perfect for the task on the tough terrain in the jungle, drivers proved to be considerate & worked extremely well with the guides to maximise the opportunity of wildlife sightings. The transfers between the four wildlife reserves were well organised & worked seamlessly. We were treated to 3 cooked meals a day, most unexpected in the jungle, but allowed us to experience local Asian cuisine. All in all, an unforgettable experience.

A small family run business that specialises in meeting the individual client wishes. We travelled with them several years ago on a bespoke trip, this recent trip was a small group of 5 but Allan took into account our different requests & met them all.

My wife and I travelled on a private safari to see Komodo dragons in Indonesia, and on to Sabah. Komodo and Rinca Island were well worth the effort ,the dragons are well worth seeing, and the time on the boat was tremendous, with stunning scenery and great snorkelling. The captain’s culinary skills were a surprise bonus. All of the lodges within Sabah were excellent, but with their own, different personalities The Rainforest lodge offers real comfort and the opportunity for good wildlife viewings, we even had a brief sighting of two Pygmy elephants en route to the lodge. Macaques greeted us as we arrived, and Dean, our guide at the lodge was excellent. Tabin is a birder’s paradise, and we saw 6 species of hornbill during our stay. Israel was our guide and was an expert birder. Gibbons were to be seen on some mornings, and the sound of their calling across the forest was memorable. The trails between the Primary, secondary rainforest and palm plantations gave opportunities for good sightings during dusk, and night drives, including Civet, flying squirrels and a number of leopard cats. Forest walking yielded our first Orang Utan sighting, a young male, a bit miffed at being stung by some bees. Myne lodge stands out for us as we love boats and we had a number of OU sightings including one great one, spending over an hour watching an older male feeding from a Ficus tree. More macaques than you can shake a stick at, and good Proboscis monkey watching too. No elephants around for us though. Special mention to Maik, our main guide and companion for our time in Sabah. Excellent guide, knowledgeable, resourceful, and with a great sense of humour. Lankayan Island is truly a paradise. A great way to relax after an arduous trip, more excellent snorkelling,and we were lucky enough to witness newly hatched Hawksbill turtles being released to make their way to the sea.

We have travelled many times now with Wildlife Trails, and have had some memorable experiences within Asia, Africa, Canada, the Arctic circle and South America. Allan and his team have always come up with an itinerary, customised to our needs. The fact that we have come back so many times says it all.