FAMILY ADVENTURE

Family thrills and spills deep in the Danum Valley rainforest

Cliffside coffins, hornbills, wild critters and canopy walks are all par for the course deep in the Borneo rainforest where, despite the sweaty adventures, creature comforts are all close at hand at a unique eco-friendly jungle lodge.

by Nova Renata

February 2025

SEE ALSO Brunei guide | Langkawi guide | Penang guide | Malaysia spas | Kuala Lumpur shopping | Kuala Lumpur hotels | El Nido adventure | Zanskar frozen trek | Sabah Fun Guide

With the forest everywhere this Danum Valley Sabah escape is as close to nature as you can get. Enjoy canopy walks and rare animal and bird sightings. It's a great spot for the family and kids/ photo: hotel

MY first visit to Danum Valley was in June 2010, around the time when Martha Stewart came to visit Borneo. It was a familiarisation trip, and as with any work trip, the schedule was packed and I barely had an opportunity to enjoy my time at the Borneo Rainforest Lodge (BRL). I promised to return one day and, suddenly, there I was.  

Danum Valley Conservation Area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the east of Sabah, Malaysia. It is home to a wide variety of plant and animal life, including over 125 species of mammals, 275 species of birds, and 2,000 species of plants. The park is also home to several indigenous tribes, including the Dusun Subpan, who have lived there for centuries.

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An astonishing 130 million-years-old, this tropical rainforest sprawls over a 438sq km tract of relatively undisturbed lowland hardwood dipterocarp jungle. It is one of the most biodiverse places on earth. Among the wide variety of plants to be found here is the endangered Danum tree fern that is unique to this region.

Danum Valley is also a refuge for elephants, gibbons, red leaf monkeys, rhinoceros hornbills, orangutans, and the Bornean clouded leopard, which is listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Being a lush and protected area makes Danum Valley an iconic destination for naturalists and researchers alike. It is a great place to experience the beauty and diversity of the Bornean rainforest. The conservation area offers several hiking trails to be explored, with or without a guide.

Regardless of where you are coming from, your journey to Danum Valley will be rigorous and somewhat demanding. If you’re driving from Kota Kinabalu, you’ll be on the road for about 8-10 hours (depending on the number of stops). Flying in — by far the better option — it takes just 55 minutes and is only a tad costlier.

After hikes through the rainforest or up to cliffside burial sites, the elevated accommodation affords a fair degree of spoiling comfort so it's not all Crocodile Dundee aches and sweat/ photo: hotel

Once you’ve reached Lahad Datu, the journey into Danum Valley will take approximately another three to four hours, mainly on gravel roads. Brace yourself. But fear not, your journey will be worth every bump when you reach your destination.

Nestled amidst the lush greenery of Danum Valley Conservation Area, the Borneo Rainforest Lodge (BRL) is an award-winning eco-resort that offers guests a unique and immersive experience in the heart of Borneo's oldest rainforest.

This palatial, luxury lodge consists of 31 individual chalets with fans and ensuite bathrooms, accommodating up to 60 guests on any given day. Each chalet is designed to blend seamlessly with the surrounding vegetation, offering guests a tranquil and intimate connection with nature. The elevated design of the chalets enables any stray wildlife to move around easily underneath.

Borneo Rainforest Lodge is committed to sustainable practices and minimising its environmental impact. The lodge has implemented many eco-friendly initiatives, such as using solar power, recycling wastewater with Effective Microorganism (EM), and composting food scraps for fertiliser.

BRL is the sort of place best enjoyed with a group of friends or the family over a long weekend. One chalet (depending on your room type) can easily sleep three to four persons and each three-day, two-night package is inclusive of three buffet meals daily, plus guided activities with knowledgeable tour guides. The experience is all-round good value. Bring your urban iPad-perusing kids to this jungle retreat to get them speedily unplugged and gleefully immersed in wildlife and nature.

Depending on how long you’re planning to stay, you should be able to squeeze in an average of two activities per day.

Among the must-do things during your stay at BRL is a jungle trek to the Coffin Cliff trail and the View Point platform. The Coffin Cliff trail features an ancient burial site, with remnants of two ironwood coffins of Dusun Subpan warriors (with visible skeletal remains). The ironwood coffin remains are believed to be at least 250 years old. Although the coffins and the skeletons are within reach, visitors are required to show respect and refrain from touching anything.

Stilted and spacious accommodation ensures wildlife passage is not restricted at the Borneo Rainforest Lodge where guests are fully immersed in nature/ photo: hotel

The trek to the View Point platform can be a bit steep and challenging. Depending on your fitness level, trekking up can take up to an hour and a half, but rest assured that once you reach the platform, all that sweat will have been worth it. 

Situated at approximately 300 metres above sea level, the View Point platform overlooks the lodge and the Danum River, offering a bird’s-eye view of the valley and its majestic forest cover. If you happen to be a birdwatcher, the platform is an excellent place from where to spot hornbills and other feathered residents.

On the way back, you will make a pit stop at the Jacuzzi Pool for a cooling dip under the waterfall. Bear in mind that the Jacuzzi Pool is home to the Pelian fish that are fond of nibbling on your toes. If you’re ticklish you may want to keep your shoes on as they can get pretty aggressive in their explorations.

Another highlight at Danum Valley is the Canopy Walkway which features a network of hanging bridges connected to giant dipterocarp trees. The view from the canopy walkway is simply breathtaking. A caveat: it’s best to avoid looking down if you have a fear of heights. Admire your nails some other time. The view, while beautiful, may be overwhelming for some vertigo sufferers.

In the evening, just before dinner, take part in an exciting night safari drive on a golf buggy for a chance to spot nocturnal animals like the Malayan civet, flying squirrel and western tarsier. If you fancy reptiles, the night walk may tickle your fancy. Visit the croaking pond and look closely along the trails for novel species like the dark-eared tree frog, the tarantula spider and others.

Reprinted with permission from kookiepr.com/

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