Sarawak's national parks
If you wanted to visit every national park in Sarawak, you’d need 30 days. And that would give you only one day in each because in this, the largest state in Malaysian Borneo, there are actually 30 national parks, in an area of land the size of England. Where we have 10, by the way, although in fairness not all of Sarawak’s national parks are open to the public. Those that are, however, open up one big biodiverse bonanza. An explosion of ecological exquisiteness. The secret is, of course, working out how to create the best pic’n’mix possible in what feels, to nature lovers, like being a child in the best sweetshop ever. So working from north to south, here are some of our favourites.
Our Sarawak Vacations
Singapore and Sarawak vacations
A wildlife and Cultural Vacation to Singapore and Sarawak
From
US $2875
14 days
inc UK flights
Sarawak wildlife & beach vacation
Encounter an orangutan & hike through virgin rainforest
From
US $1611 to US $2070
10 days
ex flights
Borneo 8 day tour, the wild heart of Borneo
A unique experience in the untouched, beautiful Sarawak.
From
£855
8 days
ex flights
Luxury beach vacation in Borneo & Orangutans
Relaxation in one of nature's most picturesque settings
From
£1915
13 days
inc UK flights
Sarawak and Singapore vacation
Discover beautiful Sarawak with a 2 night Singapore stopover
From
£1720
15 days
ex flights
Borneo wildlife vacation, Sarawak
A light trekking and jungle adventure vacation in Sarawak
From
US $2760
13 days
ex flights
Borneo tour, Sarawak, Sabah & Brunei
Exotic Trans-Borneo Rainforest Discovery, including Brunei
From
US $1098
13 days
ex flights
Wild Borneo vacation, private departure
Highlights of Malaysian Borneo including Deramakot
From
£4340
18 days
inc UK flights
Sarawak family vacation
An action-packed vacation got the whole family to enjoy!
From
£1088
9 days
ex flights
Orangutan conservation vacation in Borneo
Meet Iban tribes and encounter orangutans in Borneo
From
£1195
13 days
ex flights
Borneo wildlife cycling vacation
Ultimate Borneo wildlife experience on two wheels
From
MYR 8242
9 days
ex flights
Orangutan volunteering in Borneo
Volunteer at an orangutan rehabilitation center in Borneo
From
£795 to £1995
8 days
ex flights
Borneo vacation, Sarawak highlights
Wildlife, Orangutans, longhouse stay & beach in Sarawak
From
US $1895
13 days
ex flights
Borneo cycling vacation, Headhunters Heartland
An epic ride into The Iban Heartland
From
MYR 7626
7 days
ex flights
Borneo wildlife vacation
Showcasing the best of Borneo - wildlife, rainforests and tropical beaches
From
US $4649 to US $4979
15 days
ex flights
Iban longhouse experience in Sarawak, Malaysia
Take a 3 Day Tour to be part of the Iban Tribe!
From
£595
3 days
ex flights
Sarawak Rainforest music festival vacation
Explore Malaysia's diverse flavours and gastronomic delights
From
US $2145
11 days
ex flights
Sarawak rainforest cycling tour, Borneo
Discover the sights, sounds & taste of authentic Sarawak
From
MYR 6600
8 days
ex flights
Highlights of Borneo group tour
Small-group culture and wildlife tour of Borneo
From
US $3585
12 days
ex flights
Sarawak 5 day cultural tour
Explore Sarawak’s remote and fascinating coastal region
From
MYR 3568 to MYR 5201
5 days
ex flights
Sarawak off the beaten track tour
Explore Remote Sarawak’s Coastal and Interior Region
From
MYR 3646 to MYR 5814
7 days
ex flights
Sarawak vacation, wildlife adventure
Tailor-made wildlife and turtle vacation to Sarawak
From
US $2395
14 days
ex flights
Borneo tour, Orangutans and Iban
Spotting wild orangutans and meeting indigenous tribes
From
£3499
22 days
ex flights
Sarawak and Sabah vacation, tailor made
Tailor made Sarawak and Sabah adventure vacation
From
US $3625
16 days
ex flights
Borneo tailor made tour
A Borneo vacation tailor-made for the adventurous traveler.
From
£2139
12 days
ex flights
Sarawak cultural tour in Borneo
A cultural jungle adventure through Sarawak
From
£3515
15 days
inc UK flights
Sabah & Sarawak vacation in Borneo
Wildlife, jungles, culture and idyllic beaches
From
US $2495
13 days
ex flights
Sarawak and Sabah tour, Orangutans & Ibans
Explore Borneo's unique culture, heritage and wildlife
From
£1597
13 days
ex flights
Borneo small group adventure vacation
An exciting 2-week Borneo tour to Sabah and Sarawak
From
US $2350
11 days
ex flights
Gunung Mulu National Park
Gunung Mulu National Park leads the way in geological glories; a land of limestone where dramatic gorges, jagged peaks and one of the world’s largest cave systems take center stage. Deer Cave became famous when David Attenborough featured the bat population there; up to three million bats fly out en masse at dusk in search of food, one of Sarawak’s greatest wildlife experiences. The cave itself is 2km long and the largest such passage in the world, accessible along a boardwalk that takes you through tropical swamps, rainforest, and rugged limestone terrain all the way to this cave as well as the nearby Lang’s Cave, where spotlit stalactites and stalagmites are stunning sights.When hiking in Gunung Mulu, you will be guided by official national park guides along one of three main trails. The two- to three-day Pinnacles Summit Trail starts with a boat trip down the Melinau River, then leads along a trail to a campsite near its eponymous gorge and, after a night’s rest, through ancient moss covered forest, up limestone rocky outcrops to a viewpoint from which you can take in the jagged jungle spikes that lend the trail its name. This is indeed the pinnacle of many a trekker’s trip through Sarawak.
Other hikers may hone in on the Headhunters’ Trail which follows the cheery historical route of the Kayan people who went on headhunting trips up the Melinau River, then dragged their longboats through thick forest to the Terikan River, all in search of heads of people in the Limbang area. Nowadays, thankfully, there is no headhunting, but there are plenty of longboat trips as well as overnight stays in a traditional longhouse; your head left happily intact.
Niah National Park
Heading further south, a lesser known but historically hugely important national park is Niah; excavations have revealed human remains here that date back 40,000 years. These are the oldest remains to have been found in Southeast Asia, and although many of the archaeological treasures are now in the Sarawak Museum, there is evidence of ancient life still to be seen throughout the park. Such as at the Painted Cave where wall paintings dating back to the Iron Age depict ‘death ships’ journeying into the afterlife. You can also see a replica of a 40,000 year old skull in the Niah Archaelogical Museum, located within the park.Niah also protects a maze of limestone cave systems where guided rainforest walks lead you to their gigantic entrances. This is the moment when you are glad you packed raingear, from head to toe, as you explore this subterranean world of bats and swiflets, both of which exit the caves at dusk in what looks like choreographed clouds. There have been issues around the conservation of swiflets, however, their unique nests sought after for the Chinese delicacy: birds nest soup. Delicacies come at a high price, and have therefore provided a significant income to local people over the years. But things are changing, and the national park has put in place a conservation programme educating local people on this issue in Gua Perintah cave area.
Treks in this park can be a day long, or many people opt to delve deeper by spending a night locally in one of the community’s welcoming long houses.
Our top Sarawak Vacation
Sarawak wildlife & beach vacation
Encounter an orangutan & hike through virgin rainforest
From
US $1611 to US $2070
10 days
ex flights
Small group travel:
2019: 26 Sep, 10 Oct, 24 Oct, 21 Nov, 19 Dec
2020: 2 Jan, 30 Jan, 20 Feb, 5 Mar, 19 Mar, 26 Mar, 2 Apr, 9 Apr, 16 Apr, 23 Apr, 7 May, 21 May, 4 Jun, 18 Jun, 2 Jul, 9 Jul, 16 Jul, 30 Jul, 6 Aug, 13 Aug, 20 Aug, 27 Aug, 3 Sep, 10 Sep, 24 Sep, 8 Oct, 22 Oct, 19 Nov, 3 Dec, 17 Dec, 24 Dec
2019: 26 Sep, 10 Oct, 24 Oct, 21 Nov, 19 Dec
2020: 2 Jan, 30 Jan, 20 Feb, 5 Mar, 19 Mar, 26 Mar, 2 Apr, 9 Apr, 16 Apr, 23 Apr, 7 May, 21 May, 4 Jun, 18 Jun, 2 Jul, 9 Jul, 16 Jul, 30 Jul, 6 Aug, 13 Aug, 20 Aug, 27 Aug, 3 Sep, 10 Sep, 24 Sep, 8 Oct, 22 Oct, 19 Nov, 3 Dec, 17 Dec, 24 Dec
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about Sarawak or need help finding a vacation to suit you we're very happy to help.
Gunung Gading National Park
If you love both jungle and elevation, then southwestern Sarawak’s Gunung Gading is, in all senses of the word, uplifting. With four mountain peaks, trails most certainly ascend, but the natural wonders of waterfalls and mountain streams, where bathing is hard to resist, beckon keen hikers up to the jungle rich heights. Hiking is only possible in small groups led by national park guides, which will be coordinated by your tour operator. Unlike many of Sarawak’s national parks, these trails are manageable in a daytrip, albeit starting early morning for one of the finest wake up workouts you could hope for. It is also easily accessible, just two hours’ drive from Kuching.Gunung Gading is most famous among fans of flora for its prolific Rafflesia, the largest flower in the world, yet one which remains a mystery to many. With no roots, leaves or stem, this red beauty grows on a vine, or tetrastigma, the buds taking nine months to open, and then may only last a few days. The good news, and again part of its mystery, is that there is no specific flowering season. However, rangers know the progress of each Rafflesia in the park, so you can be guided to them quite easily along board walks. The best time to see Rafflesia, however, tends to be during the wet season, between November and February.
Bako National Park
Gazetted in 1957, this is Sarawak’s oldest national park and so its wildlife has been wonderfully preserved while at the same time being a little more habituated to human presence, meaning creatures can be more visible. And the park’s most famous dwellers, the pendulum-faced proboscis monkeys are definitely worth seeing. Easily done too, because Bako is only 37km from the state’s capital city, Kuching, stretching along the Muara Tebas peninsula , where eclectic habitats of marshy wetlands, littoral and rainforest provide homes not only to the proboscis monkey, but also long-tailed macaques, flying lemurs, pangolins, silvery latung (or langur), wild boar and deer. Popular walking trails include Telok Delima, Telok Paku and Telok Assam where dawn and dusk are the best time to catch sight of their lively residents.
Kubah National Park
You shouldn’t miss Kubah National Park, but nor can you miss it; its dramatic centerpiece of three peaks, Gunung Serapi, Gunung Selang and Gunung Sendok dominating the landscape just over 20km from Kuching. This giant, tri-peak limestone largesse is the first call to wilderness that visitors are tempted to follow, and follow they should. Walking trails take you into these slopes of the wider Serapi range, where streams have segued into splendid waterfalls as soft limestone has been eroded over the centuries. The rainforests are home to multiple species of palms, orchids and ferns, as well as wildlife ranging from bearded pigs to giant squirrels.Miri-Sibuti Coral Reefs National Park
This is Sarawak’s submarine beauty, with coral reefs stretching along the coast between Bintulu town and Miri. A much celebrated scuba location, there are close to 40 dive sites boasting over 800 species of hard and soft coral, and marine life from barracuda to batfish, sea horses to sharks all thriving among the giant clams, anenomes and Gorgonia sea fans, to name but a few. Diving conditions are perfect between late March and November, when visibility ranges between 10-30m. So, after exploring the tropical jungles up above, you can spend days immersing yourself in Sarawak’s sub-aqua ones too.
Batang Ai National Park
Further east and south, Batang Ai is much celebrated in the world of responsible tourism because of its exemplary, community-led conservation by the Iban tribe.They are the ancestral stewards of the park, but also of its most celebrated primate, the orangutan, which the Iban have conserved for over 400 years, as long as they have been known to inhabit these rainforests. The Iban consider it taboo to endanger or kill an orangutan, as they believe they carry the souls of their ancestors and loved ones who have passed on. They work in successful community partnerships with the park management authorities for the region’s sustainability and, of course, to protect the precious primate of their homelands. Batang Ai is one of the leading spots where tourists can go to volunteer with orangutan conservation projects. Read more about Batang Ai in detail here.
Responsible Travel would like to thank the Sarawak tourist board for their sponsorship of this guide
More about Sarawak
A quick glimpse at our temperature & rainfall chart will tell you the best time to visit Sarawak in terms of the weather however, delve a little deeper and you’ll discover a month by month guide.
If you’re looking to learn all about Malaysia’s largest state then our Sarawak travel guide does just the job with a brief history of Sarawak as well as a 2 minute summary to help you travel like a local on your Sarawak vacation.
Make the most of your time by checking out our interactive map of highlights, travel times and suggested itineraries which will give you a much better idea as to where to go in Sarawak and what to do when you get there.
There's lots of things to do in Sarawak with Mulu National Park, Bako National Park and Gunung National Park all providing trekking and nature trails to help you understand everything from orangutan conservation to living like a local.
If you travel into the Central Highlands of Sarawak you'll find the Lun Bawang people living in a collection of villages known as Ba’kelalan, their culture and heritage at the core of community tourism in Sarawak.
Sarawak adventure vacations release you into a truly spectacular natural landscape, one of dense rainforest and vibrant green plateaus snaked across by the toffee-coloured waters of the Sarawak River.
If the late, great Ella Fitzgerald were still singing on our mortal coil, she would almost certainly have graced the stage of the Rainforest World Music Festival in Sarawak, one of the most celebrated of its kind in the world.
Community led conservation projects are really a change in Sarawak, and these also provide some of the most fascinating and life affirming experiences for visitors keen to contribute to orangutan conservation efforts.
There are over twenty Important Bird Areas in Sarawak alone - really is birding bliss - and with a plethora of national parks too, the infrastructure allows lots of ways to go bird watching in Sarawak.
Sarawak is a truly unsurpassed destination to see the highly endangered orangutan in the wild in Batang Ai National Park, living symbiotically with the local Iban community which contributes to it's protection.
Exploring the culture in Sarawak is one of the key reasons to visit the Land of the Hornbills - tours here introduce you to riveting tribal customs, the heritage of the Brooke Dynasty, and many colourful festivals.
Discover the picturesque riverside gateway to Sarawak and Malaysian Borneo - Kuching: a romantic, sophisticated city that's just as rich with culture heritage as it is with colourful atmosphere.
It’s easily reached from both Kuala Lumpur and Singapore by air, and there is a great deal to see in a fairly compact area, so the benefits of a short tour to Sarawak are as clear as the waters of its many dive sites.
The illustrious Brooke dynasty heritage can be seen across Sarawak, from the historic wooden forts they built to protect their kingdom, to renowned museums and a beautiful palace by the river.
Sarawak wildlife ranges from the endangered orangutans that are found only here and Sumatra to big-nosed proboscis monkeys, rare Irrawaddy dolphins and sea turtles, found across some 30 protected areas.
Traveling in Sarawak with kids is all about finding things they’ll enjoy and learn from at the same time with cultural villages, Kuching Cat Museum and the Sarawak Caves in Gunung National Park all perfect activities.
If you’re searching for Sarawak travel advice then make sure you pay attention to the tips from our friends - we’ve published a few pearls of wisdom to help you travel safely with kids, and without.
Wildlife & environment issues are integral to responsible tourism in Sarawak - reforestation, volunteering responsibly and positive community tourism are just a few of the areas you’ll need to read about to travel better.
protection
Photo credits: [Page banner: Sarawak Tourism] [Top box - canopy bridge at Gunung Mulu: Kirkland Photos for Sarawak Tourism]
[Gunung Mulu NP: Sarawak Tourism]
[Bako National Park: Sarawak Tourism]
[Miri-Sibuti Coral Reefs National Park: Sarawak Tourism]
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