What a day!

TripAdvisor review: Full-Day Kinabalu Park and Poring Hot Spring Day Trip

Ryan was our tour guide for this day out into the jungles of Borneo. There were some utter delights in the day: the Kinabalu Botanical Garden was fascinating. The Poring Hot Springs were a little odd to western eyes, but not without appeal, but the real treat was going on beyond the canopy walkway to the natural waterfall and going to swim in it!
My tour was with 25 male sailors, mainly in their 20s, from a naval vessel, but Ryan found absolutely the right level with the group and was infectious with his enthusiasm for his subject.
Lunch was very good and substantial enough to sustain my group for the day.

Perfect operator for Mount Kinabalu!

We were quite late with booking our 2D1N climb of Mt. Kinabalu and subsequently there was no free slots anymore, even with Borneo Trails. However, Esther contacted me two days later with the information that a new hut was finished and that she could offer us two free slots at a discount price. What seemed a bit fishy on first sight turned out to be a perfect trip! We had our own guy Linus who was very friendly and adjusted to our pace. Together with him the climb was exhausting but otherwise perfect. Cant thank Esther enough for being the only tour operator that managed to bring us up the mountain at a ridiculous cheap price!

2D1N Mt Kinabalu Hike - Fantastic

I emailed them about 5-6 weeks before my planned date, the price was a bit cheaper than other reputable competitors and the date matched so I went ahead. The email exchange with Esther was very efficient as well as the whole organisation.
My guide, Sylvester, was awesome, very knowledgeable of the mountain and very friendly as well. It made for a fantastic experience.
I climbed down quite a bit faster than other groups and assumed I would have to wait for the transportation but not at all, a van was arranged for me as soon as I reached the park entrance, just perfect !

Our day in Sandakan

Our UK travel agent organised our day trip from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan with Borneo Trails Tours & Travel and what a super day it was! The Borneo Trails guide, Jamie, and the driver (can't remember his name, sorry!) met us at Sandakan airport when our Air Asia flight landed at 09:35 and they hastily drove us direct to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre to be in time for the feeding session at 10:00. We arrived just in time to see the bananas and other fruits being placed on the feeding platform and then we watched quietly as branches were suddenly moved or, overhead, a rope suddenly went taut because this signalled that an orangutan was coming to the feeding platform. Jamie told us we were lucky that day because we saw 11 orangutans plus 2 tiny babies clinging on to their mothers coming to feed. A very moving experience! Next came a visit to the Sunbears' sanctuary - another heart warming experience because they are very cute too. After that we had lunch and then visited the other interesting sights of Sandakan: the main market, a beautiful Chinese temple and the water village which was very picturesque. All in all we had a great day with Jamie, who was an excellent guide and told us all we wanted to know about the two animal sanctuaries, the trees and flora of Sabah and life in Sandakan. In the late afternoon, we were dropped off at the airport from where we flew out of Sandakan to KK feeling enriched by the whole day's experience and the wonderful time we'd had.

Thank you, Jamie and Borneo Trails.

Dear Borneo Trails,

Arrival 11 October, 2018

Both my sister and I want to pass on our thanks and to say how much we enjoyed our first trip to Borneo. A wonderfully organised tour, full of adventure, experiences and wonderment.

I loved the boat rides and the jungle walk, especially; but the highlight, of course, was seeing orangutans in the wild. Without experts alongside, you would not get to see them. Our guide, Jame, was excellent, sharing his in-depth knowledge and was very professional and amiable. He was also very considerate towards people’s limitations within the group and I couldn't fault his commitment towards ensuring we got the most out of the tour. Brendan, our guide for the day at Kinabalu Park and the hot springs, was also very informative during this fabulous day. I also need to say thank you to him for his expertise and help when I lost my camera. A shame that happened - but I do at least have some great memories.

I am promoting Borneo to my friends, so that more people can see and experience these wonders; and if we can do our bit to help preserve this wonderful destination for the wildlife, then that is even more important. Thanks also to our drivers – coaches and boats - and the staff in the lodge and hotels for helping to make this a wonderful trip. Fully recommended!

Many thanks and kindest regards,

Christina and Suzanne (England)

Hi Bernadette,

We have returned from our Borneo trip which began on 25 September 2018.

This is just a short note to inform you that we thoroughly enjoyed the holiday. The pace of the trip was perfect with enough free time in between the sightseeing.

Unfortunately, we did not see any elephants in the forest but the other sightings were terrific including 5 different primates.

The two guides in Hazel & James were excellent with my wife's dietary needs & were always explaining themselves prior to being asked or had a member of the restaurant ensuring that she ate correctly.  

Thank you to you & your staff for a wonderful & memorable holiday in Borneo.

Regards,

Paul Burns