MALAYSIAlonelyplanet.com MALAYSIAN BORNEO – SARAWAK
noon, you will be required to spend the night
in town before setting off into the park).
BEAUFORT DIVISION
With Borneo’s clutch of unpronounceable
tribal names (try saying ‘Balambangan’ three
times fast!), it’s a pleasure asking for a bus to
Beaufort. This shield-shaped peninsula, pop-
ping out from Sabah’s southwestern coast, is
a marshy plain marked with curling rivers
and fringed by golden dunes. Tourists with
tight travel schedules should consider doing
a wildlife river cruise here if they don’t have
time to reach Sungai Kinabatangan.
The tea-brown Sungai Klias harkens the
mighty Kinabatangan, offering short-stay
visitors a chance to spend an evening in
the jungle cavorting with saucy primates.
There are several companies offering two-
hour river cruises. We recommend Borneo
Authentic (%088-773066; http://www.borneo-authentic.com;
package trip RM150). Trips include a large buffet
dinner and a short night walk to view the
swarms of fireflies that light up the evening
sky like Christmas lights. Cruises start at
dusk (around 5pm), when the sweltering
heat starts to burn off and animals emerge
for some post-siesta prowling.
Narrower than the river Klias, the Sungai
Garama is another popular spot for the pop-
ular day-trip river cruises from KK. Like
Klias, the tours here start around 5pm (with
KK departures at 2pm), and include a buffet
dinner before returning to KK. Try Only In
Borneo (%088-260506; http://www.oibtours.com; package tour
RM190), an offshoot of Traverse Tours. It has
a well-maintained facility along the shores
of Sungai Garama and offers an overnight
option in prim dorms or double rooms.
PULAU LABUAN
pop 85,000
Pulau Labuan is Sabah’s version of Vegas,
but if you’re expecting shmancy hotels and
prostitutes you’re only half-right... The island
doesn’t feel seedy though; in fact, think of
Labuan as a giant airport terminal – every-
thing here is duty free, because politically it’s
part of a federal territory governed directly
from KL. The island’s main town, Bander
Labuan, is the transit point for ferries link-
ing Kota Kinabalu and Brunei. WWII buffs
will find several sights of interest, but for
most travellers the Labuan Homestay Program
(%087-422622; http://www.labuantourism.com; r RM65, 2 days
incl full board RM140) is the only draw. This excel-
lent service matches visitors with a friendly
local in one of three villages around the
island: Patau Patau 2, Kampong Sungai
Labu and Kampong Bukit Kuda. Some of
the homes are just as grand as one of the
international-class hotels on the waterfront!
If you want to be near Bandar Labuan, ask
for accommodation at Patau Patau 2 – it’s a
charming stilt village out on the bay. Stay a
bit longer and learn how to make ambuyat,
a Bruneian favourite (see p61 ).
Passenger ferries (first class/economy class
RM39/31, 3¼ hours) depart KK for Labuan
Monday to Saturday at 8am and 1.30pm. On
Sunday they sail at 8am and 3pm. In the op-
posite direction they depart Labuan for KK
Monday to Saturday 8am and 1pm, while
on Sunday they depart at 10.30am and 3pm.
Note that the air-con on these ferries is al-
ways turned up to ‘arctic’ – bring a fleece.
There are also daily speedboats from Labuan
to Limbang in Sarawak (RM28, two hours,
2.30pm) and Lawas, also in Sarawak (RM33,
two hours, 12.30pm). There are also daily
speedboats to Sipitang, which cost RM25 and
take 40 minutes.MALAYSIAN BORNEO –
SARAWAK
While Sabah sees itself as ‘nature’, Sarawak
plays up its cultural counterpoint. With a
thriving indigenous population featuring
dozens of dialects and tribes, Sarawak’s
local people are the keepers of Borneo – the
ancient storytellers and guardians of lost
traditions. Many communities still cling to
the longhouse lifestyle – a coveted way of
communal life steeped in hundreds of years
of myth, legend and lore.
But make no mistake, Sarawak offers oh
so much more than blowpipes, rice wine and
sacred dances. The state has its fair share
of natural wonders as well. The yawning
Niah Caves reveal the island’s 40,000 years
of human history through haunting buri-
als and cryptic cavern drawings. Caves are
super-sized at Gunung Mulu National Park –
home to more bats than there are people in
the entirety of Sarawak. Don’t miss the trek
up to the Pinnacles, a curious formation507