Borneo Nature Lodge

Amazing experience, we had 2 nights in the lodge and a night on Turtle Island. Food was good, rooms basic but clean. The people are lovely. Special thanks to Loy, our guide for making our holiday, knowledgable and caring. He took the time to make sure we were ok at all times, quite important for 2 females on their own. Thank you l!

I do want to share my dissatisfaction with the Borneo Nature Lodge service and miscommunication I experienced. My understanding was it seemed every other group staying there had a boatman and a guide. I was only provided a boatman. When I checked in, no one explained to me that a button needed to be pressed outside of the bathroom for hot water in the shower, which caused me to take an extremely cold shower. I was told the last evening, 30 min before the tour that I had an evening cruise and was told that my transportation would be picking me up the following day at 10am and to be ready by 9:50am. I had gotten up early to attempt to pay extra to search for the elephants, but at that time there was no available boats. I had decided to go ahead and have breakfast and make my way back to my room. At 7:40am, I got a knock on my room door that the transport has arrived. I had to take a few more minutes to get everything together. I was unaware that I needed to pay a tourism tax. So I paid and was rushed to the jetty. The transportation got me to the orangutan sanctuary at 10:30am, passed the feeding time, so I missed the orangutan sanctuary, which was really disappointing.

Stayed 2 nights here .First night was with a lovely lady from Vancouver .2nd night it was just us so we got personal service.Staff were very nice.Cooked us a nice English breakfast each morning and a local evening meal..Loved arriving by boat.Lovely setting in nature of lodge.Quite Basic but fine.No wi fi in lodge just near the restaurant .Went on several boat trips on the Kinabangan river.Very lucky to see an Orangutan on first trip.Ended up seeing the Borneo big 5 plus much more with our guide Ehrmon and boat driver .A highlight was an elephant swimming right beside our boat and following it for ages till it left the water.It was like being in a nature programme. I hope the Canadian lady sees elephant pics as tried to send her one by email but it wouldnt work. Highly recommended.

Fabulous welcome and made to feel at home as a solo traveler. Amazing surroundings. It was very quiet when I stayed as things were just starting up again after Covid, and really appreciated the time and effort given to me while I was staying at the lodge. Great food and would definitely stay again!

Great place to stay with chalet type accommodation we had a herd of 30 odd pigmy elephants come though our lodge so lovely to see them so close up. Meals where very good even made us a birthday cake staff friendly and boat tours amazing looking for the wildlife on the river.

We recently had the privilege of staying at Borneo Nature Lodge near the Kinabatangan River, and it was an exceptional experience. The lodge provided comfortable and clean accommodations, and the staff were friendly and attentive. The lodge's location by the Kinabatangan River allowed us to enjoy day and night boat safaris, where we witnessed a variety of wildlife. We saw numerous water birds, saltwater crocodiles, buffy fish owls, raptors, and various monkeys. The elusive flat-headed cat was a particular highlight. Our guide, Siti, was was very knowledgeable, ethousiastic and had great eyes for spotting animals. She was a huge added value to our experience. Adventure Alternative Borneo (AAB) orchestrated the trip seamlessly. If you're a nature enthusiast, I recommend this lodge for its unique wildlife encounters and comfortable stay.

Borneo Nature Lodge is a 2 star accommodation on the Kinabatangan River in Sandakan. The lodge is indeed very charming, and graced with a most delightful and helpful staff. The river safari is a wonderful experience transporting the traveller into a world of Pygmy Elephants, Orang Utans, Proboscis Monkeys, Hornbills, and Water Monitor Lizards. The local guides are extremely knowledgeable and will seek and wait and listen patiently until they hear an interesting sound that may be investigated. Do not expect many creature comforts here; this is a Rainforest. And although laudably Eco-friendly, I feel a hotel should also consider its guests....The accommodation was spartan verging on primitive, and the bathroom was dingy with a broken tap. You need no carbon footprint to fix a tap, or to clean the windows. My advice to travellers is to do your research into the lodges in Borneo before you travel. Then enjoy the wonderful experience that is Borneo.

Our group of 6 stayed in 3 chalets, reservation staff was great to arrange rooms with interconnecting door for family with children. They were clean and comfortable with air-conditioner. We enjoyed our meals, banana fritters were our favourite tea snack and connecting with nature. Our guide Rizal and boatman were exceptional, we saw wild orang utan, proboscis monkey, and baby crocodile.

Comfy chalet-type accommodation nestled in lush nature, right by the river. Delicious foods served at every meal (plus an additional light breakfast of toast and tea/coffee prior to morning cruises so you don’t get tempted by the local birds). Very knowledgable and skilled tour guide plus boatman (heard multiple boatman from other companies say if he doesn’t go a route then they wouldn’t either). We sighted numerous wildlife including a slow loris and multiple crocodiles. Staying here was a fantastic adventure!