Danum Valley

Step into Borneo’s Eden and discover some of this region’s most exotic and exciting flora and fauna! The Danum Valley Conservation Area is Sabah’s largest protected area of lowland dipterocarp forest. All 43,800 hectares are managed by Yayasan Sabah for the purposes of conservation, research, education and training.

The forest has more than 200 species of trees per hectare, some of which are the oldest and tallest on the planet. In terms of wildlife, the forest comes alive with the Orang utan, Asian elephant, Malayan sun bear, clouded leopard, bearded pig, three species of deer, and two of mousedeer, just to name a few. It also provides one of the last refuges in Sabah for the critically endangered Sumatran rhino. If you look closely, you might even come across the rare Wallace’s flying frog, soft-shelled turtles and vipers.

Visitors to Danum Valley usually spend their time jungle trekking, taking photographs of wildlife and bird watching. Also worth checking out is the Tembaling waterfall, a 1–2-hour walk from the Field Centre. Three burial sites have also been identified in Danum Valley. Burial caves have a special place in the myths and legends of the Orang Sungai (river people) of Borneo. Two burial sites are found near the centres and another is located below the cliff overlooking the Borneo Rainforest Lodge.

Fancy some mountain climbing? Trek up, Mount Danum the highest peak in Danum Valley at 1,093 m. A leisurely hike may take 3 days and 2 nights. However, some hard-core trekkers have been known to reach the peak in only 4 hours! A word of advice: Hire a guide from the centre whenever you plan to go jungle trekking to avoid getting lost in the forest.

Spend a night or two at the Borneo Rainforest Lodge when in Danum Valley. Their 31 chalets can accommodate up to 60 persons. Other facilities include a restaurant and an air-conditioned meeting room for 20 persons. Guided nature walks are also provided.

The lodge was established so tourists may benefit from the scholarly works carried out at the Danum Valley Field Centre —one of the world’s most foremost tropical rainforest research and environmental education establishments in Southeast Asia.

For further enquiries or reservations, please call 6 088-267637 / 267634, fax 6 088-251636 or email ijl@po.jaring.my or bntkk@ysnet.org.my. Alternatively, visit their official website at http://www.brl.com.my

Physical Branch Office Address:
Block D, Lot 10, Ground Floor,
Sadong Jaya Complex, 88100 Kota Kinabalu
Sabah, Malaysia