Discover Asia : Borneo : SARAWAK

Sarawak used to be part of the Sultanate of Brunei but was ceded to an English adventurer, Sir James Brooke in 1841 – for services rendered.Successive Brooke heirs ruled the country as ‘White Rajahs’ until after WW2,when it was ceded to Britain. The unique atmosphere and colonial architecture of Sarawak’s capital, Kuching, owe a lot to the ‘white rajahs’. Throughout Sarawak's jungles and National Parks you will find superb accommodation to suit the most demanding traveller.

NOTE - ALL TOURS ARE GUARANTEED DEPARTURE (min 2 people)

3 DAYS / 2 NIGHTS KUCHING CITY STAY

DAY 1 - Transfer upon arrival from airport to your selected hotel. Overnight hotel.

DAY 2 – Breakast. Full day Kuching City Tour. This introduction to Kuching town takes you to the gigantic Cat Statue - the city's mascot; the Kuching Waterfront; the Tua PekKong Temple built in 1876; the beautiful Fort Margherita from 1879; and theformer residence of the White Rajah, the Astana. You will visit the Sarawak Museum which is acknowledged as one of the world's finest. During the tour, pass by a Malay village on the way to old Gambier Spice Street known for their open-air weekend market.

DAY 3 – Breakfast. Travel arrangements end.

2 DAYS / 1 NIGHT BAKO NATIONAL PARK

Day 01 Morning, depart Kuching by road passing beautiful nipah palms and mangrove swamps.Arrive at Kampung Bako fishing village and proceed on via an unsheltered motorized boat to reach the park. Visitors will discover for themselves an abundance of botanical treasure in the park. Check-in at the park’s rest house before visiting the Information and Exhibition Centre for an orientation. Then set out (take a pair of binoculars as you may see wild boars, Plantain Squirreland many species of birds) on trail number 5 and see the many adaptation of the dipterocarpus lowland forest with the various timber species before coming to flat vegetation land. Enjoy a packed lunch at Telok Pandan Beach. See the marvelous and fascinating weathering process such as hemispherical cavities, iron stained rocks and sea stack. Return to the rest house for dinner and overnight.

Day 02 Early morning wake up and set out on the Telok Delima trail to watch the unusual and delightful Proboscis Monkey occasionally sighted in the morning. A good set of binoculars would be handy and useful on this trip. Return for breakfast.After lunch, depart Bako National Park to return to Kuching.

Small Group Tour - AU$226 Independent Tour - AU$280

2 DAYS / 1 NIGHT LEMANAK RIVER SAFARI

Day 01 - Depart your hotel in the morning for the homes of the Dayaks. The journey will take about 4 hours by road, followed by a 1-hour ride on a motorised boat. En route stop at a pepper garden before proceeding to Serian. After lunch, continue your journey until the banks of the Skrang/Lemanak River where the motorised boat ride begins. Pass through cool, thick, overhanging jungle foliage before arriving at an Iban or Sea Dayak longhouse. Observe the lifestyle of the natives as they go about their daily chores such as basket or mat weaving, mending of fishing nets, feeding of livestock and fishing. Dinner at the guesthouse. Try "tuak" (a potent local rice wine) and witness the traditional "Ngajat" or War Dance. Overnight at the guesthouse with basic modern amenities.

Day 02 - Breakfast at the guesthouse, then participate in a jungle walk with an Iban man who will also demonstrate his blowpipe skills. For those who prefer to laze about, a dip in the cool water of the Skrang/Lemanak River is possible. Depart the longhouse by motorised longboat down river.Transfer overland to Kuching with a stopover at Serian for lunch. Arrive in Kuching and transfer to your hotel or the airport.

Small Group Tour - AU$218 Independent Tour - AU$263

3 DAYS / 2 NIGHTS LEMANAK RIVER SAFARI

Add one day to the 2 Days/1 Night itinerary to allow more time for jungle trekking, fishing or stay at the longhouse and watch the natives do their daily chores.

Independent Tour - AU$430

3 DAYS / 2 NIGHTS HILTON BATANG AI EXPERIENCE

Day 01 - Depart from Kuching by air-conditioned vehicle for Hilton Batang Ai Resort, 166 miles from Kuching City, passing through scenic countryside consisting of quaint little towns, village, padi fields, pepper and oil palm plantations interspersed with secondary and virgin jungle as the road starts to wind and undulate as you go deeper into the interior. Stop for lunch at Lachau, a small town on the way to the resort. Arrive at the Hydro lake at Lubok Antu. Board a shuttle ferry to the resort situated on the southern bank. Overnight at The Hilton Batang Ai Resort. Dinner at the resort. Note : If you arrive at the resort before 1600 hrs, you can proceed for a Nature Walk with the hotel recreation staff if weather permits.

Day 02 - Depart by longboat to Meyang Sedi longhouse for a guided tour of this 18 room communal longhouse, where approximately 18 families of the Iban tribe live under one roof. It is literally a whole village on stilts, situated on the river bank of one of the many tributaries of the Batang Ai River amidst virgin jungle. Observe the weaving and hand-crafting skills of the Ibans as they work on the "ruai", a long communal verandah that stretches the entire length of the longhouse. Enjoy a short cultural performance by the inhabitants of the longhouse followed later on by a blow pipe demonstration. Lunch will be serve at a waterfall situated not more than 5 minutes boat ride from the longhouse. You will however be require to trek for approximately 10 minutes to the waterfall from the banks of the river.

Day 03 - After breakfast, depart for Kuching via the same route as your arrival. Lunch stop will be made at a small road sidetown before continuing your journey to Kuching.

Independent Tour - AU$388

4 DAYS / 3 NIGHTS JUNGLE ESCAPADE

Day 1 - Early morning depart for a journey of 250 kms byroad from Kuching to the hydro lake at Lubok Antu. You will find the journey on the way quite enthralling as you pass quaint small roadside towns, farmhouses and small village settlements. You will also see rubber, coca and oil palm plantations and pepper orchards along the way. Stopover at Serian for a short tour. Continue journey until you reach Lachau where you will have lunch at one of the local coffee shops. Continue journey after lunch. Upon reaching the hydro lake you have completed the first leg of the journey by road. You will then continue your journey to the longhouse by motorized native longboat which will take you across the lake into the Engkari River, one of the many tributaries flowing into the lake. The journey will take 1 hour and 15 min.approximately before reaching Spaya Longhouse nestled on a hill beside the river. Constructed of tropical timber, these 2 units of longhouses have approximately 50 family rooms. The natives here still spin cotton, weave thepua (traditional cloth), and create intricate carvings from bamboo and wood.Take a dip or swim in the cool river to freshen up before having dinner at the Resthouse. Spend the night at the longhouse. As they entertain you with theirtraditional dances to the beat of the gongs and drums. Join the dances and in the beating of the gongs and drums and sample your first glass of fiery tuak (home-brewed rice win). Overnight accommodation at a guesthouse.

Day 2 - After breakfast take a short trek into the nearby jungle accompanied by Ibans dressed in traditional garb and armed with blowpipes. We will then depart Spaya Longhouse for Jingin Longhouse by longboat for approximately 2 ½ Hours boat ride. After reaching the longhouse have a short rest before going up river to do traditional fishing and swimming amidst the rainforest of Sarawak before returning to Jingin Longhouse for dinner and accommodation.

Day 3 - Breakfast at the Longhouse. Depart for a full day trekking in the jungle surrounding Jingin Longhouse. The trek will take approximately 3 to 4 hours going deeper into the jungle and on to various types of terrain. Lunch will be served in the jungle. Return to the Longhouse for Dinner and accommodation in the late afternoon.

Day 4 - Breakfast at the Longhouse. After breakfast depart for Kuching via the same route as your arrival with Lunch en-route before continuing your journey to Kuching.

Independent Tour - AU$1046

4 DAYS / 3 NIGHTS RAFTING ESCAPADE

Day 1 - Your rafting adventure begins with a journey by road in the early morning from your hotel in Kuching to the hydro lake at Lubok Antu 155 miles away. On the journey there,you will pass small roadside towns, farmhouses, Malay, Chinese and Bidayuh villages, padi-fields, pepper orchards, rubber, coco and oil palm plantations.Stopover at Serian to stretch your legs and for a short tour of the town where you will view a quaint monument of that king of fruits - the durian. The bazaars and the market-place will fascinate you with its wide variety of exotic and strange tropical fruits and vegetables. Continue with your journey until you reach Lachau or a similar roadside town where you will break for lunch. The terrain becomes more hilly and undulating as you go deeper into the interior and farmlands soon give way to creeper-covered trees of the secondary jungle and tall towering trees of the virgin rainforest. The deep blue water of the hydro lake looms in front of you as you arrive at the dam at Lubok Antu. This will be the last modern structure of any significant size that you will see for a few days. Board an Iban longboat to cross the lake and into the Engkari River. Arrive at Ugat Longhouse, where 40 families of the Batang Ai's Ibantribe live under one roof. Spend the evening observing and experiencing the traditional and communal lifestyle of the inhabitants who still spin cotton,weave the pua (traditional cloth), hunt with blowpipes, dance to the music of the gongs and drink fiery tuak. Dinner and overnight at guesthouse equipped with basic amenities.

Day 2 - Breakfast at the guesthouse. Depart Ugat longhouse for Lubok Pantau longhouse situated on the upper reaches of the Engkari River.The river starts to narrow as you proceed into hilly terrains. Over hanging branches reach high across the river creating a scenic view. The water flowsfaster as the boat climbs higher inland and this is when the boatman has to occasionally "shoot the rapids". Arrive at Lubok Pantau longhouse, consistingof 13 ‘doors’ or families and still largely untouched by modern civilization. Inthis longhouse you can still see old human skulls hanging from the rafters ofthe "ruai" (communal verandah). Activities include swimming and inthe evening participation in the social and cultural activities of the inhabitants of the longhouse such as dancing, drinking, etc. Dinner andaccommodation in the longhouse.

Day 3 - Breakfast in the longhouse. Commencement of construction of traditional Iban rafts made from timber or bamboo and vines.With the completion of the rafts you will be able to travel downstream in near"white water" conditions. One Iban raftman will be assigned to every 2 pax. Dinner and accommodation by the river bank or at a nearby longhouse if the water level is too high. Accommodation by the river bank will be in either tents or make-shift shelters made from jungle produce.

Day 4 - Breakfast by the river bank. Continue rafting until you reach Ugat longhouse where you will board a longboat to take you to the jetty at Lubok Antu hydro lake. Depart by van/coach for Kuching. Lunch en-route.

Independent Tour - AU$1046

Headhunter in his longhouse