9-Day Ultimate Borneo Wildlife Bike Safari

Pedal into history on this heritage tour of Kuching, the capital of Sarawak. Explore the main bazaar in the picturesque old town, and stop at the square tower at the ‘stone jetty’. In the early days of the Brooke Rajah, this fort and a nearby courthouse were the full extent of the government buildings.

Cross the river in traditional fashion, on a ‘sampan’ ferry deftly steered with oars, to visit Fort Margherita, built by Charles Brooke in 1879 and named after his bride. The fort’s cannons were trained on the river, both a traffic route and a possible source of an enemy attack. After substantial renovations, it is now a museum of Brooke memorabilia.  

Accommodation: Basaga Hotel

Meals: Dinner

We ride out of the city center avoiding the worst of traffic through quieter kampong lanes. Our destination this morning is the fishing village of Kampang Muara Tebas that is surrounded by mangrove swamp, a great place to spot wild birds and collect wild fern. Visit a century-old temple overlooking the spectacular Bako Bay before walking around the villages to observe some local traditional commerce such as the drying of shrimp paste or the harvesting of jellyfish. A delicious seafood lunch awaits at a local fisherman’s stilt house restaurant.

After lunch and a quick rest, we continue on a short ride through mangrove swamps to Kampong Bako jetty where we take a 20-minute boat trip along the coast to Bako National Park peninsular for a full day of trekking and wildlife spotting. Our expert park guide will bring you to the best places to see the wild animal in the wild, including spotting herds of the big nose proboscis monkey jumping from tree to tree. After dinner, we take a night walk on a different trail to catch sight of breathtaking night creatures. Enjoy your first serene and peaceful jungle night in the national park’s cabin accommodation.

Accommodation: Bako National Park

Meals: Lunch and dinner

Two spectacular boat trips today! In the morning, we depart from Bako National Park heading towards Mount Santubong. This is a great opportunity to spot various migratory birds along the coastline. During stormy weather, this coastal boat trip may be replaced with an inland river route but, as compensation, you might have the chance to spot a crocodile instead. After checking in at the jungle beach resort, we cycle to a food center for lunch before heading to Santubong National Park to hike the waterfall trail and enjoy a cooling dip.

In the evening, we take the second boat cruise of the day through the spectacular mangroves tributary to see more exotic birds and animals.

Accommodation:  Permai Rainforest Resort

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

After an early morning breakfast at the beachside restaurant, we get back into the saddle for a day of cycling along the mangrove coast. We reach Kubah National Park for lunch before embarking on the waterfall trail to spot different species of pitcher plants and wild orchids. Take a cooling dip at the waterfall before returning to the park chalet for an early dinner.

In the evening, take a night stroll to the jungle stream to spot colorful Bornean Frogs.    

Accommodation:  Kubah National Park

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

We ride into a sleepy fishing kampong facing the South China Sea and start our boat ride to Talang-Satang National Park. Visit the turtle hatchery on Satang Island to get an idea of the conservation work being done to help highly endangered sea creatures such as Green Turtles. Spend time on the island’s white sandy beach or go snorkeling.

After a picnic lunch on the beach, we arrive back on the mainland and continue our cycling journey to reach Matang Wildlife Center. Here we have an encounter with the orangutans, as well as other endemic Borneo wildlife such as the sun bears, sambar deer, and hornbills. For the more adventurous, we will venture out into the night to experience the darkness of the rainforest and its unique, nocturnal creatures.  

Accommodation: Matang Wildlife Center

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

We say goodbye to the orangutans and follow the long coastline, dotted with isolated beaches and peat swamp forests. There are opportunities to spot a large variety of wetland and coastal birds, including many migratory birds temporarily residing in Borneo. Along the way, ride your bicycle onto a unique car ferry to cross the Sampadi River. The long, flat ride ends with a series of fishing ‘kampongs’ (villages) before we reach the coastal town of Lundu for lunch.

After lunch, we venture into Gunung Gading National Park for a chance to see any blooming Rafflesia, the biggest flower in the world. We then end our ride at a welcoming seaside resort, where you can enjoy a well-deserved plunge in the pool, and see the sunset from the beach.  

Accommodation: Lundu Union Yes Retreat

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

After breakfast by the pool, saddle up for our final day of riding. We follow the coastline and ride on a mixture of dirt trails and village roads towards the picturesque Sematan town. At Sematan, visit the local fish market which boasts fresh catches and delicious local produce. Next, we ride to a local waterfall for a picnic lunch. The final bike ride is along another beautiful stretch of isolated, white sand beach, and, during low tide, you can even ride your bike all the way to reach the seaside resort. Enjoy the cool sea breeze during our sunset dinner. There is an option to ride an additional 28km to the tip of Borneo on this last riding day.

Accommodation:  Sematan Palm Beach Resort

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Make the most of our last day by the beach. After lunch, we drive back to Kuching to check-in to the hotel before our farewell seafood dinner. An extension of the trip to the tip of Borneo (2 days, 1 night) by boat during the dry season is possible from Sematan.  

Accommodation:  Basaga Hotel/The Marian

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Today the tour concludes. For those who are not in a hurry to leave, the interior of Borneo awaits. For information on these and other destinations to extend your holiday, please ask our team at the time of booking. Transfer to Kuching Airport for a flight home.   

Meals: Breakfast

Our bike tours are fully supported by air-conditioned vehicles, so should you want to put your feet up, there will be a seat for you and a place to put your bike. The support vehicle also carries your luggage, as well as keeping you topped up with water, tropical fruit, and snacks.

Wearing a helmet is strongly recommended on all our biking adventures. Your tour leader will conduct a group cycling safety meeting on day one, as well as a briefing at the beginning of each day on what to expect during the day’s ride. Your tour leader is trained in first aid and emergency rescue but, to a certain degree, you must be responsible for your own safety while riding. For non-biking activities such as kayaking, safety measures such as life-jackets are compulsory and a separate safety briefing will be given before the start of each activity.

Meals and snacks are included as per the itinerary. We take care in our planning to include the best of Sarawak cuisine, including delicacies from a mixture of Dayak, Malay, and Chinese cuisine that all use local, fresh ingredients from the tropics. Some can be hot and spicy. We eat dinner together, Malaysian style, by sharing all of our delicious dishes. Alcoholic drinks are available at your own expense, but they might not be served in some Muslim halal restaurants.

We have carefully chosen the best available accommodation in different locations with friendly, local hosts. To ensure your comfort after a hard day in the saddle, we strive to offer a range of accommodation that is clean, comfortable, and represents the local culture. The type of lodging can vary depending on the location and what is available: a local tribal homestay, a jungle lodge, a national park cabin, a historical shophouse, and seaside resorts. Rooms are based on a sharing basis with double beds and if you are a single traveler, you might be paired with another traveler of the same sex unless you pay the single supplement.

The details of the number of cycling days, cycling distances, and difficulty levels for each tour are listed in the fact sheet. All our trips require basic fitness, preferably acquired through cycling. The fitter you are, the more you’ll enjoy the riding. However, we try to make our Sarawak bike tours as accessible as possible with the average cycling distance of 30-40 km per day and the longest distance no more than 70 km. Most cycling terrains are on paved roads (and limited gravel tracks) with some undulations.

Being on the equator, Borneo is generally hot (average daily temperatures are around 30 degrees Celsius) and humid, especially around noon. Therefore, we like to start our day early and rest at points of interest during the hottest part of the day. Short rain showers are fairly common during the mid to late afternoon but we provide waterproof ponchos for continuous riding, which can actually be very entertaining.

Once you have booked your tour, we will send you a pre-tour information pack that will have all the information you need to prepare for the tour, such as the packing list and joining instruction, etc.

Solo travelers are always welcome and those who would like their own room have the option of paying a single supplement. Otherwise, we will arrange for a shared room with another solo traveler (of the same sex) at no extra cost. If there is no roommate available, we will cover the additional cost of a single room.    

We include very limited corporate insurance coverage with minimum coverage. It is a condition of participating in a Paradesa Borneo that each traveler holds his or her own travel insurance for the duration of the trip. It needs to include coverage of medical expenses, emergency evacuation, personal liability, and accident insurance. You should email us a copy of your insurance coverage for our reference in case of an emergency.

The official currency is the Malaysian ringgit (RM). Foreign currencies are not generally accepted and currency exchange is only available in major banks, as well as larger hotels. Credit cards can be used only in larger hotels and shops. ATMs are widely available in cities and towns, but you’ll need cash in villages to pay for some extra meals, drinks, activities, and, of course, shopping. There will be limited opportunities to spend money whilst cycling through rural areas outside of personal items, extra snacks, drinks, and the odd souvenir. Tipping at restaurants and for local guides and support staff is uncommon. Should however you feel the staff/guides have provided excellent service you may wish to give them some form of gratuity. We recommend that you bring an equivalent of US$ 400 (in Malaysian ringgit) for incidentals.