Sabah Travel and Things to Do Guide

Situated on the island of Borneo, Sabah is blessed with nature diversity, unique cultures, fun adventure, beautiful beaches, and fantastic cuisines for the adventurous taste buds. It is the complete destination for business and leisure, for everyone from families, FITs to honeymooners.

Kota Kinabalu, the state capital of Sabah, popularly known as KK by the locals is a modern city offering international-standard hotels and resorts as well as a range of fast-food restaurants and international cuisines.

Sandakan is the wildlife capital for Sabah. The familiar orang utan at the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Sanctuary is a must-visit. It is the leading centre of excellence for orang utans in Borneo which offers a less rugged experience where visitors can view, from a platform, how rescued orang utans are nursed and released back into the wild. Next to it, the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre nurses adorable sun bears. The Rainforest Discovery Centre located within the vicinity has a long canopy walkway for an opportunity to sight 250 species of birds and one of the few places to see the Giant Red Flying Squirrel.

Sabah is gifted with a long coastline with stretches of white sandy beaches and turquoise crystal clear water and hundreds of islands. These islands are well-known for scuba diving, water sports, snorkeling or just for plain relaxing. Some have planned destination weddings by the beaches, against a backdrop of fiery sunsets.

Diving is big in Sabah, where the jewel Sipadan Island, being one of the top-rated dive spots in the world. At nearby islands to Sipadan such as Mabul, Kapalai, Mataking and Pom Pom islands, large marine life and tiny sea creatures and colourful corals and reef are guaranteed sightings. At the islands, high to medium range resort facilities await.

Apart from the marine and nature parks, wildlife sanctuaries and forest reserves, tourism attractions can also be found in the rural areas of Sabah. This is where community-based tourism comes in. Community-based tourism or CBT for short is an initiative to promote sustainability and improve the livelihood of the community in an area, emphasizing on the development and involvement of the community in developing and managing their own tourism destination and products.

Sabah consists of more than thirty different races and ethnicities with the number of languages and dialects going over eighty. All these different groups live together and form a homogenous community, where they are still retaining their own culture, custom, tradition, art, and festivals.

Scenic and beautiful view of the countryside with cultural experience makes it an ideal getaway for those looking to escape the hustle and bustle of city life. Sharing their way of life to travellers, activities that are offered by the communities include paddy planting and harvesting, rubber tapping, river fishing, playing of traditional instruments and games, production of traditional handicrafts, cooking of local dishes and many more.