The Danum Essential
2 nights at the flagship lodge: the canopy walkway at dawn, a night drive, and dinner beside the river.
Full board · on enquiry
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Sabah's lodge network
The Wildlife Lodges of Sabah
A comprehensive guide to the rainforest lodges, river camps and island resorts across Sabah. How to choose the right base for your wildlife interests and how the regions connect.
Sabah's lodge network
About The Wildlife Lodges of Sabah
Sabah offers a network of wildlife bases that range from air-conditioned villas with plunge pools to working scientific stations and community-run river camps. Explore trails and canopy walkways in Danum Valley, or watch the Kinabatangan riverbanks from electric-motor boats as you travel between regions.
Why stay here
Our view of The Wildlife Lodges of Sabah
Explore 438 square kilometres
Explore 438 square kilometres of unlogged rainforest from chalets or research stations.
Take river safaris from
Take river safaris from lower mangrove lodges or community-run camps.
Take night drives for
Take night drives for small cats where Tabin borders palm plantations.
Combine rainforest stays with
Combine rainforest stays with island resorts and reef diving off Semporna and Sandakan.
Shape routes with flights
Shape routes with flights between Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan and Lahad Datu.
From your doorstep
What a day here holds
The Danum Valley Canopy Walkway
Suspended 27 metres above the primary rainforest floor, the Borneo Rainforest Lodge canopy walkway is a 360-metre structure anchored directl
Danum Valley Night Safaris
A night drive is the best way to see the rainforest mammals that sleep through the heat of the day. This guide explains how the drives work,
Guided Treks and Trails
The trails at Danum Valley run deep into a ancient primary rainforest. They are hot, humid and root-choked and they offer a way of seeing th
The Sabah Birding Circuit
The classic Sabah birding circuit connects the montane forests of Mount Kinabalu with the lowland dipterocarps of Danum Valley. This guide e
Kinabatangan River
The Kinabatangan floodplain holds the highest concentration of wildlife in Borneo. This is where you go to track orangutans and proboscis mo
Wildlife you may see
Keep your binoculars close
Sightings are wild and never guaranteed: that is the point. These are the residents your guides will be listening for.
Packages
Ways to stay
Rates on enquiry, no prices are published.
Danum Intensive
A private week across the Lodge and the Study Centre: hides, flexible dawn starts and a vehicle that waits for the light.
Full board · on enquiry
EnquireBefore you pack
Sabah has no single dry season. Danum Valley is good all year with April and May being the least wet. The Kinabatangan is best from April to August when drier conditions concentrate elephants on the riverbanks. Lankayan Island closes for January and February.
The distances are long so flying between Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan and Tawau is usually the better choice. Private transport organised by the lodges connects Lahad Datu to Danum Valley and the Kinabatangan to Danum Valley.
Travel and health insurance is advised for any visit to Sabah. Cover that includes emergency evacuation is sensible in places as remote as Danum Valley and the Kinabatangan.
Unescorted walking is prohibited at Borneo Rainforest Lodge. You must travel outside the lodge grounds with your assigned guide. The Study Centre allows researchers more freedom but standard visitors rely on the guiding team.
They are natural formations but restoration work helps keep these lakes healthy. Tungog Oxbow Lake was restored using a biological control programme to combat invasive water weeds and keep the waters clear for estuarine crocodiles.
Extend the journey
Nearby & combinations
Borneo Rainforest Lodge — The flagship premium lodge in Danum Valley. Danum Valley Study Centre — A working research station with extensive trail access. Sukau Rainforest Lodge — Comfortable riverside villas on the Kinabatangan. Kinabatangan Wetlands Resort — Luxury chalets in the lower estuarine mangroves. Tabin Wildlife Resort — The prime location for night drives and small cats.
Plan your trip
Plan your Sabah wildlife itinerary
Tell the team which wildlife you want to observe and they will connect the right rainforest lodges, river camps and island resorts across Sabah.
Sources referenced on this page: Sabah Parks.