BORNEO: KOTA KINABALU E DINTORNI

After immigration formalities, passport control, baggage retrieval, and customs, you will be greeted by a local guide and transferred to the hotel. The rest of the day available. Lunch and dinner free.
Accommodation Grandis hotel Kota Kinabalu.

Breakfast. At 9 a.m., meet your guide at the hotel to visit the interesting Mari-Mari Cultural Village. The village is located not far from the city of Kota Kinabalu and operates as an open-air museum where you can observe the ways of life of all the major ethnic groups in the state of Sabah, including the Murut (former headhunters), Bajau, Kadazan-Dusun and others. You can visit the traditional houses belonging to the various ethnic groups and see live examples of food still cooked in bamboo, traditional fire-making and traditional dances. Simple but tasty lunch in local style. At the end of the visit, at around 2 pm, the guide will take you to the Klias River, with its mangrove ecosystem and low jungle rivers. In just over two hours, passing through villages and oil palm plantations, you will reach the river for a coffee break with fried bananas and local sweets, before setting off in a motorised boat to travel up the river in search of proboscis monkeys, primates endemic to Borneo. The excursion also offers the opportunity to observe birds, macaques and, in some cases, water buffaloes and monitor lizards. At sunset, return to the pier for a local-style dinner and then take the boat for a short trip on the river to witness the wonderful natural spectacle of hundreds of fireflies adorning the mangroves like Christmas trees.
At the end of the tour, return to Kota Kinabalu, arriving late in the evening. Overnight in Kota Kinabalu.

Breakfast. Check out of the hotel. At 8 a.m., meet with the guide at the hotel and depart for a day dedicated to visiting the mountainous areas of Mount Kinabalu, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 for its high concentration of biodiversity. We will climb up the eastern ridge of the mountain until we reach the typical Nabalu market, an excellent vantage point for viewing the mountain, a large, jagged granite block 4,095 metres high. We will then continue to the other side of the mountain, descending to an altitude of about 600 metres, where we will reach the Poring Hot Spring area, natural outdoor hot and cold water springs built during the Second World War by the Japanese during their occupation. The tropical nature of this area is different from that of the first side: the trees can reach a height of 60 metres and the vegetation seems to dominate the landscape! We will have a local-style lunch and then set off on a short, easy walk to reach four short suspension bridges 30 metres above the ground (Canopy Walkway) and some small waterfalls. On the way back to the city, if we are lucky, there will be a short stop to see the Rafflesia, a rare plant endemic to rainforests, parasitic, without a trunk, leaves or real roots, which can reach 1 metre in diameter and weigh up to 11 kg.

The Rafflesia is considered the official flower of the state of Sabah in Malaysia and its image is also featured on local banknotes. In the late afternoon, we will arrive at the resort to check in to our rooms. Dinner and overnight stay at the Kinabalu Pine Resort in Kundasang.

***From 01/04/2027:

Check-out from the hotel. At 08:00, meet your guide at the hotel and depart for a full-day excursion to the mountainous areas of Mount Kinabalu, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 for its exceptional concentration of biodiversity. We will travel along the eastern mountain range towards the typical Nabalu Market, an excellent viewpoint overlooking Mount Kinabalu, a spectacular granite massif reaching 4,095 metres in height. Continue to Kinabalu Park, where we will enjoy a nature walk along an easy trail through the typical vegetation of tropical lower montane forests. The visit continues with the interesting Botanical Garden, where it is possible to observe a variety of orchid species, wild ginger, mosses, ferns, carnivorous plants such as Nepenthes, medicinal plants, rattan and many other species, offering a remarkable example of the area's unique biodiversity. Local-style lunch at the Park. The journey continues to the other side of the mountain, descending to an altitude of approximately 600 metres, until reaching the Poring area, where we will search for the Rafflesia, a rare endemic plant of the rainforest. This parasitic plant has no stem, leaves or true roots and can reach up to 1 metre in diameter and weigh as much as 11 kg. The Rafflesia is considered the official flower of the Malaysian state of Sabah and its image also appears on local banknotes. In the afternoon, we will reach the resort for check-in. Dinner and overnight at Kinabalu Pine Resort in Kundasang.

Please note: we recommend leaving your bulky luggage at the hotel and taking only what you need for one night with you. We also suggest bringing light long trousers, comfortable trainers, a hat, a light poncho, insect repellent and T-shirts for the various excursions. Accommodation Kinabalu Pine Resort.

Breakfast. Stop at the typical markets of Kundasang before continuing to Kinabalu Park, where we will visit the Botanical Garden and enjoy a nature walk through the typical vegetation of tropical lower montane forests. Along the way, it will be possible to observe a variety of orchid species, wild ginger, mosses, ferns, carnivorous plants such as Nepenthes, medicinal plants, rattan and many other species, offering a remarkable example of the area's unique biodiversity. Local-style lunch at the Park, followed by a visit to the interesting Botanical Garden. At the end of the excursion, return to Kota Kinabalu, arriving in the late afternoon. Dinner at leisure.

*** From 01/04/2027:

Stop at the typical markets of Kundasang before continuing in the morning to a rural area set in a beautiful valley, with a waterfall accessible by an easy trek. We will then explore a local village to observe the rural way of life, including rice cultivation and other agricultural activities carried out by the local communities. Local-style lunch, followed by the return journey to Kota Kinabalu, arriving in the afternoon. Dinner at leisure. Accommodation Grandis hotel Kota Kinabalu.

Breakfast. Check-out of the room by 12:00. At the locally indicated time, transfer to the airport only with a driver, without assistance. End of the tour.