Authentic Sarawak

After breakfast, you’ll depart for the 220-kilometre journey to and up the Lemanak River, a transfer of approximately 3 hrs 30 mins, with plenty of stops along the way to take in the sights of Sarawak.

The first stop will be in Serian, a small Chinese town where you can buy some refreshments and visit a thriving local market that sells an abundance of fresh fish, vegetables and fruit. Other stops en route include a visit to a pepper farm to see wild orchids and pitcher plants, plus a stop at Lachau, a small Chinese village where you’ll stop for a replenishing lunch.

Continuing up to the Lemanak River, you’ll head to a jetty and embark on a short river trip to your longhouse accommodation with your guide, travelling aboard a traditional longtail boat.

Your rustic-style, longhouse homestay is situated amid the flourishing rainforest of Sarawak, the surrounding settlements inhabited by the Iban people, who maintain a traditional lifestyle. The Iban people were once notorious head-hunters, slaying their enemies and then preserving their heads to bring good fortune - nowadays, their existence is a much more peaceful one. You can observe their unique culture firsthand during your stay, enjoying a delicious communal meal before watching a traditional dance and sipping a glass of local rice wine as you mingle with the villagers.

It is tradition amongst the Iban to bring a gift when entering someone’s home; typical gifts between villages would include things like small food items, rice wine or tobacco. During your lunch stop earlier in the day, your guide will assist you in purchasing some gifts to bring with you to the homestay.


Accommodation: Iban Longhouse Homestay (or alternative hotel of equal standard).

Enjoy breakfast at the hotel before a 30-minute road journey to a jetty in Bako National Park. Here you will board a boat for the 20-30-minute journey out to sea, disembarking back on the mainland.

Bako National Park is Sarawak’s oldest national park, home to thriving rainforest, abundant wildlife, mellifluous jungle streams, elysian waterfalls, flourishing flora, secluded beaches and meandering trekking trails, offering visitors an excellent introduction to the rainforest of Borneo.

The well-maintained network of trails in the park ranges from leisurely forest strolls to more gruelling jungle treks, enabling visitors to choose their own experience within this unique tropical environment. Your private guide will be on hand throughout the trip to point out the fascinating flora and fauna you might encounter. There are 25 distinct types of vegetation within the park’s seven ecosystems: beach vegetation, cliff vegetation, Kerangas or heath forest, mangrove forest, mixed dipterocarp forest, Padang or grasslands and peat swamp forest. Some of the wildlife you might encounter includes proboscis monkey (endemic to Borneo), long-tailed macaque, silver leaf monkey, monitor lizard, bearded pig, oriental otter and more than 150 species of bird.

After discovering the natural splendour of Bako National Park, you’ll continue to Damai Beach via an approximate 45-minute scenic drive, where you’ll check into your next hotel and spend the remainder of the day at leisure in this tropical coastal paradise.


Accommodation: Cove 55 (or alternative hotel of equal standard).

After a delicious final breakfast at your hotel, you’ll be transferred to the airport in Kuching via private road vehicle, where you will begin your onward journey.