Malaysia - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 501

Sutera Sanctuary Lodges have a monopoly on it. At the
park headquarters there are a couple of restaurants (daily
6am-10pm, Sat until 11pm) that serve both buffet and
à la carte meals, and there's also a (pricey) provisions shop
beside reception.
D'Villa Rina Ria Lodge T 088 889282, W dvillalodge
.com. Just 500m outside the park headquarters, you'll find
cosy-bordering-on-cramped dorms and more spacious
doubles at this rather wallet-friendly lodge, presided over
by super-helpful staff. The mo untain views fr om the d ining
room are just splendid. Dorm RM30 , double RM120
Laban Rata Resthouse Laban Rata T 088 308916,
W suteraharbour.com. The place where most hikers will stay
at the halfway-up-the-mountain point, this rather ordinary
lodge offers heated dorms, hot showers and simple twin
rooms. Prices include all meals and the cafeteria is the only
place to eat on the mountain. The Gunting Lagadan, Panar
Laban and Waras huts around the main lodge have
somewhat cheaper (RM 415) un heated d orms (a nd it gets
very cold at night). Dorm RM485 , double RM920
Mountain Resthouse T 088 771109. A budget option
200m from the park entrance, this hostel's four-bed dorms
feel a lot less institutionalized than the pack-'em-in
20-bedders at the park headqua rters b ut can be damp and
cold. Wi-fi is intermittent. Dorm RM35

Pendant Hut Laban Rata T 088 268126, W mountain
torq.com. The one non- Sutera option at Laban Rata
belongs to Mountain Torq and consists of unheated
(though you do get warm sleeping bags) but tidy dorms
with superb views. Though the Pendant Hut accepts
non- via ferrata guests, prices do include the via ferrata
experience; meals are taken a t the Laban Rata Resthouse
cafeteria below. From RM830 for two days and one night
Sutera Sanctuary Lodge Park Headquarters T 088
308914, W suteraharbour.com. If you want to stay at the
park headquarters at the base of the mountain, this is the
only option, a veritable catch-all consisting of two virtually
identical 20-bed hostels - Rock and Grace and Hill Lodge
which have semi-detached cabins; hotel rooms at the
Liwagu Suites ; semi-detached two-bedroom units at Peak
Lodge ; and two-storey , two-be droom units at the p riciest
Nepenthes Villa . Dorm RM192 , double from RM580

6

Poring Hot Springs
he sulphurous waters of Poring Hot
Springs (some call them “Boring Hot
Springs”) are situated on the park's
southeastern border. It's a place where
ailing bones will be glad of a rejuvenating
soak, but if you're expecting a beautiful

CLIMBING MOUNT KINABALU
There are various tour operators in KK who can organize trips to the summit, but it's
possible to make your own way there and sort out guides and accommodation yourself.
Accommodation at Laban Rata, the overnight stop halfway up the mountain, is limited
and fills up fast, so you need to organize it several weeks in advance in peak season.
In KK, visit the Sutera Sanctuary Lodges o ce (Lot G15, Ground Floor, Wisma Sabah;
T 088 308914, W suteraharbour.com) to book a bed on the mountain for the night of the
climb. If going with Mountain Torq (see box, p.503), you'll be staying at their own Pendant
Hut (see below).
Buses stop about 50m from the park reception o ce (daily 7am-8pm), which is the check-in
point for accommodation and obtaining guides. On arrival you'll need to pay the trail fee
(RM10), get a climbing permit (RM100/person), mandatory insurance (RM14) and pay for an
obligatory guide (RM42.50 per person for up to three people, RM50 per person for up to six).
It's usually easy to join with others to share the guide fee at reception. The guides do not try to
keep everyone walking at the same pace; they walk behind the slowest member, so it's fine if
you strike out on your own, as long as you stay on the trail. To lighten your load, you can hire a
porter (R40 one-way for no more than 10kg). The above guide and porter fees apply to the
Timpohon route; if you want to take the longer Mesilau route, or go up one and come down
the other, fees go up accordingly.
Aim to be at the park reception by 9am to make it up to the overnight resthouse before
nightfall; if going with Mountain Torq, 8am is better, as you'll need to be up at Pendant Hut by
3pm for the briefing; also, by 9am, the headquarters become crowded with hikers.
Transport from the park headquarters to either the Timpohon Gate or the Mesilau Gate
costs R35/R40 return; car sharing is cost-effective. Most hikers take the main, shorter Timpohon
Trail (6km). The Mesilau Trail (8km), though longer, is partly downhill and you see a greater
variety of flora along the way, such as pitcher plants. The Mesilau Trail joins the main trail at
around the 4km marker.