Sabah - Borneo - page 215

INDEPENDENT EXPEDITIONS TO THE MALIAU
BASIN
Private tour operators or employees of Sabah Tourism will tell you it is not possible to visit the Maliau basin
without a prior tour arrangement, but we have found this is not necessarily true. With that said, you'll probably
need at least RM1000 (and a fair bit of elbow grease) to make the following plan work, so this isn't an entirely
budget proposal:
It's best to first contact the Maliau Basin Conservation Area Authority ( 089-759214; maliaubas-
[e-mail]; 2nd fl, UMNO Building, Jln Dunlop) in Tawau. You may need to show up to the office in person,
as this is not a tourism body accustomed to dealing with visitors. You can also try driving to the park entrance
from Tawau (2½ hours) or KK (at least five hours); a 2WD Proton can make the trip with cautious driving, while
a motorbike would be dodgy but doable.
To get into the park you need to pay an administration fee (RM60), a vehicle entry fee (RM5 per vehicle), and
if you stay overnight, a conservation fee (RM50). If you plan to hike (and what else are you going to do?) you
must hire a guide, which costs RM200 per day. The different camps in the basin cost RM180 to RM205 per per-
son per night for a room; some offer dorm beds for RM70, and you can camp in your own tent for RM30. Meals
can be taken in the guesthouses for RM40/50/60 per person for breakfast/lunch/dinner. You can also arrange
meals while trekking; this requires a porter and costs RM70/100/130 for breakfast/lunch/dinner.
We have talked with travellers who were able to arrange all of the above at the park entrance without even stop-
ping by the Tawau office. Our sense is this scenario will not be possible if a flood of travellers starts pounding on
the basin's gates, so you may still want to check with the Tawau office before coming all the way out here. Ideally,
if you're not buying the package tour, we advise prearranging your tour with the office in Tawau.
Sleeping
Accommodation in the Maliau is in the form of simple camps, which range from basic
bunkhouses to wood-frame two-storey huts with private bedrooms. None of the camps are
luxurious, but after a day on the trail fighting leeches, they'll seem like paradise.
There are two ways to get here. Borneo Nature Tours ( 088-267637;
www.borneonaturetours.com ; Lot 10, ground fl, Block D, Kompleks Sadong Jaya) and af-
filiated agents offer a five-day, four-night all-inclusive tour of the Maliau for RM5220 per
person for two to three people (this can go as low as RM4360 per person for a group of 10
to 15). The package is purposefully cost prohibitive to eliminate those who aren't the most
die-hard nature fans.
The other way is via your own steam and initiative. This method is not anywhere as
easy as booking a tour, and it's not dirt cheap either, but it's a bit more affordable.