L’isola delle tartarughe e il fiume Kinabatangan – Avvicinatevi alla fauna selvatica nel Sabah, Borneo
Visitare Turtle Island (nota anche come Isola di Selingan) e il fiume Kinabatangan sono scelte popolari durante una vacanza a Sabah, nel Borneo. Con questo tour di 3 giorni a Turtle Island e crociera sul fiume Kinabatangan, combiniamo queste due località uniche in un unico viaggio facile da prenotare. Durante questo viaggio, goditi un pernottamento sull’isola di Selingan, seguito da una notte in un lodge lungo il fiume Kinabatangan (Tanini Kinabatangan, precedentemente Nature Lodge Kinabatangan).
L’isola di Selingan si trova nel Parco Marino di Turtle Island, a 40 km a nord di Sandakan, nel Mare di Sulu. Il parco marino è un santuario sicuro per le rare tartarughe verdi e le tartarughe embricate. Selingan è l’isola più grande tra le altre tre isole del Turtle Island Park, Sabah, Borneo. Sull’isola di Selingan, durante il soggiorno è possibile osservare gli sbarchi e le nidificazioni delle tartarughe (che in genere avviene ogni notte). Anche l’incubatoio delle tartarughe rilascerà i piccoli al tramonto, nell’ambito del programma di conservazione delle tartarughe in corso.
Esplorate le meraviglie del Sabah – 3D2N Turtle Island & Kinabatangan River Trip, Sabah, Malaysia
Dopo aver visitato l’Isola delle Tartarughe, il 2° giorno visiterai una sessione mattutina di alimentazione presso il Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre prima di essere trasferito al fiume Kinabatangan per partecipare alle crociere fluviali alla ricerca della fantastica fauna selvatica del Sabah. Durante la visita al fiume Kinabatangan, parteciperai a diverse attività di osservazione della fauna selvatica: due crociere sul fiume e un trekking notturno. L’ultimo giorno del viaggio, visiterete anche il Rainforest Discovery Centre prima di essere trasferiti a Sandakan.
Se desiderate maggiori opportunità di incontro con la fauna selvatica e avete un giorno libero in più, scegliete il nostro viaggio 4D3N Turtle Island & Kinabatangan River, con la possibilità di effettuare altre crociere fluviali lungo il fiume Kinabatangan.
L’uomo della foresta | Orangutan | Borneo Dream
Itinerario di viaggio – Viaggio di 3 giorni sull’Isola delle Tartarughe e sul fiume Kinabatangan, Sabah, Malesia
Giorno 1 (Pasti: L & D)
~08:00hrs – 09:15hrs: sarete prelevati dal vostro hotel nelle aree di Sandakan o Sepilok o all’aeroporto di Sandakan. Se stai volando verso l’aeroporto di Sandakan per partecipare al tour, devi arrivare all’SDK entro le 08:00. Sarete trasferiti in minibus/autobus al Sandakan Yacht Club per il viaggio in barca verso il Selingan Turtle Island Park. 10:00: la barca parte per Turtle Island.
Il viaggio verso Turtle Island durerà circa 45 minuti (a seconda dello stato del mare). All’arrivo, vi registrerete presso il quartier generale dei parchi e farete il check-in nel vostro chalet.
Ore 12:00: Pranzo presso la caffetteria dell’Isola delle Tartarughe. Il resto del pomeriggio è libero per esplorare l’isola, rilassarsi sulla spiaggia o fare snorkeling in mare (l’attrezzatura per lo snorkeling può essere noleggiata a Turtle Island).
Prima serata: Cena alla caffetteria. Dopo cena, i ranger vi chiameranno per osservare le tartarughe che depongono le uova. Osservate il Ranger che trasferisce le uova all’incubatoio e godetevi l’opportunità di osservare il rilascio delle tartarughine in mare aperto. Il ranger vi chiamerà anche quando ci sarà l’opportunità di assistere alla nidificazione (deposizione delle uova) di una tartaruga.
Pernottamento a Turtle Island in camera doppia condivisa (con bagno privato con doccia e aria condizionata). Cliccare qui per vedere le foto del Turtle Island Resort e degli alloggi.
Giorno 2 (Pasti: B, L e D)
Ore 07:00: Partenza da Turtle Island con la barca e trasferimento a Sandakan. Proseguirai poi verso il Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre.
Ore 10:00: Partecipa alla sessione mattutina di alimentazione presso il Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. Il tempo di alimentazione degli oranghi è di 1000 ore. La riabilitazione degli oranghi è l’obiettivo principale di Sepilok.
11:30-12:00: Dopo la sessione di alimentazione a Sepilok, andrete a pranzare in un ristorante locale nella zona di Sepilok.
13:00: Dopo pranzo, sarai trasferito a Tanini Kinabatangan, che si trova nel Santuario del Fiume Kinabatangan Inferiore. Il viaggio dura circa 2 ore, passando per la città di Kota Kinabatangan e le piantagioni di palma da olio. Una volta arrivato a Kampung Bilit, ti trasferirai al Kinabatangan lodge, che si trova a pochi minuti di barca attraverso il fiume Kinabatangan. All’arrivo verrà servito un drink di benvenuto.
Ore 15:00: All’arrivo al Lodge, avrete un briefing di benvenuto che comprende un orientamento del Lodge e dell’area circostante. Effettua il check-in nella tua camera Bangkatan al Tanini Kinabatangan.
Ore 16:00: Partecipate alla crociera fluviale pomeridiana lungo il fiume Kinabatangan alla ricerca della fauna e dell’avifauna lungo le rive del fiume.
18:00: Torna al Lodge per rinfrescarti e poi goditi la cena presso il ristorante del Lodge nella giungla secondaria di Kampung Bilit.
In seguito, fate una passeggiata notturna guidata dietro il lodge per godervi la natura selvaggia e osservare gli uccelli che dormono e le creature notturne della giungla.
Pernottamento al Tanini Kinabatangan in una camera Bangkatan (con letto doppio o matrimoniale, aria condizionata e bagno con doccia). Clicca qui per vedere le foto della sistemazione al Tanini Kinabatangan.
Giorno 3 (Pasti: B)
Ore 06:00: Partecipate a una crociera sul fiume Kinabatangan di prima mattina per vedere altri uccelli e animali selvatici.
Ore 07:00: Ritorno al lodge di Kinabatangan per la colazione. Dopo la colazione, procederete al check-out del vostro Chalet.
08:30: Inizio del trasferimento in minibus/pullman verso la zona di Sepilok.
~Dalle 10:30 alle 11:00: Arrivo al Rainforest Discovery Centre. Imbarcati lungo la Rainforest Skywalk, la passeggiata a baldacchino più lunga del Sabah, e goditi le viste panoramiche sulla volta della foresta pluviale. Si spera di vedere alcuni degli uccelli esotici che si trovano qui e forse di avvistare un Orangutan. Si partecipa a una passeggiata guidata lungo uno dei sentieri segnalati per visitare il “Vecchio Sepilok”, l’albero più alto del centro. È come incontrare un gigante dell’antico passato della foresta pluviale. Se il tempo lo permette, visiterete anche il giardino botanico e vedrete alcuni dei fiori endemici del Borneo.
12.30 – 13.00: Proseguimento del viaggio di ritorno a Sandakan e trasferimento in hotel o all’aeroporto di Sandakan (volo consigliato AK6497 ETD 14.50 o più tardi). Ci auguriamo che il vostro viaggio al Kinabatangan Riverside Lodge sia stato piacevole.
Prerequisiti del viaggio – Viaggio 3D2N Turtle Island e fiume Kinabatangan, Sabah, Malaysia
Questo viaggio di 3 giorni è aperto a tutti.
Inclusioni di viaggio – Gita di 3 giorni sull’Isola delle Tartarughe e sul fiume Kinabatangan
- Trasferimenti stradali di andata e ritorno come indicato e trasferimento in barca di andata e ritorno a Turtle Island.
- Pasti (2 colazioni, 2 pranzi e 2 cene).
- Visite (e biglietti d’ingresso) a Turtle Island, al Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre e al Rainforest Discovery Centre.
- Sul fiume Kinabatangan: 2 crociere sul fiume (1 al mattino e 1 nel tardo pomeriggio), 1 passeggiata notturna guidata nella natura. Le crociere sul fiume Kinabatangan incluse in questo viaggio si spingono fino a ~7 km a monte fino a Pontian Point e fino a ~10 km a valle fino a Tenegang Besar Point.
- Soggiorno di 1 notte a Turtle Island in camera doppia con bagno annesso.
- Soggiorno di 1 notte in una camera Bangkatan (letti doppi/matrimoniali o tripli, bagno con doccia e WC, aria condizionata) presso il Tanini Kinabatangan.
- Accompagnati per tutta la durata del viaggio da una guida naturalistica di lingua inglese, esperta, appassionata e autorizzata.
- Presso il ristorante del Kinabatangan Nature Lodge sono disponibili caffè/tè e acqua fresca a volontà.
- Il Turtle Island Resort fornisce acqua potabile gratuita in quantità limitata (1 bottiglia piccola a persona a pranzo e a cena).
- Tassa di vendita e di servizio dello 0% sul prezzo del tour, applicabile dal 6 maggio 2019.
Esclusioni del viaggio Viaggio 3D2N sull’isola delle tartarughe e sul fiume Kinabatangan
Tassa per la conservazione di macchine fotografiche/video a Turtle Island (RM10 per articolo), al Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre (RM10 per articolo) e al Rainforest Discovery Centre (RM10 per articolo), acqua in bottiglia extra a Turtle Island, bibite o bevande alcoliche. Ti consigliamo di portare con te una bottiglia grande di acqua potabile a persona, poiché il Turtle Island Resort fornisce acqua potabile gratuita in quantità limitata. Supplemento singola se prenoti questo viaggio da solo (per i single che condividono la stanza).
La nuova tassa sul turismo – La tassa sul turismo è attualmente fissata a RM 10 per camera a notte e sarà addebitata ai turisti non malesi o stranieri.
Lista dei bagagli raccomandata per il viaggio – Isola delle tartarughe e fiume Kinabatangan
Per trarre il massimo da questo viaggio, ti preghiamo di portare con te un impermeabile, un cappellino, un repellente per insetti, una crema solare, un costume da bagno per Turtle Island, un asciugamano, scarpe comode per camminare, una maglietta di cotone comoda, un top a maniche lunghe, pantaloni lunghi o corti, un binocolo, una torcia, una macchina fotografica e farmaci personali (se necessari). Ti preghiamo di portare con te il passaporto: i tuoi passaporti saranno controllati a Turtle Island e al Kinabatangan Lodge.
Note – Viaggio 3D2N sull’isola delle tartarughe e sul fiume Kinabatangan, Sabah, Malesia
Il Turtle Island Park si trova a circa 40 km dalla città di Sandakan. Il viaggio in barca dal molo all’isola dura 45 minuti – 1 ora. Se si soffre di mal di mare, si consiglia di assumere compresse contro il mal di mare. Per i trasferimenti in barca da/per il Turtle Island Resort, il Dipartimento della Marina di Sandakan deciderà quotidianamente, in base agli aggiornamenti meteo/marini, se i trasferimenti in barca sono consentiti. In caso di mare mosso, i genitori statali potrebbero ritenere la traversata in barca verso Turtle Island non adatta ai bambini. Le persone con problemi alla schiena o in gravidanza potrebbero trovare inadeguato il trasferimento in barca a Turtle Island in caso di mare mosso.
Il Sabah Parks (che gestisce le attività di conservazione dell’Isola delle Tartarughe) approva le seguenti pratiche di conservazione e sicurezza all’Isola delle Tartarughe. In questo modo si riduce al minimo l’impatto negativo sulle tartarughe che vengono a deporre le uova sull’isola.
- Il Sabah Parks consente di fotografare la tartaruga solo con una macchina fotografica dotata di flash (non è consentito l’uso di video o videocamere digitali).
- I visitatori non possono girare per l’isola in modo indipendente dalle 18:00 alle 6:00 del mattino.
- Ai visitatori dell’Isola delle Tartarughe è consentito un solo (1) avvistamento di tartarughe per notte.
Al Turtle Island Resort, la condivisione in tripla è consentita solo ai bambini di età inferiore ai 5 anni con i genitori. Un terzo adulto deve avere la propria camera con un supplemento per la singola. Tutti i tour sono soggetti alle condizioni meteorologiche.










LeapFrog –
I’d really recommend Borneo Dream to take the hassle out of your holiday in Borneo. We booked our flights directly, then booked diving, nature reserve, Turtle Island, and a few other things too. With all these different elements, we were worried things might not work out. But as they’re based in Borneo, they clearly knew how to put the whole package together and made us feel assured things would go well – and it did !
Nigel Martin –
we had a tight schedule to fit in Turtle Island, Orangutan Sanctuary and Kinabatangan River trip in 3 days. Borneo dreams were absolutely excellent in swift response to our enquiries and everything worked like clockwork in Borneo. The staff all went the extra mile for us, carefully pointing out all wildlife, explaining conservation methods, coping with no power when camping out to the 5.30 am gong for morning cruise. We cannot thank them enough for all of their efforts. Use this company without hesitation.
Lynne & Brian Brough –
We had an amazing trip with your company. Everything ran very punctual. We saw a turtle laying her eggs and even better saw the little ones released into the sea. At Sepilok watching the orangutan in the nursery was so amusing. Down at the feeding station a large male came down and being so close was something we won’t forget. On the river cruise we saw crocodiles, monkeys, birds and a lizard. The accommodation and food were better than we expected.Thanks again for so many memories. We will definitely be recommending you to people at home.
Annette Murphy –
We would like to say that we enjoyed the 3 day 2 night Turtle Island and Kinabatangan river trip. It was the highlight of our holiday in Asia. All our guides were truly amazing and gave us good amount of time to appreciate he wildlife in their natural habitat. We would definitely book with Borneo Dream again as the whole experience from planning was easy.
Jessica Tagg –
The trip was amazing. We had a fantastic time and we have been recommending it to all of our friends and family. We had two guides during our trip. Both of them were extremely knowledgeable and friendly. They made our trip very enjoyable. We were lucky enough to be the only two people on the three-day trip, which meant we had a lot of attention from the guides and were able to tailor the trip to exactly how we wanted it. It was perfect!
Vanessa Ambler –
The Turtle Island trip was amazing – we loved every second. The staff were very attentive and the experience was unforgettable. 30 turtles came up to lay on the night we were there, laying 1760 eggs!
The Kinabatangan river trip was also excellent although we were disappointed with the accommodation. It was much more run down than we had expected (mainly the bathroom) and the staff were not warm or welcoming as we had experienced elsewhere.
Thank goodness for Sam our guide from Borneo Dreams who was fantastic. It would not have been nice staying there without him. Seriously suggest you look at getting the lodge to refurbish their accommodation and train their staff to smile. It would make a massive difference.
We would do the Turtle Island again but wouldn’t stay at the lodge
Bailey050276 Barnstaple, United Kingdom (TripAdvisor) –
This is the goto company for Borneo trips! – These guys are so professional and our excursion was amazing and toned to perfection. Watched a green turtle lay eggs, hatchlings released into the sea then our jungle trip was out of this world. So many animals in their natural habitat that it blew our minds. If you’re looking for a company who really know how to organise trips and excursions you won’t go wrong using them.
Sid T Mumbai (TripAdvisor) –
Excellent Tour Agency That Cares for the Customer’s Experience – During our recent trip to Sabah, we used Borneo Dream to help us arrange a 3D2N tour of Turtle Island and Kinabatangan river. We also did a 3-dive tour within Kota Kinabalu. We were happy with both experiences, with the diving trip to Sapi island well organized, with good equipment (that actually fits and works!), and a strong attention to safety. Our divemaster Sabari was exactly what we wanted, he was attentive to our specific needs and helped us improve during the course of the day.
Overall, we were glad we booked using them and would recommend them if you are looking to dive around Kota Kinabalu or are planning a tour in Sabah.
Bengaluru, India (TripAdvisor) –
Extremely professional and responsive – We booked the 3D2N Turtle Island Kinabatangan river tour with Borneo Dreams, and then decided to also go with them for a day of scuba diving in TARP because of the ease of the booking process. We were not disappointed, and a couple of comments are below:
Scuba at TARP: Our last dive was over a year ago, at the Nilaveli Dive Center in Trincomalee – it left a bad taste in the mouth as we are inexperienced divers and were assigned an aggressive, constantly critical and unpleasant dive master who left us wondering whether we should give up diving or if there was any possibility of us improving our technique. Borneo Dreams were the first dive operators we opted for after that experience, and they went a long way in creating a safe, constructive environment. First – they proactively asked for dive history, equipment sizes etc. in advance and arranged for a 15 minute refresher before we went into the water. The dive master Sabri was the epitome of patience, handled a difficult situation with a diver very well and gave us several helpful tips that enabled us to improve our technique. We were very happy that we decided to add the diving component to our trip at last minute.
Turtle Island Tour: We landed in the Sandakan airport and were picked up for the Turtle Island tour. The car is comfortable and our guide Adrian was friendly and knowledgeable. He accompanied us to the island – not something we expected, but it seems to be standard practice with tour groups since the facility itself is government run. The experience was magical and I would recommend it whole heartedly, particularly for children. We saw three turtles over the course of our day there. The snorkelling was enjoyable and the island itself is idyllic. The accommodation is basic, which we were prepared for. They also have a vegetarian option at all meals – it isn’t fine dining but it gets you by. We did look into the option of booking directly with the Turtle Island folks instead of through BD – however, it wasn’t easy and in retrospect we were happy to have opted for the tour. It is all in all good value for money as permits to Turtle Island are restricted and stay seems expensive.
Sepilok: On the next day morning, we came back to Sandakan and were taken to the Sepilok orangutan sanctuary by another guide. Sepilok is a short, fun trip and we enjoyed going there. We did not think a guide was required or a significant value add on this section.
Kinabatangan Cruise: After Sepilok, we headed to the Kinabatangan Nature Lodge for the river cruises and a night stay. BD houses you in the Agamid Chalets which are air conditioned and seemed to be the nicest accommodation in the Nature Lodge. We got one of the two river facing rooms and were quite happy with it. We saw several primates on the river cruise, including two orangutans in the wild.
On the next day, we asked to be dropped off at he Sukau junction as we were heading to the Danum Valley Field Center and needed to catch a bus to Lahad Datu. They were able to arrange it for us and the switch to the bus was seamless. The bus was comfortable as well.
We would certainly book with Borneo Dreams again on our next trip to Sabah, particularly for itineraries such as the Turtle Island tour which provide a bang for a buck.
Hayes –
Borneo Dreams arranged a 3D2N Turtle Island & Kinabatangan River Trip for our family. We have a 10 year old boy and 6 1/2 year old girl. We all enjoyed this part of our trip to Malaysia and Borneo very much!
The accommodation on Turtle Island is basic but we did not feel that we needed anything more luxurious as we were there for the snorkelling and turtles. We were fortunate to see a turtle lay eggs, see the ranger put the eggs in the hatchery and watch the ranger release 15 turtles into the sea (we had to help a few which were insistent in going the wrong way). This was all done with the welfare of the turtle at the forefront. Each night, tourists are only allowed to view one turtle laying her eggs and help one set of turtles head back out to sea so as not to disturb the natural process. The number of people staying on the island is also kept quite small. This is certainly a positive aspect of the experience. The snorkelling around Turtle Island is also good and the coral is quite close to the surface of the water.
We enjoyed viewing the orangutans at Sepilok Sanctuary. The orangutans are free to move in and out of the Sanctuary as there are no fences. Orphaned orangutans are rehabilitated so that they can return to a life of living in the wild.
All transfers between the locations/activities worked well and we were fully informed of what was happening. I suggest that you take plenty of water for the two hour coach/mini bus ride from Sandakan to Kinabatangan. On the way there our bus broke down but a replacement was swiftly organised and we were soon on our way again.
The lodge at Kinabatangan was basic but comfortable and in a fantastic setting. On the river cruises we saw lots of monkeys (including proboscis monkeys), kingfishers, hornbills, egrets, and a crocodile. It is definitely worth doing the early morning cruise as well. The guide was fantastic at spotting the animals and birdlife for us. The night walk was also a fantastic experience of the children and we saw a number of interesting insects. We probably would have seen more but our family and the other family that we were with were probably a little too noisy to see more! The lodge has wellington boots that you can borrow – you’ll need them as it is muddy! There are currently no small children’s sizes though…
We also enjoyed visiting Labuk Bay Sanctuary to see the proboscis monkeys. They are fascinating animals to watch. The Rainforest Discovery Centre was also very much worth the visit!
Finally, the food provided throughout the tour was very good. All guides and staff were very helpful, friendly and professional. We will definitely book trips through Borneo Dreams in the future.
R Myers –
My husband and I spent Christmas Eve on Turtle Island and Christmas Day at Kingabatangan River and had a wonderful time. Our guide, Jam, was incredibly knowledgeable and could answer all our questions about the huge array of wildlife we saw during the three days.
At turtle island we saw two turtles laying their eggs and enjoyed releasing the hatchlings afterwards. As it was raining, there wasn’t much to do on the island for most of the day, but we enjoyed snorkelling all the same.
The river trip definitely exceeded expectations. We saw loads of monkeys and birds, crocodiles, and even wild elephants and orang utans.
Again, there’s not much to do at the lodge but it’s a lovely place to relax and the atmosphere was really nice.
At both places the accommodation was basic but perfectly adequate and the food was good.
The boat crossing to the island was not for the faint hearted so bring travel sickness tablets if you need them!
My husband loved the visit to the cave but if you don’t like cockroaches and bat poo I’d advise you stay away…
We’ll definitely be recommending this trip to friends.
Wendy Mabilat –
Turtle island certainly lived up to very high expectations! We loved every minute of our trip with Borneo Dream. We had an excellent guide, Rudy, who was very knowledgeable on the subject of turtles and in fact nature in general and he looked after us well. It was wonderful to have most of the day to acquaint ourselves with the island and relax. Once night arrived, there was a buzz of excitement as we all scrambled on the uneven sand in search of the chosen turtle – all this in semi-gloom! Mother turtle was already laying her eggs when we arrived and they were carefully taken away eventually to the hatchery. We also helped around 30 scampering baby turtles towards the sea.
The river trips were awesome and we saw Pygmy elephants, proboscis monkeys, hornbills, sea eagles and many other specimens!
Jo Melville –
This was a great trip which was well organised by Borneo Dream and Nasalis Larvatus. My guide, Dino, was very nice, helpful and full of knowledge. We saw loads of animals and were also lucky to see Orang Utans in the wild!
Matt Vincent, April 2016 –
Hi,
We returned from our trip today and I wanted to pass on our thanks!
The trip was absolutely fantastic and certainly an experience that will live with us all forever!
It was superbly organised and our guide Dino was both knowledgeable and passionate about the wildlife.
You are all very lucky to live in a country with such beautiful and marvellous wonders and this trip really paid tribute to it!
Many thanks again!
Erica Hu –
Borneo Dream provide a professional guide , we get lots of useful information from him. It’s really helpful for foreign tourist, so we get a perfect trip from Borneo Dream.