Wild Frontiers

Flight Information

There are no direct flights to Kota Kinabalu from the UK. The most common route is via Kuala Lumpar with Malaysian Airlines or via Hong Kong with Cathay Pacific which takes around 15:30hrs.

Useful Tips

• Take a sunhat the long boat trips

• Mosquito spray for the jungle trips is a must

• When you climb Mount Kinabalu the seconds night accommodation is a shared dorm, so take some ear plugs!

• You can see the Orang-utans in several national parks in Borneo, so you can avoid the crowds at Sepilok Orang-utan Sanctuary

Recommended Reading

If you want to read up on your destination we recommend a variety of guidebooks such as Bradt Travel Guide, Odyssey Guides, The Rough Guide and Footprint Guides. All these publications have good general information as well as more specific country information that will help orientate you in the areas you visit.

Good books and maps of Borneo are available at Stanfords in Covent Garden, London or online at www.stanfords.co.uk

When To Go

The climate is typically tropical with temperature ranging from a cool 22°C (72°F) in the evenings to a sultry 34°C (93°F) in the daytime.

Sarawak receives an abundance of rainfall (averaging 200-250 cm a year); the rainy season is normally during the 'landas', a local term for the
monsoon rains that come between November and February each year. Sabah is less wet than Sarawak and because it lies just below the typhoon belt, it is often known as "the land below the wind".

The monsoon period should not deter visitors to the region as it is not cold; in fact the rains during this time may be heavy but it is intermittent and they bring respite from the tropical heat. This is also the time of the year when the local tropical fruits unique to the region are in abundance.

Packing List

Below is a list of general items you might take with you on a Wild Frontiers trip to Borneo. With your booking confirmation you will receive a packing list specific to your trip, so please treat this as a general guideline only.

Luggage:
It is best to use a soft bag - rucksack/hold-all/duffel bag - so it can be transported and stored more easily.
On all our trips a small daypack is practical for keeping general items (e.g. camera, books, wallets etc.) at hand when your main pack is out of reach. It is also handy for day trips and excursions.

Clothing:
In general you should bring clothes you feel comfortable with. Therefore as a guide we suggest a packing list like this:
• 4 x Light cotton shirts or T-shirts, short sleeved and long.
• 2/3 pairs of cotton trousers. If preferred, women can wear dresses and skirts.
• 2 x Lightweight jumpers or sweatshirts
• Change of clothing for the evenings
• Sun hat or cap
• Swim suit or trunks
• Pair of recreational shoes
• Pair of adventure sandals, trainers or pumps

Equipment:
The following is useful extra equipment for your trip:
• Travel towel, travel soap and toiletries
• Torch (LED head-torch keeps your hands free)
• Pair of good quality sunglasses
• Water bottle
• Plug adapter

Personal First Aid Kit:
It is always best that you have a good medical with you while travelling. This should include:
• Any prescription medication required (please inform the tour leader at your pre-departure meeting about these)
• Antibacterial dry hand wash
• Painkillers: paracetamol & ibuprofen
• Rehydration salts (Gastrolyte)
• Malaria Tablets (if necessary)
• Travel motion-sickness tablets if required (e.g. natural ginger tablets)
• Diarrhoea remedies
• Antihistamines
• Cold/flu decongestants
• Mosquito Repellent
• Insect bite cream
• Plasters/Bandage/Steri-Strips/Blister pads
• Sunscreen (30+ factor)
• Moisturiser/after sun cream/lip balm
• Contact lenses and solution if required
• Tweezers
(A kit with most of this in is available at www.nomadtravel.co.uk)

Optional Extras:
• Ear plugs (if sharing a room / camping)
• Alarm clock
• 3-4 plastic carrier bags are very useful for dirty washing, dirty shoes and rubbish
• Binoculars
• Small packs of tissues
• Money belt or secure pouch for money and passport etc.
• Eye patches if light affects your sleep
• Sewing kit/scissors
• Writing materials
• Spare batteries/camera memory cards
• Swiss Army knife
• Trekking poles

NB: If you wear glasses, it is advisable to bring a spare pair since opticians are rare. If you wear contact lenses you may find that climatic changes and dust can create visual irritation, therefore, it is advisable to bring a pair of glasses. You might be tempted to buy a few souvenirs here and there, so leave a little room for those extra purchases!!

Hand Luggage:
Although it is very rare that luggage goes missing on flights, it has been known to happen and so it’s a good idea to carry a spare top, toothbrush, wash kit, underwear and any other essentials in your hand luggage so that you can at least freshen up while waiting for your bags to catch you up. If you wear your sturdy shoes/boots it will also reduce weight in your luggage and keep them safe.

Practical Information

Time:
Borneo is 8hrs ahead of GMT.
A useful website to check the time zone differences is www.worldtimezone.com

Food and Alcohol:
Forget potatoes " rice (nasa) and noodles (mee) rule in this region. Rice is either steamed or fried, and noodles can be made from wheat, wheat and egg, rice or mung beans, and are used in a bewildering number of dishes either fried or boiled.
Malays like their fish fried (ikan) whole and stuffed with spices, or chopped into chunks or steaks and served with a spicy (tamarind) sauce. In Malaysian Borneo in particular hinava (raw fish marinated with lime juice and herbs) is very popular

Apart from fish, chicken (ayam) is possibly the most consumed meat in the region. Beef (daging lembu) and mutton (daging kambing, which also refers to lamb as well as kid and goat) are common in Malay dishes too. Chilli of course, features heavily.
Fruit is usually the desert, served raw and presented on platters while alcohol is readily available all over.

Electricity:
Those bringing video & digital cameras that require battery chargers should be able to charge them from the mains without an adapter. The electricity supply is 220/240 volts at 50 hertz.

Money:
In Borneo the unit of currency is the Ringgit.

To check out the latest exchange rate for the places that you are visiting you can go to www.oanda.com
A few points to help you plan:
• Increasingly more shops and hotels will accept credit card payments, though a cash advance is unlikely.
• You can easily exchange Euros, US Dollars and UK Sterling cash.
• ATM machines are available in the larger towns but rarely operate around the clock.
• If using ATM machines, be sure to notify your bank before you travel.

Language & Religion:
Malay is the official language of the country with English taught as a subject. However, with the major towns and cities fast becoming economic centres, English is widely used and spoken in Sarawak. With the large Chinese settlement in the major towns and cities, a variety of Chinese dialects are used too.

The main religions in Sarawak are Islam, Christianity of a variety of denominations and Buddhism. Like the rest of Malaysia, Sarawak is blessed with a population that practices mutual tolerance and respect for the various religious beliefs, and freedom of religion is guaranteed

Cultural Sensitivity:
At Wild Frontiers we are very aware of the ethical impact tourism can have on ancient cultures. We realise that taking a group of tourists through such a region can have a negative impact on the lives of those who live there and on all our tours we therefore go to great lengths to minimise the negative and accentuate the positive…after all, there are also many good things that the tourist can bring.

To help this process we ask that our clients do not hand out pens or sweets to children. As one sign in Egypt emphatically put it, ‘Please don't make beggars out of our children!' No matter how well intentioned, in our opinion the dolling out of free gifts fosters a ‘beggar mentality' that is ultimately extremely destructive to a society. In addition we do not condone giving out money to beggars or ‘students'.

However, we also realise that we are exceptionally privileged to be travelling in areas where most of the people have far less than us and that the desire to ‘help' can be very powerful. As a result we ask that you refer to your trip dossier for information on the Wild Frontiers Foundation which supports specific projects in the areas where we travel.

Photography:
Please remember, we are guests in the countries through which we travel and we may sometimes inadvertently cause offence by taking photographs without first asking permission.

Also many countries have very strict rules about taking photos of army, police or any official personnel; restrictions apply at borders, bridges and any government building.