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    Danum Valley Conservation Area
    Rob and Stephanie Levy / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 2.0

    Malaysia

    Danum Valley Conservation Area

    Point of Interest

    Danum Valley in eastern Sabah protects around 438 square kilometres of largely undisturbed lowland rainforest with towering dipterocarps.

    by Felix Gillen

    1. Home
    3. Destinations
    5. Malaysia
    7. Sabah
    9. Danum Valley Conservation Area
    Danum Valley in eastern Sabah protects around 438 square kilometres of largely undisturbed lowland rainforest with towering dipterocarps. On guided walks and night excursions you may see orangutans, gibbons, hornbills and, with luck, Bornean pygmy elephants.Danum Valley is reached via Lahad Datu on Sabah's east coast. Before any planning, check the UK FCDO travel advice, which covers eastern Sabah specifically.In 2019 Menara was discovered here, a yellow meranti of almost 98 metres that is considered the tallest known tropical tree in the world.

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    Discover the most important sights and attractions

    Danum Valley (Lembah Danum)

    1Danum Valley (Lembah Danum)

    Approximately 438 square kilometers of largely untouched lowland rainforest, protected since 1980. On guided hikes and night excursions, you could be lucky to see orangutans, gibbons, hornbills, and Borneo pygmy elephants; clouded leopards, sun bears, and over 270 bird species also live here. Accommodations in the valley are limited, book early.
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    Danum Valley Field Centre

    2Danum Valley Field Centre

    Research station of the Yayasan Sabah Foundation, where scientists and students work. The station also cultivates seedlings of native Dipterocarps in a nursery for reforestation.
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    Essen & Trinken

    1

    Danum Valley Field Centre Restaurant

    Research station canteen with simple Malaysian dishes at set meal times. In the valley, you'll eat where you stay; there are no independent restaurants.
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    Rainforest Research

    Danum Valley was designated a conservation area in 1980 and is managed by the Yayasan Sabah Foundation for nature conservation, research, environmental education, and the restoration of damaged forests. At the Danum Valley Field Centre, researchers from all over the world work, and the station also grows seedlings of native Dipterocarpaceae. Economic forests and plantations surround the conservation area; the contrast shows how valuable this forest is.

    Getting to Danum Valley

    Getting thereThe starting point is Lahad Datu, which has a small airport with flights to Kota Kinabalu. From there, your lodge's transfer takes around two hours into the valley, mostly on logging roads. Transfers and tours are organised by the lodges. Bring long clothing, rain gear and leech socks, as the trails are often wet.Travel adviceLahad Datu is part of the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZone) on Sabah's east coast. Before any planning, check the UK FCDO travel advice, which covers eastern Sabah specifically and also includes health information.

    Accommodations in Danum Valley Conservation Area

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    Nearby

    Kinabatangan

    Kinabatangan

    At around 560 kilometres, the Kinabatangan is Sabah's longest river and Malaysia's second longest. On its lower reaches around the village of Sukau in eastern Sabah, you can see proboscis monkeys, orangutans, hornbills and, with luck, Borneo elephants from the boat.The lower Kinabatangan lies in eastern Sabah. Before any planning, check the UK FCDO travel advice, which covers eastern Sabah specifically.Wildlife watching mainly happens on boat trips in the early morning and late afternoon, and you stay in lodges on the riverbank.
    Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre

    Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre

    At the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre near Sandakan on the east coast of Sabah in northern Borneo, orphaned orangutans have been prepared for a life in the rainforest since 1964. During feeding times you can watch the great apes from just a few metres away, in a protected forest rather than a zoo.Sepilok lies near Sandakan on Sabah's east coast. Before any planning, check the UK FCDO travel advice, which covers eastern Sabah specifically.Right next door is the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre for rescued sun bears, and a few minutes away the Rainforest Discovery Centre with its canopy walkway.
    Sandakan

    Sandakan

    This port city on Sabah's east coast was the capital of British North Borneo until 1946. Today it is mainly a base for Sepilok, the Kinabatangan and the Turtle Islands.Sandakan lies on Sabah's east coast. Before any planning, check the UK FCDO travel advice, which covers eastern Sabah specifically.In town, the Agnes Keith House and Sandakan Memorial Park recall the colonial era and the Second World War, and the harbour is the place for fresh fish and seafood.
    Semporna Islands

    Semporna Islands

    The Semporna Archipelago in south-eastern Sabah is one of Malaysia's best-known dive areas. Off the small town of Semporna lie dozens of islands with coral reefs, stilt villages of the Bajau Laut and the dive site of Sipadan.Semporna and its offshore islands lie in eastern Sabah. Before any planning, check the UK FCDO travel advice, which covers eastern Sabah and its islands specifically.Sabah Parks issues only a limited number of permits for Sipadan each day. On the volcanic island of Bohey Dulang, a steep path leads to a viewpoint over the lagoon.
    Kinabalu National Park

    Kinabalu National Park

    Kinabalu National Park in Sabah in northern Borneo protects the 4,095-meter-high Mount Kinabalu, the highest mountain in Malaysia. You come for the two-day summit climb to the sunrise or for the montane forests, which have been protected by UNESCO since 2000 as Malaysia's first World Heritage Site.On the way up, the vegetation changes from rainforest through cloud forest with pitcher plants and orchids to the bare granite dome. Even without the summit, the forest trails at the headquarters, the hot springs of Poring and the cool mountain village of Kundasang are worth it.

    Sources & method

    • Photos: Wikimedia Commons, Google Maps. Each photo carries its credit.
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