As one of Asia’s most renowned safari destinations, Borneo offers some incredible wildlife encounters with orangutans, proboscis monkeys, gibbons, pygmy elephants and sun bears to name just a few. Whilst Borneo isn’t known for its luxurious accommodation, the luxury comes in the form of the wildlife encounters on offer. We will always recommend the best accommodation to suit your needs, but particularly to put you in the best location for making the most of Borneo’s incredible wildlife.

So, along those lines we have outlined some of our favourite lodges below for the wildlife encounters that they offer. Any of these can be included in a fully-bespoke itinerary and our knowledgeable Destination Specialists can also guide you with their most up-to-date knowledge and feedback to ensure that you pick the right lodges for your Borneo safari.

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Situated in Danum Valley, one of Borneo’s few remaining primary rainforests and most pristine wildlife havens, Borneo Rainforest Lodge offers rustic luxury which is perfect for singles, couples and families alike. Plenty to keep you busy here with a variety of jungle trails, visits to Serpent Falls and the ancient burial site of Coffin Cliff. A highlight is also the lodge’s tree-top canopy walkway.

Definitely experiential rather than luxurious, Deramakot is perfect for those wanting a taste of getting off-the-beaten-track in Borneo. The reserve is an active project of the Sabah Forestry Department and international Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) and is an excellent example of conservation through sustainable tourism. The lodge is simple and basic but the experience of see clouded leopard, pygmy elephant, slow loris, flat headed cat and Bornean gibbon amongst others, makes it the perfect destination for wildlife enthusiasts.

Offering one of Borneo’s most immersive wildlife experiences, you will see plenty of wildlife without straying far from your villa at all, thanks to the lodge’s Hornbill Boardwalk trail from which you may even be able to spot wild orangutans or a pygmy elephant making its way through one of the two elephant passes. Classified as one of National Geographic’s Unique Lodges of the World, and Borneo’s first eco-lodge, Sukau hosted Sir David Attenborough and his BBC crew during wildlife documentary filming in Borneo – perhaps the ultimate guest for any wildlife lodge.

Sepilok is the first stop for many on their Borneo safari, and whilst there are a number of lodges to choose from, this is our favourite thanks to its proximity to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, just a short walk away. Accommodation is simple and no-frills, but location is everything and the lodge manages to offer more of a feeling of place than some of the other options in the area thanks to its natural style. Since the trees that surround the lodge and its beautiful lake are the same trees that the sanctuary’s rehabilitating orangutans travel through, guests have been lucky enough to spot these orange primates while enjoying a morning coffee on their veranda!

As with so much of the accommodation in Borneo, it’s all about location, location, location. The simple accommodation has one of the finest locations for unspoilt wildlife viewing in Borneo – the Lower Kinabatangan Floodplain – home to five distinct habitats and one of Borneo’s most diverse concentrations of wildlife with over 50 mammal species and more than 200 bird species. Situated along its own private tributary, accessible only by boat and nestled perfectly amongst the mangroves this lodge offers the opportunity for some incredible wildlife sightings right from the lodge itself.