Daily Archives: 1st February 2014

Malaysia, Travelinds

Sandakan

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01 February 2014

SandakanSandakan is a small city on the east coast of Sabah, Malaysia Borneo. It is a port city and relies heavily on the palm oil trade, as well as other exports like cocoa, tobacco and sago.

Tourists use this city as a gateway to Sabah’s natural beauty with nearby eco-tourism destinations such as the Sepilok reserve, Turtle Islands, Danum Valley and the Kinabatangan River. It does not have much to see in the city itself but offers a couple of nice restaurants and a shopping mall at Harbour Square.  There are also a few historical sites and a museum if you have some time to kill.

It is about 6 hours by bus to Semporna and 2.5 hours to Bilit (known for eco-tourism lodges along the Kinabatangan river).

Read more on Sepilok, Kinabatangan River and Semporna here.

Malaysia, Travelinds

Borneo Sandakan Backpackers

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01 February 2014

Borneo Sandakan Backpackers was a pleasant surprise. It’s a clean, friendly, comfortable backpackers in the heart of Sandakan, with an attached tour company that has some of the most efficient staff I have ever met.

A head’s up from a friend (read their blog of six months touring in South East Asia) told us to use this backpackers as our stop off point in Sandakan and also arrange our Kinabatangan river tour through them.  We followed their advice and were not disappointed, not even once.

Good points at the backpackers were the clean rooms and bathrooms, airconditioning in the private room, 24 hour desk service, delicious breakfasts (egg, toast, jam, coffee, oats) and friendly, efficient staff.  It is also in the Harbour Square location in Sandakan, which is close to the mall, the bus terminal, the minibus terminal, restaurants and the markets. The staff (especially Jonathan) are especially helpful and friendly when it comes to giving free advice on travelling in and around Sandakan.  There are maps, posters, bus schedules and tourism brochures available at the backpackers to help you plan the best trip for you.

A Bad point was the dripping shower overflow (kept us awake a little), but that was all.

TIP: Be careful about backpackers with similar names like Sandakan backpackers, Borneo backpackers etc – especially if you are booking online.  This is Borneo Sandakan Backpackers and Borneo Sandakan Tours.  It is a red and white logo as on the website.  Read TripAdvisor Reviews for more information.