Getting Around

Malaysia Airlines' domestic network was completely revamped in 2006, and most domestic flights have been transferred to Air Asia or its rural-air subsidiary Fly Asian Xpress (PAX) - fares are expected to rise considerably, and it remains to be seen which legs will Survive in the long term.

Sabah has a good road system and most major roads are sealed, including the high­way Irom KK to Sandakan and "I'awau. If you're planning to rent a car, it's a good idea to ask tourist information centres which ruads are paved, depending on your destination. Probably the worst stretch is between Ranau and Keningau, where mini­vans sometimes have to turn back because the p_erilous cliffside gravel road is impass­able aller heavy rain.

Subsidence and washouts frequently put stretches of highway under repair and can slow down a trip considerably - the route between Ranau and Sandakan can be unre­liable in wet weather. The route from Tawau to Keningau is unsealed for most of the way, though it's possible to get through on 4WD Land Cruisers, usually crammed with passengers. Express buses, inibuses and minivans run between KK and most major centres, including Mt Kinabalu. The big state-of­ the-art express buses are all air-conditioned; the smaller, often older, minibuses may or may not be.

Minivans are small, eight­ seater vans (usually white), often stuffed with as many passengers and as much of their gear as the laws of physics permit. Express buses are relatively punctual and usually cost only a few ringgit more than minivans. Minivans only leave when full, but once under way they are quick and effi­cient. They don't have air-conditioning and can get crowded; on the other hand, they generally run more frequently than buses, and if you want to travel like the locals, this is the way to do it.

Minivans have rough schedules, but don't commit yourself to any vehicle until you see how many people are on board. If you get to the bus stand and there isn't a minivan with even one passenger going Your way, hang back for a few minutes; chances are there's one that's nearly full doing a lap of the town trying to fill the last couple of seats.

There are frequent departures of buses and minivans from most centres until around noon; afternoon departures can be scarce. See individual entries for more information.

Sabah's only railway runs between KK and Tenom via Papar and Beaufort

Tours and Travels

Independent travel in Sabah is limited compared to neighbouring Sarawak, and most travellers will have to rely on tour outfits at some point, though Sabah does have a huge number of tour operators, mostly based in Kota Kinabalu. A good operator can make life easier if you’re short on time, and some places are simply too expensive or too much hassle to visit independently.

If you run into problems with a tour agency, take your complaint to the Sabah Tourism Board (088 212121; www.sabahtourism.com; 51 Jln Gaya, Kota Kinabalu; 8am-Spm Mon-Fri, 8am-2pm Sat).

Popular itineraries include any combina tion of the Mt Kinabalu trek, the Sepilok orang-utan sanctuary, diving at Tun Sakaran National Park and jungle trekking in the Danum Valley. Attractions promoted individually by tour companies include the Tip of Borneo, jungle camps along the Kinabatangan and the remote Maliau Basin, while you can only visit Turtle Islands National Park and 'Cabin Wildlife Sanctuary as part of a tour. Homestay and cultural options are possible on most standard itineraries.

Accommodation

Depending on where you're coming from in the region, Sabah may seem an expen­sive place to travel around. It’s still pos­sible, however, to find a whole range of acceptable budget and midrange accom­modation options, particularly in KK, Se­pilok, Mt Kinabalu and the national parks. However, keep in mind that cheaper city hotels might also be brothels. B&Bs are popular and economical alternatives to hotels but are often located outside city centres (and don't necessarily include breakfast!). At the other end of the spec­trum, on many of the islands (such as the Turtle Islands) accommodation choices are limited and usually only available as part of a tour package.

National Parks and Reserves

Sabah's national parks and their inhabitants are among the main reasons tourists visit the state; they feature beautiful scenery and an astonishing variety of plant and animal life. Budget accommodation is available in or near the major reserves and, depend­ing on the area and weather, camping is also possible. The parks are generally well maintained and accessible. Sabah's major parks:

Crocker Range National Park (139 sq km) Preserving a huge swathe of forested escarpment overlooking the coast, this park has no facilities.

Kinabalu National Park (754 sq km) Easily accessible from Kota Kinabalu (KK), this is the state's largest and most popular national park. It offers mountain trekking at Mt Kinabalu, forest walks at the headquarters and Mesilau, and the hot springs at Poring.

Pulau Tiga National Park (15 sq km) Three islands 50km southwest of KK: one formed by volcanic mud erup­tions, one famous for sea snakes and the third virtually washed away by wave action.

Tawau Hills Park (29 sq km) Near Tawau in the state's southeast, this park has forested volcanic hills, waterfalls and hot springs.

Tun Sakaran Marine Park (325 sq km) Protects some of the best reef dive sites in the world, including the renowned Pulau Sipadan.

Tunku Abdul Rahman (TAR) National Park (49 sq km) A group of five islands, one quite large, a few kilome­tres west of the capital. Features include beaches, snorkel­ling and hiking

Turtle Islands National Park (17 sq km) Three tiny islands 40km north of Sandakan, protecting the nesting ground of green and hawksbill sea turtles.

The Wildlife Department administers two cave systems, Gomantong and Madai. Reserves run by the Sabah Foundation include the Danum Valley Conservation Area and the Malian Basin. The Tabin Wildlife Reserve is managed by both the Forestry and the Wildlife Department, though visitor facilities are run by a pri­vate company.

Park Fees and Accomodation

Accommodation in Kinabalu National Park (including the lodges at Laban Rata, Poring Hot Springs and Mesilau) and on Manukan Island in Tunku Abdul Rahman (TAR) Na­tional Park is privately run. Bookings are handled by Sutera Sanctuary Lodges Tel: 088­243629; wwwsuterasanctuarylodges.com; Lot G15, Wisma Sabah, Jln Haji Saman, Kota Kinabalu; 8.30am-4.30pm Mon-Sat, 8.30am-12.30pm Sun). You can book your guide and accommodation for Mt Kinabalu here, online or by phone; it's not necessary to make a special trip to KK just to make a booking.

Sabah Parks 088-211881; www.sabahparks.org .my; Lot 1-3, Block K, Kompleks Sinsuran, Jln Tun Fuad Stephens, Kota Kinabalu; 8am-lpm & Z-Spm Mon-Thu, 8am-11.30am & 2-Spm Fri) handles reservations for park accommodation at Pulau Tiga Na­tional Park and camping permits for'Cunku Abdul Rahman National Park.

Bookings and permits for the Danum Valley Conservation Area and Maliau Basin can be arranged through Innoprise 088­243245; outthere@streamyx com; Menara Tun Mustafa,Jln Sulaman, Kota Kinabalu).

Visas and Permits

Sabah is semi-autonomous, and like Sara­wak it has its own immigration controls. On arrival most nationalities are likely to be given a visa for three months' stay and it is rare to be asked to show money or onward tickets:

Visas can be renewed at immigration offices at or near most points of arrival, even at small places like Merapok near Beaufort. If you miss the expiry date, it's not a problem - just report to another im­migration office, even if it's several days later, and explain your situation to the of­ficials. Apart from entry to national parks and other reserves, permits are required to visit Pulau Sipadan (Sipadan Island), the Danum Valley Conservation Area and the Maliau Basin. With the exception of the Maliau Basin, you can obtain these permits at each destination upon arrival.

Sabah, Land Below the Wind

Sabah is known as Sabah, negeri di bawah bayu, which means 'Sabah, land below the wind', because of its location being just south of the typhoon prone region around the Philippines.

Most visitors to Sabah come here for one thing: to trek up the mighty Mt Kinabalu. Or is it to dive around the Sipadan reef? Or to see the orang-utans at Sepilok? Or to explore the forest around Sungai Kinabatangan? Or to get lost in the remote Maliau Basin?

The trouble is, Borneo's northernmost state is so rich in treasures that it's hard to know where to start, and once you get stuck in there's always just that one more thing you want to see. As well as its host of natural features, Sabah has an equally fascinating ethnic heritage, visibly distinct from the indigenous peoples further south.

The largest group is made up of the Kadazan and Dusun tribes, known as the 'Latin lovers' of Borneo thanks to their healthy appetite for music and life in general, and visitors can also enjoy close encounters with friendly Rungus, Murut and Bajau communities around the state.

If you're coming from Sarawak, Sabah's rigid infrastructure may come as a bit of a culture hock - the tourist board has put a lot into promoting key destinations, and tour companies have a stranglehold on certain attractions, making life much trickier for independent travelers. he trade-off, however, is an unparalleled range of leisure and adventure activities, from homes­tays, wetlands and night drives to seawalking, water sports and nightlife. Dubbed 'Asia's solar p­owered theme park', this is one playground where it's well worth queuing for the rides.

Historical Sabah

Sabah or North Borneo was part of the Sultanate of Brunei around the early 16th century. This was during the period when the Sultanate's influence was at its peak. In 1658 the Sultanate of Brunei ceded the north-east portion of Borneo to the Sultan of Sulu in compensation for the latter's help in settling a civil war in the Brunei Sultanate. In 1761 an officer of the British East India Company, Alexander Dalrymple, concluded an agreement with the Sultan of Sulu to allow him to set up a trading post in the region. This together with other attempts to build a settlement and a military station centering around Pulau Balambangan proved to be a failure. There was minimal foreign interest in this region afterward and control over most parts of north Borneo seems to have remained under the Sultanate of Brunei.

After centuries as a pawn in various Indo­nesian and Southeast Asian power games, Sabah was neatly carved up by enterprising British business in the late 19th century, when it was known as North Borneo and administered by the British North Borneo Company. After WWII Sabah and Sarawak were handed over to the British govern­ment, and both decided to merge with the peninsular states to form the new nation of Malaysia in 1963.

However, Sabah's natural wealth attracted other prospectors and its existence as a state was disputed by two powerful neighbours - Indonesia and the Philippines. There are still close cultural ties between the people of Sabah and the Filipinos of the nearby Sulu Archipelago and Mindanao, not always manifested positively: several small islands to the north of Sabah are disputed by the Philippines, there's a busy smuggling trade, Muslim rebels often retreat down towards Sabah when pursued by government forces, and pirates based in the Sulu Sea continue to raid parts of Sabah's coast.

After independence, Sabah was governed for a time by Tun Mustapha, who ran the state almost as a private fiefdom and was often at odds with the federal goverment in Kuala Lumpur (KL). Even when the Kadazan-controlled Sabah United Party (Parti Bersatu Sabah; PBS) came into power in 1985 and joined Barisan National (Na­tional Front), Malaysia's ruling coalition party, tensions with the federal government were rife.

In 1990 the PBS pulled out of the alliance with the National Front just days before the general election. The PBS claimed that the federal government was not equitably re­turning the wealth that the state generated, and in 1993 it banned the export of logs from Sabah, largely to reinforce this point. The federal government used its powers to overturn the ban, and despite ongoing dis­cussions, to this day nothing has changed - a mere 5% of revenue trickles back into state coffers.

As a result of this imbalance and its bad relations with the federal government, Sabah is the poorest of Malaysia's states, with an unemployment rate of twice the national average. Although it's rich in natu­ral resources, 16% of the population lives below the poverty line. Part of the problem is a bizarre rotation system that forces a change of political administration every two years.

Just to compound the economic difficul­ties, Sabah has experienced an extraordi­nary population boom over the last couple of decades - in 1970 the total number of in­habitants was under 50,000, whereas today it's a staggering three million. The govern­ment puts the blame squarely on illegal immigrants, claiming there are around 1.5 million foreigners in the state, but whatever the truth, a solution will need to be found in the next few years for Sabah's stretched resources.

Geography and Weather

Like the rest of Malaysia, Sabah's climate is hot and humid. Expect temperatures in the high 20s and low 30s throughout the lowlands. The state's rainfall averages about 300an annually and though it can rain any time during the year, the heaviest rainfall generally occurs between November and April. At higher elevations, the tempera­ture is refreshingly cool and downright cold at night. Mt Kinabalu has its own climate and, above 3500m, temperatures can drop to freezing .

The western part of Sabah is generally mountainous, containing the three highest mountains in Malaysia. The most prominent range is the Crocker Range which houses several mountains of varying height from about 1,000 metres to 4,000 metres. At the height of 4,095 metres, Mount Kinabalu is the highest mountain in Malaysia and the second highest in Southeast Asia after Puncak Jaya in Indonesia. While the government of Malaysia officially considers it the highest mountain in Southeast Asia, there are counterclaims that Puncak Jaya is the highest mountain. The argument centres around whether New Guinea could be considered a part of Southeast Asia. So far there is no precise consensus on this, and the view that Mount Kinabalu is indeed the tallest mountain in Southeast Asia is more prevalent. The jungles of Sabah are classified as rainforests and host a diverse array of plant and animal species. Kinabalu National Park was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2000 because of its richness in plant diversity combined with its unique geological, topographical, and climatic conditions.

Lying nearby Mount Kinabalu is Mount Tambuyukon. At a height of 2,579 metres, it is the third highest peak in the country. Adjacent to the Crocker Range is the Trus Madi Range which houses the second highest peak in the country, Mount Trus Madi, at a height of 2,642 metres. There are lower ranges of hills extending towards the western coasts, southern plains, and the interior or central part of Sabah. These mountains and hills are traversed by an extensive network of river valleys and are in most cases covered with dense rainforest.

The central and eastern portion of Sabah are generally lower mountain ranges and plains with occasional hills. Kinabatangan River begins from the western ranges and snakes its way through the central region towards the east coast out into the Sulu Sea. It is the second longest river in Malaysia after Rejang River at a length of 560 kilometres. The forests surrounding the river valley also contains an array of wildlife habitats, and is the largest forest-covered floodplain in Malaysia.

Other important wildlife regions in Sabah include Maliau Basin, Danum Valley, Tabin, and Sepilok. These places are either designated as national parks, wildlife reserves, virgin jungle reserves, or protection forest reserve.

Over three quarters of the human population inhabit the coastal plains. Major towns and urban centers have sprouted along the coasts of Sabah. The interior region remains sparsely populated with only villages, and the occasional small towns or townships.

Beyond the coasts of Sabah lies a number of islands and coral reefs, including the largest island in Malaysia, Pulau Banggi. Other larger islands include, Pulau Jambonganr, Pulau Balambangan, Pulau Timbun Mata, Pulau Bumbun, and Pulau Sebatikr. Other popular island mainly for tourism are, Pulau Sipadan, Pulau Selingan, Pulau Gaya, Pulau Tiga, Pulau Layang-Layang, and many more.