Sepilok Orangutan & Sun Bear tour from Kota Kinabalu

Orphan orangutans learning to live wild again at Sepilok's rehabilitation center.

A full-day tour from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan takes you into Sepilok Forest Reserve to meet baby orangutans at a rehabilitation center where they're taught survival skills after being held in captivity. The center lets them come and go freely as they adjust to life in the wild, and you'll watch them at feeding time. The tour includes hotel pickup, an English-speaking guide, lunch and air-conditioned transport. Your booking contributes USD10 to the center's animal care work.

Step-by-step itinerary

Visit Sepilok Wildlife Sanctuary

• See orangutans in natural habitat
• Watch orangutan feeding time
• Visit sun bear rehabilitation center
• Learn about sun bear conservation

The experience

The Orangutan Rehabilitation Center sits inside the lush Sepilok Forest Reserve in Sandakan, about an hour's flight from Kota Kinabalu. The tour picks you up from your hotel in the morning, drives you to the airport for the short flight to Sandakan, then heads straight into the reserve. The center specializes in caring for baby orphan orangutans (animals whose mothers were likely killed or who were kept as pets), and teaching them the survival skills they would have learned naturally. Unlike a zoo, the orangutans aren't confined. They come and go as they please while becoming reaccustomed to living wild.

At feeding time you'll watch these shy, gentle creatures eat and move through the forest canopy. The tour also takes you to see sun bears, another animal kept at the center. Sun bear cubs that grow up around people lose their ability to survive independently. Many forget they're bears at all and seek out humans when released, causing problems in nearby villages. Seeing both species at the center shows the work of rehabilitation in action. Lunch is included partway through the day, and the guide explains the center's conservation efforts as you move through the reserve.

The full day runs about 10 hours from pickup to drop-off. You'll return to Kota Kinabalu on an evening flight, with the guide handling the logistics. Choose city center pickup if you're staying downtown, or outskirt hotel pickup if you're elsewhere in Kota Kinabalu. The minivan is air-conditioned, and the tour is suitable for all fitness levels. Families with infants and small children can bring a pram or stroller.

What’s included

• Hotel pickup and drop-off in Kota Kinabalu (city center or outskirts, depending on your option).
• English-speaking driver and guide.
• lunch.
• transport by air-conditioned minivan within Sandakan.
• USD10 contribution to the Orangutan Rehabilitation Center's animal care.

Options for this experience

2 options

Guide in English04:30

Guide in EnglishAvailable from 9 Oct 2027

Options with the same name differ in details you'll see when you pick a date.

You see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates & prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDeparts at 04:30

Book up to1d before

AgesAdult (12 and older) · Child (3 to 11 years) · Infant (under 3): free

GroupUp to 15

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 3 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated yesterday

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller friendlyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Magunatip Holidays Sdn Bhd

Is this one for you?Book the city center pickup if you're staying downtown Kota Kinabalu. Choose the outskirt option if your hotel is outside the main area. Either way, you'll need to arrange your own flight to Sandakan. The operator can recommend the morning and evening flights that fit the tour schedule.

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Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (3 to 11 years); Infant (under 3): free.

What exactly do orphan orangutans do at the Sepilok Rehabilitation Center?

The center teaches baby orangutans the survival skills they would have learned from their mothers in the wild (climbing, foraging, building nests) after they've been held in captivity or lost their mothers to poaching. They're not kept confined. They come and go freely as they adjust to living wild again, and you'll see them during feeding time when they gather at the center.

How much time do I actually spend at Sepilok Forest Reserve watching the orangutans?

The tour runs 10 hours total from hotel pickup to drop-off, but that includes the flight from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan, transport to the reserve, lunch and the return flight. The reserve itself is the main stop where you'll spend several hours watching the orangutans and sun bears with your guide.

Does the tour include the flight from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan?

The tour includes hotel pickup, the guide, lunch and air-conditioned transport within Sandakan, but you'll need to arrange your own flight from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan. The operator recommends flight AK6490 departing Kota Kinabalu at 6:30 am and arriving Sandakan at 7:20 am, with the return flight AK6499 leaving Sandakan at 7:00 pm. Contact Magunatip Holidays for help booking these flights.

What happens to the USD10 my booking contributes to the center?

Your booking automatically contributes USD10 to the Orangutan Rehabilitation Center's animal care work through the Whitesocks Pay It Forward Initiative, supporting the center's efforts to rehabilitate orphan orangutans and sun bears.