Borneo

Borneo Travel Guide – Travel information and holiday tips including Brunei, Sabah and Sarawak, wildlife, orangutan rehabilitation and birdwatching. Also covering accommodation and restaurants, trekking, diving and beaches, rainforests, the Danum Valley, national parks such as Gunung Kinabalu and Gunung Mulu, Bandar Seri Begawan, Kuching and Sibu. This fully updated fourth edition of Bradt's Borneo remains the essential guide for visiting this island paradise, focusing on Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei. With all the latest practical information, plus new features such as coverage of the gateway cities of Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, and a review of the political situation and conservation issues, Bradt's Borneo offers everything you need. Expert author Tamara Thiessen offers in-depth background chapters on the island's exceptional biodiversity and exotic tribal cultures, from the sultry rainforests and sapphire straits of Sabah to the incredible river journeys of Sarawak. Also included is insider information for touring the island including regional capitals, rural outposts and National Parks. As a world-recognised biodiversity hotspot, Borneo's variety and richness of plant and animal life is almost unparalleled. Just 10ha of Bornean rainforest can support 700 species of tree - as many as are found across the whole of North America - while over 5,000 of Borneo's plant species and 500 animals are endemics, unique to the island, including the Bornean Orangutan, which spends more time on the ground than its purely-arboreal Sumatran cousins. Also covered are internationally known locations such as Brunei's Ulu Temburong National Park, the stunning coral reefs of the east and west coasts and, in Sabah, the Danum Valley and Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. From Brunei's mesmerising mosques to the limestone pinnacles of Sarawak's Gunung Mulu National Park, Bradt's Borneo is the ideal companion for a successful trip. AUTHOR: ournalist, travel writer-photographer, self-declared islomaniac Tamara Thiessen lives between the Australian island state of Tasmania and a base in Paris. After a decade as radio and television journalist, in 1997 she gained a Masters Degree in European Journalism in Strasbourg and since then she has worked as a freelance foreign correspondent for newspapers and radio stations around the world including The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, The South China Morning Post, The Toronto Globe & Mail, the Montreal Gazette, the ABC and Monocle Radio. Malaysia has developed into a kind of halfway home in her migrations between the hemispheres. As globetrotting in work as life, her stories on travel, culture, architecture, design and food and wine appear in leisure and business travel glossies, inflight magazines and custom publications in London, Glasgow, Dubai, Hong Kong, New York, Seoul, Singapore and Sydney.

Table of Contents:
Introduction PART ONE GENERAL INFORMATION Chapter 1 Background Information Geography, Climate, History, Government and politics, Judiciary and law, Economy, People, Language, Religion and spirituality, Education, Culture Chapter 2 Natural History and Conservation Biodiversity, Geology, Ecosystems and flora, Fauna, Deforestation, Conservation Chapter 3 Practical Information When to visit, What kind of holiday?, Highlights, Suggested itineraries, Tourist information, Tour operators, Red tape, Embassies and consulates, Getting there and away, Health, Safety, Women travellers, Travelling with a disability, Travelling with children, Single travellers, LGBTQ travellers, What to take, Money and budgeting, Getting around, Getting your bearings, Accommodation, Eating and drinking, Public holidays and festivals, Shopping, Arts and entertainment, Sports and other activities, Photography, Media and communications, Living in Borneo, Studying in Borneo, Cultural etiquette, Travelling positively PART TWO BRUNEI Chapter 4 Brunei Darussalam History, Getting there and away, Local tour operators, Bandar Seri Begawan, Excursions from Bandar Seri Begawan PART THREE SABAH Chapter 5 Kota Kinabalu History, Getting there and away, Getting around, Tourist information, Where to stay, Where to eat and drink, Nightlife and entertainment, Festivals and events, Shopping, Other practicalities, What to see and do, Excursions from Kota Kinabalu Chapter 6 West Coast Sabah Kota Belud and Kudat Peninsula, Gunung Kinabalu National Park, Kundasang and Ranau, Poring Hot Springs, Tambunan to Tenom, Beaufort-Klias Peninsula, Pulau Labuan Chapter 7 Northeast Sabah Sandakan, Excursions from Sandakan, Kinabatangan River Chapter 8 Southeast Sabah Tawau, Excursions from Tawau, Semporna, Lahad Datu, Excursions from Lahad Datu PART FOUR SARAWAK Chapter 9 Kuching History, Getting there and away, Getting around, Tourist information, Tour operators, Where to stay, Where to eat and drink, Entertainment and nightlife, Festivals, Shopping, Other practicalities, What to see and do Chapter 10 Southern Sarawak North of Kuching, Bako National Park, West of Kuching, South of Kuching, Southeast of Kuching Chapter 11 Central Sarawak Sibu, Excursions from Sibu Chapter 12 Northern Sarawak Bintulu, Niah National Park, Miri, Excursions from Miri, Gunung Mulu National Park, Kelabit Highlands, Limbang and Lawas Appendix 1 Language Appendix 2 Further Information Index

About the Author :
Journalist, travel writer-photographer, self-declared islomaniac Tamara Thiessen lives between the Australian island state of Tasmania and a base in Paris. After a decade as radio and television journalist, in 1997 she gained a Masters Degree in European Journalism in Strasbourg and since then she has worked as a freelance foreign correspondent for newspapers and radio stations around the world including The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, The South China Morning Post, The Toronto Globe & Mail, the Montreal Gazette, the ABC and Monocle Radio. Malaysia has developed into a kind of halfway home in her migrations between the hemispheres. As globetrotting in work as life, her stories on travel, culture, architecture, design and food and wine appear in leisure and business travel glossies, inflight magazines and custom publications in London, Glasgow, Dubai, Hong Kong, New York, Seoul, Singapore and Sydney. A hotel addict, she spends about half the year on the road, and is a long-time global correspondent for Hotel News Now and Hospitality Design. You can keep in touch with her via her website (www.tamarathiessen.com) or email her at tamara.thiessen@gmail.com.

Review :
'Invaluable.' The Independent