Niah National Park, Sarawak, Borneo

Niah National park is definitely one of those more intrepid adventures, one of those you need to sweat for but definitely worth it, just getting there is an adventure in itself, that's probably why we didn't see a lot of tourists when we went.

Located in Sarawak, Borneo, the easiest way to get there would be to fly into Miri township, hire a car (about 90 myr/day) and drive the 2 hours to the national park.

The best route is to go to Niah township and then to the entrance of the park. The turn off to the park is easy to miss if you are coming from Miri as it is facing towards Bintulu. Do not put into Niah national park in Google maps as this takes you to a different location, you need to go to the park entrance.

Once you get to the park you will need to sign in at the office and pay the park fee, its a QR code and very easy to do, for non Malaysians it's 20 myr/pp.

Once you have registered and paid then follow the signs down to the jetty to catch a boat across to the park entrance, it’s the shortest ferry ride in the world and will set you back 1myr/pp so have cash on you.

Once you enter the park it's all sign posted and you just follow the path which turns into a boardwalk, my advice is take photos of all the signs as this will help if you forget distances.

The walk in is pretty amazing and I suggest you get there early so you can hear the jungle waking up, the variety of sounds is astonishing from frogs, birds to monkeys.

The boardwalk goes for about 2.5kms and just before the Tangap Trail there are community craft stalls that have cold refreshments. A lifesaver if you haven't brought enough water or snacks. There are also toilets available here (tandas awam).

About 50m past the stalls is a large set of gates before you enter the trail to Traders cave, these were put in place a few years ago because of the swiftlet nests poaching.

About 300m past the gates is the first cave area called Gua Dagang or Traders Cave.

In Gua Dagang you can still see the frames of the roofless huts that the collectors and their family would stay for the season and its where the buyers would wait for the nest collectors to come out from the Great cave.

Be really careful as you proceed out of the Traders cave as the boardwalk is covered with years of droppings and moisture, they are incredibly slippery.

Another 200m past Traders cave is the Great Cave and it's not until you approach that you realize how large this cave is! The sheer size of the opening is incredible! You can get an idea of the scale by finding the visitors in the photo.

As you traverse through the cave system you will see areas that are still cordoned off as archeological sites, made my arm hairs stand on end, as it gives you that wow im standing in an area people lived that long ago.

The other thing that these caves are known for is the swiftlet nest harvesting trade, the nests are located hundreds of feet high on the cave ceilings and the collectors climb up single poles to scrape them off.

The person who scrapes the nests off the ceiling is called a “tukang julok” and the other person who picks the nests up and carries them out is call “tukang pungut”

When I first saw them on TV the caves didn't look as high but when you stand at the base look up and see what they use to climb up on, it's fearless.

The nests contain glycoprotein, carbohydrates, minerals, amino acids and are destined for the markets as the famous “bird nest soup”.

I really liked this area, so we spent quite a bit of time here, just taking in the ambience and trying to imagine what life here would have been like for the tribes.

Its also a great rest spot before you climb out of the Great cave down into the darkness to get to Gan Kira.

The climb up and out of the Great cave is really slippery, as now you have bat guano and swiftlet poop covering all the steps and handrails, be really careful here as a slip may cause serious damage and you are a long way from help.

You will also need at least 2 torches (one as a backup) for the cave system that leads to Gan Kira.

Cave Dwellers! Beautiful caverns, ceiling with bats and swiftlets and Nests

You will feel the fresh breeze before you see Gan Kira, an idyllic cool spot to take a breather before heading the last 500m to the painted caves. Its so beautiful, like something out of a kungfu movie, you almost expect to see master Oogway here.

The East entrance of the Great cave with the high gates to stop the illegal poaching of the swiftlet nests.

From here its another 400m to the painted caves.

Travelers Tips

have a good pair of shoes if you intend to go past the Great Cave, years of bat and swiftlet droppings have made the steps and boardwalks incredibly slippery.

Bring plenty of water, even put a bottle of water in the freezer the night before as the humidity is incredible.

get there as early as possible and walk quietly, you will hear the jungle come alive with the wildlife.
A tripod for the photographers.

Niah or Far

wet bums or dry bums..

“Sorry I don’t know who she is..”