Sabah Borneo: Sandakan Sepilok Orang Utan Sanctuary

The Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre was set up in 1964 to rehabilitate orphaned baby orang utan. Set in the lush 4,300-hectare Kabili-Sepilok Forest Reserve, the Centre under the administration of the Wildlife Department of Sabah attracts tourists and researchers alike, giving them the opportunity to watch the orang utan up close in their natural habitat

How to go there? AirAsia and Malaysia Airlines have daily flights to Sandakan from Kota Kinabalu or Kuala Lumpur. There are few ways on how to reach the sanctuary from Sandakan city, either using travel agent to avoid all the bookings and planning, or you can also use public transportation, buses or taxis. The more convenient and cheap option would be by bus since taxi usually will charge you a high price for the return transfer. From Kota Kinabalu there are also daily coaches to Sandakan, visitors can ask the driver to stop at the junction to the centre, which is another 2.5km walk away.

Opening Hours
Security Gate: Daily from 8.00am till 5.00pm
Reception & Ticketing Counter: Daily from 9.00am till 11.00am and 2.00pm till 3.30pm 
Exhibition Hall: Daily (except Fridays) from 9.00am till 4.30pm
Centre: Daily from 9.00am till 12.00pm and 2.00pm till 4.00pm Fridays 9.00am till 11.00am, 2.00pm till 4.00pm 

Tickets prices:

Ticket	International	MY Card Holder
Adult	RM 30	RM 5
Child	RM 15	RM 2

* Ticket is valid for the date of purchase only
* Cameras and Video Cameras RM 10

Visitors can also visit the exhibition centre which has good information on orangutans or enjoy a good documentary on orangutans at the video room. Video showing daily at 8:30am, 11am, 12pm, 2:10pm and 3:30pm.

The Orangutan feeding viewing only opens during feeding times, so plan your trip around that. The explanation here is more on how to get there by bus. The Sepilok bus station is located at the back of the Centre Point Mall and along the Coastal Highway 1, in front of Nak Hotel. The 9am bus and the 2pm bus will have visitors just in time for the 10am feeding and 3pm feeding respectively at the Centre. Bus fare from Sandakan town to Sepilok is RM 5 one way. Kindly please note that the buses do not have air-conditioner.

Sepilok Bus Schedule:

From Sandakan Town	From Sepilok
05:45 am	06:30 am
09:00 am	09:45 am
11:25 am	12:20 pm
02:00 pm	04:00 pm

Besides the Sepilok Orang Utan Sanctuary, one can also go to the Discovery Rainforest Centre, about 1 km before the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre and about a kilometre away from the Sepilok road using the same bus. You can ask the bus driver for a detour, with few ringgits addition to the fare (RM1~RM2). Travellers can also take the bus to the Sepilok Forest Edge Resort which is 1km away from the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre for just RM 6. For more information about the bus destination, you can ask the counter before buying the bus ticket.

Full map of Sandakan Sepilok Orang Utan Sanctuary(click to enlarge)

Accommodations are located around the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, from budget to the more luxury ones, should you decide to stay here and visit the near by Rainforest Discovery Centre.

Some people may said that this visit is a waste of money and time because you can only see them being fed. But, what they don't know is that the sanctuary is a big place and there's a lot of Orangutans living there. The money goes to research and development on how to preserve their habitat as well as the Orangutans survival. While orang utan rehabilitation is still the primary goal at Sepilok, it also focuses on public education on conservation, research and assistance on other endangered species such as the rhinoceros. You don't get to see any behind the scenes work but they do have a volunteer program people can sign up.

For the more adventurous, there is trekking through mangrove forest. As this is under the Forestry Department, you will have to get a permit from them before trekking the 5km trail which runs through Sepilok Laut. You can also arrange for a boat return or accommodation in chalets in the forest. For more info on the programs, you can contact the  Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre:

Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia.
Tel: +6089 531 180
Fax: +6089 531 189
Email: soutan@po.jaring.my