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Reviewed February 21, 2010

We booked a two night stay via the internet. Annie, who owns KJC and Sepilok Forest Edge Lodge was very responsive and detailed in her description of what we would get in terms of boat trips and walks. Other lodges weren’t so forthcoming and were somewhat evasive on how many boat trips there would be and the duration, what happens if it rains etc. The price was better than most of the other lodges, which probably reflects the fact that this is a ‘camp’ rather than a lodge.

First impressions weren’t great. We were picked up at our hotel in Sandakan in a very scruffy mini bus, filled with an accumulation of junk and no air con. We were then driven the 2 hours to the boat dock at Bilit, the nearest village to the camp. We had to struggle down planks of wood over a muddy bank to reach the boat, and were then taken on a scenic 20 minute journey down the river. We passed the plush looking Myne Resort, and rounded a bend to see what looked like a logging camp—a couple of wooden huts perched on a muddy bank. I was just about to joke to my partner ‘this is probably our hotel’ when I noticed a rough wooden sign saying ‘Kinabatangan Jungle camp’. I began to regret not paying the extra to stay at Myne Resort.

We got off the boat and struggled across more loose planking over a metre of thick mud. From there on, things improved. The camp is all made from dark wood, and there is a reception area/restaurant from where you can (just) see the river through the trees.

Our room was in a wooden 2 storey block at the back of the site. It was small, basic, but very clean, which is not easy to maintain in the jungle, and lets not forget thats where you are. I would have scored this 5 points for cleanliness--the one black mark was that there were a couple of old used soaps left in a soap dish in the shower. I'm 5'11 and this was at eye level for me, the maid is probably 5 foot nothing which probably explains this!

There is no air con but there is a fan and we found that cooled the room adequately—we actually slept better than we had in any room on the trip to that point. There is only hot water between 6 and 9 at night but due to times of boat trips we didn’t find that to be a problem.There is a wire fence around the camp to keep out elephants, and wildlife often visits, including wild pigs and , whilst we were there an orangutan which built a nest and spent the night with us!

We stayed two nights and there were only a maximum of 7 guests whilst we were there.This meant that everyone tended to sit and eat together and there was a definite group/camp atmosphere so this probably wouldn’t be ideal for people wanting to keep themselves to themselves. The food was good and plentiful with buffet style when there were 7 guests and set meals when the number dropped to 4.

We went on 4 boat trips and a jungle walk, accompanied by knowledgable guide Hamza. It was the good reviews of the trips which swayed me towards KJC and we weren’t disappointed. We saw loads of proboscis monkeys, orang-utan, gibbons, otters,crocodiles, snakes, lots of birds, everything except the elusive elephants..(reading the guest book I would say about 1 in 7 people managed to see elephants)..
We also found out that the somewhat rough and ready appearance of the camp was due to severe flooding which had happened during January.In fact the waters had only subsided 2 weeks before our visit, hence the muddy foreshore etc. We were very lucky and had no rain during our visit. Had it rained I would guess the days would drag with no trips to break up the time—theres not much to do in camp other than talk, though there is a makeshift badminton court!

The staff are very friendly and helpful and both Hamza the guide and the boatman were good at spotting and identifying wildlife.

In summary, if you’re looking for a luxurious, romantic retreat, it may be best to shell out and stay at somewhere like Myne Resort. If you want an authentic jungle experience where you really feel that you’ve stayed in the jungle, but with basic good food and cleanliness then KJC is right for you.

Date of stay: February 2010
  • Trip type: Traveled as a couple
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Thank LS13
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Reviewed January 3, 2010

My husband and I stayed at KJC for 3 days. Unless you are an avid bird watcher or animal enthusiast I would recommend 2 nights at KJC. Three nights was a little long for me, but the trip was very enjoyable. We saw everything we hoped to, except elephants. My only disappointment was we did not have any guided walks, only boat cruises. Also, we wanted to switch a night cruise for a day cruise because we had done so many, but could not. With that aside we had a great time. The staff was friendly, food was good, accommodations were clean and comfortable. I would highly recommend coming here to experience Borneo wildlife!

Date of stay: December 2009
  • Trip type: Traveled as a couple
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Thank lisastyles
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Reviewed January 1, 2010

Booked to stay here through the related Sepilok Forest Edge resort, so not 100% what to expect. It was excellent - thanks to Annie and Robert for making the time in Sabah so amazing!!! The river tours are excellent - who needs to see elephants anyway!?

The rooms are basic but have an amazingly hot shower considering it is in the middle of the jungle!!!

Both Robert and Annie really helped us out, including dropping us off at bus stops, picking us up. All the staff were really nice and accommodating.

If you want a great jungle experience stay here for a day or two.

Date of stay: December 2009
  • Trip type: Traveled as a couple
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2  Thank Matthew_benson83
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Reviewed December 31, 2009

I spent four days and three nigts at KJC and it really was a great experience. It is about a 2 hour drive from Sepilok and about 15 minutes by boat to the lodge. The lodge is in quite extensive grounds which are visited by a variety of wildlife including Storms Storks, Bearded Pigs, Monitor Lizards. Mouse Deer etc.
The staff are very pleasant and friendly and seem to take a real interest in their guests. They produced a great spread of food at mealtimes and there was always a choice of meat, fish and vegetables even though on one night there were only 6 guests.
I had a huge room to myself - a bit spartan, but more than adequte considering the location and the shower had hot water for several hours in the evening. The room was well looked after and cleaned daily.
Obviously the main reason to stay here is the wildlife. The lodge runs morning and afternoon boat trips which last around 3 hours. There are vast numbers of proboscis monkeys and macaques along the river. We also had several orang utan sightings and saw silver langurs, crocodiles and an array of birdlife including many hornbills. The lodge also runs evening boat trips on demand and using torches you can see a differnt set of wildlife. Many of the birds roost along the river and can be approached quite closely. Saw several owls and pythons while on an evening trip. The guides were all enthusiastic and patient.
All in all a great experience. If you don't fancy the luxury lodges (and prices to match) and can afford something a little more comfortable than Uncle Tan's I can thoutroughly recommend this place.

Date of stay: November 2009
  • Trip type: Traveled solo
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2  Thank footix
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Reviewed November 21, 2009

We stayed here and also at the sister hotel, Sepilok forest edge resort and would highly recommend it. Everything was really well arranged and very professional. Robert Chong and his staff are really very friendly (and quite a character), and informative about the area. We stayed for one night at each which we felt was enough, we did two boat cruises and also the night river cruise (at extra but minimal cost). We saw wild orangutans, elephants, monkeys... everything that we were expecting in 24 hrs which was excellent. Seeing the wild orangutans was really special and we enjoyed it much more than seeing them in the sepilok rehabilitation centre. I was a bit scared in the evening on the night cruise - on a small boat in crocodile-infested waters, but everyone else seemed completely ok with it!

The accommodation is basic, but we slept well and there is warm water for showers in the evening. Food was yummy.

Date of stay: October 2009
  • Trip type: Traveled with friends
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4  Thank sheldita
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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