Ecotourists to Malaysia are by no means restricted to passively admiring wildlife from walkways or lookout posts. A major tourism initiative has encouraged participation through events. The Tabin Wildlife Conservation Conquest on Sabah, for example, is a 7-mile slog through steaming jungle, where visitors cross rivers and negotiate muddy hills, while the Mud Man Parade challenges visitors to use traditional weaponry before daubing themselves in mud from the nearby Lipad volcano. In the Taman Negara Eco-Challenge around the Gunung Tahan mountains of Pahang, top runners pit themselves against a 6,561-foot ascent through some of the oldest jungle in Malaysia. The area also includes the longest rainforest canopy walkway in the world, enjoyed when the race is over.
The Sukau Rainforest Lodge on Sabah, reached by a two-hour journey up the Kinabatangan River, is dedicated to preserving Borneo’s endangered species, including the orangutan and the pygmy elephant. It was named one of the top 50 jungle lodges in the world by "National Geographic." At Kinabulu Park, visitors find Sabah’s first UNESCO World Heritage site, boasting an abundance of rare orchids, rhododendron and butterflies concentrated around Mount Kinabulu. Allow two days to complete the organized hikes to the 13,435-foot summit.
As a haven for many protected species, Malaysia’s largest state of Sarawak attracts ecotourists en masse. The Irrawaddy dolphins are one such draw, with their blunt, round, beakless heads. Dolphin-watching programs allow visitors to encounter the protected species between April and November. At Talan-Satang National Park, Sarawak’s first marine park and spread across four islands, visitors witness the progress of sea turtles, where 95 percent of Sarawak’s turtles come to nest. The 48,000-acre marine park also shelters shallow reef with rare soft and hard corals. Like Sabah, Sarawak has a UNESCO World Heritage site, the magnificent Gunung Mulu National Park, with limestone cave systems that include the longest in Southeast Asia. Trails and walkways are maintained around the park, which cannot be visited without a guide.
Lagkawi Island, which is located in the northern part of the Peninsular Malaysia, is the only UNESCO-recognized geopark in Southeast Asia and an island paradise, according to "Frommer’s." Estimated to be over 550 million years old, the park juxtaposes extraordinary biodiversity with a tropical island setting. The 99-island archipelago covers Malaysia’s oldest rock unit at the Machinchang Cambrian Geoforest Park, the dramatic limestone pinnacles of Kilim Karst park, and the cave and lake systems of Dayang Bunting Marble Park. In the Cameron Highlands, Montane rainforest provides a cooler interlude to sweltering sea-level Malaysia. The former colonial hill station now nurtures tea plantations, jungle trails and flower nurseries. Buses run to the highlands from capital Kuala Lumpur.
