Kinabalu National Park

Kinabalu was one of Malaysia first national parks and in 2,000 it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Mt. Kinabalu stands like a citadel above the lowlands of northern Borneo.

The park, which is easily reached from Kota Kinabalu in about two hour’s drive, harbours remarkable botanical diversity, perhaps as many as 6,000 plant species occur on the mountain. These include more than 1,000 species of orchid and more than one third of all the islands’ pitcher plants (genus nepenthes). Superlatives aren’t restricted to plants; there are over 600 species of butterflies and some 320 species of birds. Diversity of species is greatest on the lower slopes, whereas the greatest numbers of endemic species are found high on the mountain.