Batang Ai to Miri by road

After staying in Batang Ai, we want to go to Miri by car.

Itinerary:

from Batang Ai ( 3 nights) to Sibu (1 night )

from Sibu to Similajau NP ( 2 nights)

from Similajau to Niah ( 2 nights)

from Niah to Lambir ( 1 night)

and then to Miri ( 1 night)

then we fly to Kota Kinabalu and spend 2 weeks in Sabah.

We are not sure, if it%26#39;s worth to go by car from Batang Ai to Sibu or better to fly from Kuching to Sibu. But we think its the same distance going to Kuching or Sibu. What can we expect from the landscape and so on?

Has anybody experience with the accomodation in Similajau NP or is it better to stay in Bintulu?

And what about the accomodation in Niah NP. Are there also double- rooms for 2 persons only ?

Can anybody suggest a freelance guide for this tour?

Thanks Lili

Batang Ai to Miri by road

Sibu is a town to pass thru as quickly as possible.

Better fly Kuching to Bintulu - a nice town with very few tourists. Stay in town - I don%26#39;t think there is any accommodation in Similajau NP (maybe, there is now?) - maybe, camp on the beach? No services here last time I checked.

Have to go from Bintulu to Niah

Niah to Lambir - you may have to go via Miri.

DO NOT DRIVE - roads are bad, driving terrible and not much to see.

if you must use the road - get a bus/coach/mini van.

You don%26#39;t need a guide - it is so very easy to do it all your self.

PM me with u%26#39;r email addy - I will give you lots of info.

Batang Ai to Miri by road

Lili,

Kuching to Batang Ai is about 4 hours and Batang Ai to Sibu is another 4. Contrary to what some may tell you, YES you can self-drive! The trunk road is good and fully tarred all the way and you shouldn%26#39;t have much problems if you choose to self-drive in a rental.

Rentals are cheap, especially if you pick up your car from Hertz through Air Asia%26#39;s website (click on GoCar) as there is currently an East Malaysia-only promotion going on.

The road from Kuching to Serian is a wide dual carriage-way (2 lanes each way) and is a comfortable journey. When you get to Serian the road to Batang Ai is variable, when it passes through villages it narrows into one lane each way. At certain stretches, the road will widen into four lanes especially at slopes to allow for slow heavy vehicles to take the outer lane and for cars to overtake them.

Along the way there are road signs indicating interesting attractions but I have never stopped at any of those attractions. I just drove at an average of 100km/h and got from Kuching to Sibu in 6.5 hours (normal driving takes 8 hours - go slow, say 80km/h - don%26#39;t do what I did, I was lucky to speed through with no problems!).

You will NOT miss the Batang Ai turning, it is clearly indicated and very obvious.

From Batang Ai, drive on to Sibu. You will see longhouses along the way. I suppose you could even drop by one although you do need to request permission before entering one. Many of the longhouses are not as ';authentic'; anymore however, because people are more afluent now and some longhouses have been rebuilt with concrete. Some are even dual storeys with tinted glasses, AC and satellite dishes dotting the rooftops. I took some pictures but they are crappy camera phone pics not worth posting.

You will get then have the opportunity to drive to Bintangor and Serikei just before Sibu. These are small riverside towns and I am not sure what would be interesting to you here. I suppose you could drop by for some food or something. We only ever go to Serikei to buy dried seafood. There is a nice park along the way just outside of Serikei.

From Serikei, it is just an hour to Sibu. You will pass through a toll bridge just before entering Sibu. The toll is RM5 if I remember correctly. After this bridge, just drive on and you will be right in the town center. Many hotels to choose from here.

Mobile phone reception is clear and good all the way from Kuching to Sibu so pick up a local number/SIM card (it has to be registered to be activated) when you arrive in Kuching.

Now, about Sibu... I suppose everyone%26#39;s perception of a place is different. I find both Sibu and Bintulu to be VERY boring. You may find them differently. I love the food in Sibu however, there are many places to eat at and very good food too (Sarawak has very good food anyway). If Kuching is famous for its Kolo Mee (handmade noodles) and Sarawak Laksa, Sibu is famous for its Mee Sua and Kampua (fine noodles and handmade noodles respectively).

From Sibu, it takes about 3-4 hours to Bintulu by car. Again the road is fine and you can self drive.

Bintulu to me is a dead boring town with nothing to do. There is a bird park by the sea and a stretch of beach and little else to do except to drive to the Similajau National Park about 40 minutes from town. It%26#39;s a nice, small national park, check here for more info:

…sarawak.gov.my/forweb/np/np/similaj.htm

You can find local guides in all the towns you go to or are you referring to one who would go with you the entire Sarawak leg? If you need a guide to explain things to you or to provide info about local history and culture, you could inquire with the Sarawak Tourism office when you%26#39;re in Kuching. When I visited the interiors of Sarawak, friends took us and the locals served as our guide. It is a lot of fun to visit places like Kapit and Song. Life is so very different there compared to the bigger cities. But perhaps next time?

Have fun!

Hallo mysarawak

thank you very much for your detailed description.

We dont want to drive by ourselves, we want to take a driver and a guide.

We are thingking about Song and Kapit . You would recommend to go there by boat from Sibu? Which other places do you suggest to visit in Sarawak. We have only booked our hotel in Kuching (last time we visited Bako NP)and than we have 10 days time to explore Sarawak. We are older people and we dont want to go trecking und we dont like basic accomodations.