Tour Program

0830hrs depart for Niah National Park .109 km or respectively 2 hours’ drive from Miri town, comprising of 3,140 hectares of lowland forest and limestone hills, lies the Niah National Park with the prehistoric Niah Caves, famed for their role as one of the birthplaces of civilisation in Asia. The oldest human remains in Asia as well as remains of Borneo’s prehistoric animals were found here, making the Niah Caves one of the most important archaeological sites in the world. After registration at the park’s headquarters a boat will bring you to the other side of Niah river, where you will visit the Niah Museum to learn about the archaeological importance of the Niah Caves. From here a 3 km plank-walk will lead you to the Traders Cave, which used to be a thriving market some 60-70 years ago, where edible birds’ nests which had been collected in the caves were barter-traded for food and other goods. Nowadays the collecting of the highly sought-after swiftlet nests continues, but is a government-controlled activity. Having passed through Traders Cave you will reach the Niah Great Cave with the famous excavation sites, where a 40.000-year-old human skull was found. Deeper inside this cave you will see evidence of the on-going collecting of edible birds’ nests as well as collecting of bats guano for fertilizer. If you wish you can exit the Great Cave through the east entrance, climbing up several stairs and through a pitch-black tunnel to get to the Painted Cave with its hematite cave paintings. Return to the headquarters the same way. The tour will take about 3-4 hours. After the tour, lunch will be served in a local restaurant nearby Niah National Park.