Step into the welcoming world of the Orang Sungai community with a short but meaningful overnight stay at Miso Walai Homestay. Just one night here allows you to experience the rhythm of village life along the Kinabatangan River, where every household has its own character, from traditional wooden stilt houses to more modern family homes.
Unlike the usual Kinabatangan River Cruise, this experience goes further by combining wildlife exploration with cultural immersion. Share meals of freshly prepared local dishes, learn about village traditions, and take part in simple farm activities that connect you to the land. In the evening, enjoy a sunset river cruise to spot proboscis monkeys, hornbills, and crocodiles, with the option to join a guided night walk in search of nocturnal species.
Though brief, this visit offers a genuine taste of hospitality, culture, and connection that lingers long after you leave. Most importantly, your stay supports KOPEL’s award-winning community cooperative, where tourism revenue helps conserve the Kinabatangan floodplains while sustaining the livelihoods of the people who call it home.
Miso Walai Homestay
The Miso Walai Homestay is based in Batu Puteh village along the Lower Kinabatangan River, home to the Orang Sungai, or “River People.” This community-based programme, established in 2000 and operated by the local co-op KOPEL Bhd, brings together more than 18 host families who welcome visitors into their homes. Each homestay is different. Some are rustic wooden stilt houses, others more modern. But all share the same warmth and hospitality. Guests are invited to live as part of the family, sharing traditional meals, joining farm activities, and learning local customs. The homestay also serves as a gateway to river cruises, forest treks, conservation programs, and cultural exchanges, making it a meaningful way to connect with both the people and natural beauty of the Kinabatangan.
Koperasi Pelancongan (KOPEL)
Formed in the late 1990s by the people of Batu Puteh village, KOPEL Bhd grew from the pioneering MESCOT Initiative, a grassroots movement to protect the last fragments of forest in the Lower Kinabatangan. Facing the loss of traditional resources to large-scale agriculture, a group of villagers came together to create sustainable alternatives through eco-tourism and forest conservation. Today, KOPEL operates as a cooperative that unites the community, restoring degraded forests, co-managing the Pin-Supu Forest Reserve, and generating income through conservation-based tourism. By staying with KOPEL, visitors directly support local livelihoods, youth empowerment, and the ongoing mission to protect one of Sabah’s most important wildlife corridors.
