More than just a homestay, the 3D2N Miso Walai programme offers a community-driven journey that goes beyond the usual Kinabatangan River Cruise. Alongside two wildlife river cruises and a guided rainforest trek, you’ll also explore caves and cultural sites like the Batu Tulug Museum, where heritage and conservation come together. The result is a rare opportunity to connect with both the land and the people who call it home.
Your hosts, the Orang Sungai, welcome you into their stilted or modern family homes to share meals, daily routines, and traditions that have shaped life along the Kinabatangan River for generations. Whether it’s cooking, farming, or storytelling, these exchanges give a deeper understanding of community values and a sense of belonging.
With three days to settle in, this experience allows you to slow down and take part in activities that most travellers never encounter. And every stay directly supports KOPEL’s award-winning cooperative, which channels tourism revenue into forest restoration, wildlife protection, and sustainable livelihoods. It’s a homestay that doubles as a meaningful conservation experience, combining culture, nature, and impact in one.
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.
