The Canopy at Ulu Temburong: Brunei’s Highlight
Ulu Temburong National Park is Brunei’s top nature attraction.
As I was researching the activities to occupy my long weekend trip in Brunei, aside from scuba diving the wrecks which need proper certification, the canopy in Ulu Temburong caters to everyone with a moderate fitness level.
The sprawling national park with a river trail via longboat and boardwalks within a virgin rainforest is a wonderful day trip and respite from the city attractions.
So here’s how my day went with Freme, the largest tour agency in Brunei, and the only agency still doing regular guided tours to Ulu Temburong.
I visited Ulu Temburong and Brunei in August 2024. This post contains affiliate links that cost nothing to you but support my blog! It may also be updated periodically. Cheers!
Background on Ulu Temburong
Ulu Temburong National Park is unique in so many ways.
Aside from being situated in a district separated from the rest of the country by the Limbang district of Malaysia, Ulu Temburong is Brunei’s first National Park since 1991.
The park occupies at least 40% of the district and is accessible via boats through their meandering river.
Getting to Temburong district from the capital is a chore by itself. Had it not been for the newly-constructed 30 km long Sultan Haji Oman Ali Saiffudien Bridge, we would be stuck with hour-long boat rides from Muara!
Sultan Haji Oman Ali Saiffudien Bridge is the longest bridge in Southeast Asia. Opened to the public in 2020, the bridge has reduced the usual commute to under 30 minutes.
Flora and Fauna
Given its secludedness, status as a National Park, and the relative lack of tourist crowd in Brunei (at least for my visit), the biodiverse forest has remained pristine and untouched. The forest is prime for research about Borneo’s flora and fauna, which led to the erection of the towering Canopy – a site for researchers to study the crown of tall trees and animals.
Only a small section of the park, including the Canopy, is accessible to the public.
However, seeing any animals in the virgin forest boils down to luck. During my visit in August, it was hot and sunny, and the animals retreated into the shade. The experience contrasted with the humidity of Mulu National Park when I visited in July two years earlier. I spotted snakes, plenty of giant millipedes, strange insects, and toads.
Permits and Tours
It is not possible to visit Ulu Temburong National Park independently without a certified permit.
And it is unlikely for the Brunei’s Forestry Department to readily hand out one to a traveller on vacation.
That leaves the traveller with one option – a one-day guided tour with a respectable agency.
According to my research, there used to be 3 or 4 agencies with tours to Ulu Temburong. This has all gone to dust with the pandemic. For now, we have only Freme, the largest travel agency in Brunei, to contemplate with.
It costs B$155 per adult (2024) for a one-day visit to Ulu Temburong and the Canopy. They have a 2D1N tour and overnight lodges as well.
Before the trip, Freme requested us to complete an online Medical Fitness Form, and an Indemnity & Waiver Form.
My Experience
Bus to Freme Rainforest Lodge
Freme offers free pickup from Bandar Seri Begawan or the Gadong area. Since we stayed in Muara at Poni Homestay, we arranged for the pickup from the centrally located Radisson Hotel.
We saw the bus pick up three groups from Radisson, a family of four from The Brunei Hotel, a couple from The Capital Residence, and two others from The Centrepoint opposite The Mall in Gadong.
If you stay beyond Gadong or the capital, they offer pickup at B$40 per way per car.
What other unforgettable way to start the journey to Temburong than to have two punctured tyres, while on the longest bridge in Southeast Asia? One broken tyre may be replaced with a spare tyre, but two on the same side? Unsalvageable.
After being stuck on the bridge closer to Temburong district for what feels like an hour (which might be shorter since time is flexible), another 20-seater bus arrived – we’re back on track!
Contrary to my initial expectation of the Temburong district, we passed by two towns! Though not as lively as the capital, I saw schools, shops and a possible market as the bus whizzed through.
Kueh Kueh Tea
We finally reached Freme Lodge.
Staff at Freme Lodge were hospitable and apologised for the punctured tyres even when the fault was nobody’s.
Then we settled into some delectable kuehs or Malay snacks, mostly infused with coconut milk, steamed or fried. Tea and coffee were complimentary.
Longboat Ride
After indulging in the kueh, we donned a life jacket and got into groups of 3 or 4 per longboat to the National Park.
Travelling the river via a longboat isn’t novel for travels within Southeast Asia.
I first experienced it when I was 15 on a 3D2N school excursion in the deep jungles of Taman Negara National Park in Malaysia. Then a decade later in Myanmar after a 3D2N hike from Kalaw, where we crossed Lake Inle. That longboat journey took us an hour! I sat on a longboat again in Mulu National Park in 2022 to reach the Wind and Clearwater Caves and the trailhead to Mulu Pinnacles.
If you were to ask me how this 30-minute longboat ride in Ulu Temburong fares against those I’ve experienced, my answer isn’t gonna be fair for those who are experiencing it for the first time.
Besides, the water level was low when I visited in August 2024. What set this experience apart from those I experienced was the boatman’s skill at navigating through the shallow parts of the river. He managed to make the boat climb up rock-exposed areas! I could feel the smooth boulders knocking underneath!
Make sure you’re sun-protected for this unshaded journey as the late morning/ afternoon sun in Brunei burns. 🔥
Jambatan Gantung Keruing Hanging Bridge
Our longboats dropped us near a shelter by a large sign etched with the words ‘Ulu Temburong National Park’. After another short break, it’s time for the walk towards the canopy.
The trek was not difficult, since we were walking on wooden planks. But the planks came in different forms – swollen, broken, but mostly slippery. Shoes with grippy soles come to the rescue here!
It didn’t take us long from the shelter, maybe 5 – 10 mins, to reach the suspension bridge. The wobbly bridge can take only five people at any one time, so we took our turns and waited for everyone to have their fill of photos and views on the bridge. Sadly, there’s not much of a visage from the top as the river was shallow.
Thousand Steps to Canopy
Our group was a mixed bag of a Hungarian family with two young children, a Japanese mom and her 5-year-old son, a Chinese man with his elderly mom on a walking crane, and adults from Germany, the Philippines, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. So fitness level differs.
We, and the cute Japanese boy who can’t wait to be ahead, were the first in the group. We followed the lead guide. Those weekly Bukit Timah hikes help!
The thousand-step journey was frequently broken with rest shelters/ huts, for those to hydrate or catch a breather.
Frequent hydration is essential under this sort of dreadful humidity. Any random spurt of activity is often followed by a burst of sweat.
Climbing The Canopy
Before I booked my trip to Ulu Temburong, I thought the canopy meant a walkway above the trees like the Treetop Walk in Singapore.
But it wasn’t, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that their canopy requires climbing up stair towers similar to those used in construction!
I’d never climbed stair-towers before, and the experience of climbing the narrow aluminium steps was exhilaration mixed with caution.
We were asked to conform to the limits of the structure – max one person per flight of steps, two people per landing, and two people per bridge to the next tower.
There were several bridges to cross as we tread deeper and higher into the jungle. Behind us, the unobstructed panoramic visage of the jungles and faraway hills grew.
As we reached the highest level of the last and tallest stair tower, I could feel the landing wobble from the movements of other visitors descending underneath!
Going down the tallest stair tower was dizzying and mildly discomforting since I now look downwards, staring at the seemingly bottomless end. I had to slow down frequently since I started to doubt my feet.
‘Hidden’ Waterfall
When half the group had completed their rounds at the canopy and descended to the shelter beside the carved sign, we were back on the longboat to a ‘hidden’ waterfall.
I had images of a beautiful cascade.
But what came was a trickle into a shallow pool 5 minutes trek from the river shore. The only redeeming qualities were the refreshingly cool water and little fish.
We were told we could swim or let the little fish in the waterfall nibble us so my partner and I came prepared in our swimwear.
Our guide was also extra protective and made us wear helmets and life vests for this visit, which was an absurd overkill.
No photo to show here since it was anti-climatic.
Water Activities
The package highlighted possible water activities depending on the water level. Since it was low, rafting was cancelled, leaving only kayaks.
But the lodge had only two single-person kayaks.
We were allocated to the kayak parked by a shoreline near the lodge.
My expectations went wild at the start as we travelled upstream on the longboat. I envisioned the Vs in the shallow river I had to navigate and the turns to take, pumped up by my earlier experience on a 4D3N canoe trip in New Zealand over a sacred river.
This kayak episode was smooth sailing and short-lived on the gentle river. Our kayaks were lightly swept by the river to the lodge. The paddles just ensured our kayaks were kept straight.
The German couple in the second group chose tubing, while the rest opted for ziplining.
Washup and Lunch at the Lodge
We arrived slightly later than the first group and made a dash to clean up as they tucked into a late lunch.
There are clean shower cubicles in the lodge with shampoo and body wash! A welcoming delight to wash up and ease into clean, dry clothes!
Lunch was rice with fried prawns, stewed beef, chicken cooked in sticky sweet sauce, stir-fried cabbage, raw cucumber slices with sambal condiment, and salted eggs. We were given packet drinks and a small plate of watermelon slices. As with morning tea, coffee and tea were complimentary.
Zipline at the Lodge
Just as when everyone was filled and satisfied, the lead guide started preparing the harnesses for those who did not take part in water activities.
The remaining us who chose to not take the zipline sat by the lodge and gazed at those who flew to the lodge from the other end of the river. Not a long zipline, but still exciting for the person doing it!
My partner and I secretly played a game to see who would recoil the furthest. 🙊
Bus back to Bandar Seri Begawan/ Gadong
We left the park at 5 PM, in time to catch the sun disappearing behind the horizon as we crossed the long bridge.
Instead of dropping at the Radisson, we alighted at The Centrepoint and explored Gadong Night Market for dinner!
Things to Bring for Ulu Temburong
- Waterproof Bag. Carrying only what’s needed for the trek. You can leave the rest in the lockers in the lodge.
- Water bottle. Fill it up with water. There’s no water refill point beyond the lodge.
- Airy clothes. Very humid and sweaty in the jungle.
- Grippy soled shoes. Planks and rocks are slippery.
- Swimwear. I wore mine underneath my airy clothes.
- Sun Protection. Wide brim hat, sunglasses, sun sleeves, sunblock.
- A set of clothes. It feels so refreshing to shower and change into fresh clothes after the trek.
Conclusion/ Rambles
Despite the punctured tyre mishap and low water level, visiting Ulu Temburong was surprisingly fun. While B$155 may be prohibitive to travellers watching their budget, several factors pushed us to pursue this activity.
What are the chances of us returning? Besides, the park is marked as a must-do nature activity in Brunei. I harboured hopes of seeing animals.
While we did not see any creatures or beasts due to the heat, we still enjoyed the package, especially the climb up the stair-towers. This climb isn’t for those wary of heights. But if you managed to give it a go, you’d be rewarded with an unblocked visage of the rainforest! Truly a rewarding day to reminisce on.
