Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort Sarawak

Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort is the only Hilton Hotel in the world to have a traditional Iban longhouse design for the rooms. Found deep in the Sarawak jungles, the Hilton is located next to the Batang Ai Lake and is about 4-5 hours drive from Kuching town is Sarawak Borneo. I had to pleasure of visiting this place during my work in Borneo back in 2006 and again in 2007. Not many people from Malaysia have actually been there moreover to stay at this very unique Hilton Hotel and Resort.

Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort welcome boat jetty

Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort in Sarawak is also unique in a sense that the scenic journey starts from Kuching (capital of Sarawak) and it is a long drive considering that after Serian town, the highway leads back to the old one lane main road. A distance of 275 kilometers in total, I arrived here by noon and the first thing you see is a little jetty building and a huge lake called the Batang Ai Lake. This of course is in the district of Lubuk Antu which is a really small border town.

'Where is the Hilton', I asked my guide Selvem, he tells me 'Ahh, patience. We wait for the boat'. So there I was, waiting for a boat but to my surprise, an Iban long boat was arrange for this trip. A journey in a traditional long boat to the Hilton Batang Ai, how nice I thought. It took us about 20 minutes by long boat to reach the resort jetty.

On reaching the Hilton Resort, we are greeted by a long flight of stairs heading up. It was about 170 steps if I am not mistaken. Looking around while heading up, still no Hilton Hotel in sight. Then on reaching the top, there it is. Beautiful and absolutely quiet surrounded by lush tropical rainforest.

  General notice

Wong Irup lounge at the Hilton

The reception and the lounge area must have been one of the best I have seen in my life. Considering how they use the Sarawak cultural items to theme the area. Tastefully, unique and absolutely different from the common hotels you see all over. When I was there, there was hardly anyone around except for the staff. On asking where everyone was, the staff politely replied 'everyone's gone out for some nature adventure'.

Hilton Longhouse Resort rooms

Walking around the area, I see how the Sarawak Iban Longhouse design is laid. The rooms are all in one longhouse. Exactly how the Iban people live in real life, this is similar and of course with modern amenities like air conditioning, attached bathroom, coffee machine and television. There are a total of 11 blocks of longhouses with about 100 rooms available. There is a conference area too.

The Longhouse ruai (veranda)

The longhouse ruai (veranda) looks clean and well taken care. If you do manage to visit a actual Iban Longhouse, you will see that this is similar to their 100 year old longhouses.

Outside the Ruai (veranda)

Swimming pool in a rainforest

The resort has the basic amenities like a traditional spa (Borneo Oasis Wellness Center), karaoke, swimming pool, tennis courts, table tennis, walking and jogging track and a children's playground. There is a nice themed lounge in the main building called the Wong Irup lounge with a couple of pool tables and they have an all day restaurant called Nanga Mepi.

Traditional blow pipe lessons

However for nature activities, there are a ton to choose from. Start with the nature walks or book a fishing trip. You can also rent kayaks and explore the Batang Ai Lake. There are also sight seeing tours available and a canopy walk behind the resort with a decent hike to get there. At the resort, one can try their skills at using a traditional Iban blow pipe with the assistance of the friendly hotel staff.

Trekking at Batang Ai

A Canopy Walk right behind the Hilton is one of the places you will be visiting and so I did my Sarawak canopy walk here with my trusted personal guide Selvem. A nice short hike for about 10 minutes starting with a uphill trek then all the way in. You get to see a lot of flora and fauna along the way so if you are a nature lover, this would be excellent.

Iban Warrior Jamit anak Ngumbang grave site

Trekking through the Batang Ai rainforest, we came across a graveyard just before the canopy walk. According to legend, this tomb is about 120 years old and it belongs to a popular Iban Warrior and Chief named Jamit anak Ngumbang. You see a lot of mineral water bottles and tuak (rice wine) bottles placed on the head of the grave out of respect from the local Iban people who pass or live there. Especially during the Gawai Festival, they will also bring items for the spirit.

After a good trek and visit to the Canopy Walk, we headed back to the resort. The back roads leads you through a small pepper plantation which is the famous Sarawak Pepper. These pepper trees grow to an amazing height of over 10 feet tall. I took the liberty of posing to show the height of the Sarawak Pepper tree.

Journey back through the lake

The journey back to Kuching, same way in, same way out. Using the Iban long boat, we headed out passing some magnificent views of the lake with dead tree stumps sticking out of the waters. I would gladly come back here again to fully experience the natural Sarawakian rainforest surroundings at the Hilton Batang Ai. Something totally different from the normal hotels and resorts. Along the way, we made a quick stop at Lachau Town, an Iban Trading Post to have a cup of Sarawak's famous Teh C Peng Special.

If you are seeking a romantic honeymoon in Sarawak Borneo, this would be one of the perfect choices or that. But I must warn you that this is NOT your regular 5-Star Hilton Hotel. It is more of an exotic boutique  cum ethnic styled resort here.

Rroom rates/prices are about US$85-$100.

The Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort is apparently busy during the period of May till October. Also, the guest that check in there are mostly Europeans and Americans with some Australians. 99% foreigners mostly so do not expect seeing local South East Asians there.

The resort is also a very child friendly resort so check with them about children deals as there are quite a few available. Also, you might want to take note as the nearest local shop is a 20 minute boat ride across the Batang Ai Lake and another 20 minutes to the nearest town of Lubok Antu. You are in the middle of the rainforest when you come here.

Address and contact for the Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Sarawak;

Hilton Kuching
Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman
PO Box 2396, Kuching, 93748
Malaysia
Telephone: +60 (0)83 584388
Fax: +60 (0)83 584399

Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort Sarawak website
Reviews of Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort Sarawak from Trip Advisor

My final note - If you are planning on visiting Sarawak and want to experience something out of this world by living in a remote area of Borneo, you should consider staying at the Hilton Batang Ai Longhouse Resort.

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