Tampat Do Aman

My group of 13 stayed here for 5 nights as part of our ‘project phase’ of our expedition; on arrival, we were astounded by the variety of jungle wildlife yet safely controlled environment. The owner, Howard, came and greeted us, before telling us to change into long sleeved and trousers to ward off the bugs. He introduced us all to his home and himself, before warning us of certain wildlife elements (i.e. snakes, of which we saw none) and giving us a verbal tour of the site. We were staying in the traditional longhouse, which is designed for ventilation and comfort. The rooms differed, from doubles to twins to bunks, but all were comfy. I stayed in a 2-bunk room, which was a bit of a squeeze for 3 girls, but just about spacious enough. The wall-mounted fans kept us cool throughout the day, a blessing after a hard day’s work in the jungle. The shower facilities were great, clean and with a lower back wall so that you could admire the jungle whilst cleansing. The toilets were compostable, which at first we were all dubious about, but in actual fact they were fine, clean and something you got used to over a few days’ use! My group stayed here to help with renovating the wildlife reserve across the road, so we carried out tasks such as cementing bridges, creating steps and clearing paths, so as to make the jungle more navigable for educational purposes. The only thing that was a drawback, which was due to the authentic jungle location not the accommodation, was the sheer amount of bugs; again, something you got used to with time and a healthy amount of anti-histamine, something that actually made the experience all the more natural and better for it - just bring bug spray! The food at night was delicious and healthy, varied but with chicken and veggie options for lunch and dinner, and the choice of jam or fried egg on toast for breakfast. There is also a tuck-shop, for canned drinks, sweets, t-shirts, jewellery and even homemade cakes that changed regularly. About a 30 minute walk, or a few minutes’ drive, from Tampat do Aman there sits a beautiful beach, like something out of a fairytale; a dip in the sea topped off the already unforgettable stay! Overall, the passion of Howard and his family for their mission, the beaty of the location and the comfort of the accommodation was incredible. Everyone here was overwhelmingly friendly, so welcoming it felt immediately as if we were part of the family.

We had an amazing stay here, Howard the host was great, always available to help in person or via message. Gave us so much information about the local area and places to visit. He even brought out my mum a candle and cake for her birthday, very thoughtful and personal experience.

We stayed in Tampat Do Aman at the Tip of Borneo for 3 nights in August 2022. We were on our journey around Sabah and that was definitely one of the highlights. We stayed in a fan-cooled chalet (one of three available there, there are also two family chalets). Tampat Do Aman is in fact a jungle-garden. It is a real maze of little pathways that take you to the common spaces (verandas where you can chill and meet other travellers), breakfast area, traditional rungus huts (not available for accomodation at the moment), Rungus museum (one space with really interesting bite-size info about local traditional culture), long-house and the vegetable garden (probably I have not mentioned everything). It is truly unique! As the place is a bit further from the beach Howard was giving us a lift to the beach and back to the resort – it was very convenient. You can also walk if you want. The coastline is a marvel! Long, sandy beaches, wonderful, warm sea (although a bit rough when we were there, but that made surfers happy). The area was visibly recovering after the pandemic but there were a few cafeterias and family run restaurants open (great food!), so having a meal at the beach was not a problem. Many resorts or diving/surf centres seem to be half-open, the staff taking the opportunity to do some maintenance work – getting ready for more tourists to come back (check for availability if you plan some diving/surfing before arriving). We definitely recommend giving it a try once you are in Sabah. If it is not for amazing nature, quiet, laid-back atmosphere and local indigenous Rungus people (really sweet and friendly) you should come to meet Howard! He is a fantastic character that knows Sabah inside-out and will share everything you need to know to make your Sabah holiday into a great adventure. He also has an impressive experience and fascinating stories to tell about his eco-resort (with sustainability and self-sufficiency as core values), social projects he and his team is involved in, and also current affairs of the area (how local people fight to preserve nature). Apart from enjoying the beach our favourite activity was simply having long, relaxed breakfasts and talking to Howard. Keep in mind it is not a 5-star resort, there are mosquitos, crazy tokay geckos (the sounds they make are surreal), mangos falling from trees and sometimes ants might invade your bathroom, but you get to stay in a jungle-garden in return and connect with, as well as understand much more about the place you are visiting than you usually do. And that is simply priceless. We have left the place refreshed and inspired.

We loved our stay at Tampat do Aman. Arriving there after being in the busyness of KK it was a very welcome break. Best bits: - Howard and his lovely wee family were incredibly welcoming and had all the local links and insights you could wish for. We loved having dinner with them (Howard is a great cook!) and they went the extra mile, calling companies to book activities and driving us to the beach each day. We joked that we wouldn't know how to manage without our holiday planner! - the chalets were a great balance between comfort and not imposing too many mod cons on a very natural space. This allowed us to enjoy the sounds of the lizards, monkeys, gorgeous birds, cicadas and the general buzz of the jungle space while still being able to get a good nights' sleep. - The ethos of the place is perfect and worth spending your money on! The family are part of the community and involved in setting up a local rugby team, organising beach cleans, have provided a lot of local employment and inspire visitors to learn more about Rungus culture (even a hut dedicted as a Rungus museum, super interesting!) and local nature. - the list could go on, but as a final thing, the BEACH! Both days we had the beautiful beach with its turquoise waters to ourselves in the morning. This was amazing and the beach never had more than 7 or 8 small groups on it later in the day. Great for us but also a sad feature of the impact of the pandemic. It has damaged tourism here hugely and so well worth visiting to build it back up again. A few thoughts: - We did a night in the long house too which was more basic but still a fab place to stay and they are building a brand new one too. It is more 'at one with nature' and so open to the unpredictability of nature... so might not be everyone's cup of tea but is fitting with the traditional Rungus ways which is fab! - The business was hit hard by the pandemic and so some repairs/up-keep have had to wait (e.g., some chalets no longer useable and board walks needing repair). But as things pick up again this will become easier. - Borneo is full of incredible wildlife and this place aims to exist in harmony with it, so come prepared to see the unexpected (both beautiful and a little scary at times!) around the grounds.

Ontzettend gastvrij ontvangen door Howard, die alles weer aan het opstarten is na de pandemie. Unieke locatie. Howard is een persoon met 1000 verhalen en ervaringen, hij denkt mee en doet veel met de bevolking en lokale projecten. Door de pandemie, tekorten aan vrijwilligers en grootte van het complex moet er nu weer eea gerenoveerd worden. Veel muggen tijdens de zonsondergang maar wat een natuur. Ook prachtige stranden, helemaal verlaten. Wij hadden een scooter gehuurd in Kota Kinabalu en waren zo flexibel om de omgeving te verkennen.