Kota Kinabalu Wetland Ramsar Site — Attraction in Borneo

Location of appreciation of natural beauty and the recognition of humid ecosystem within the Kota Kinabalu area.

This place does not quite know, though it is located just behind the city; with just a little effort (many ways to get here), you will enjoy the atmosphere of the mangroves and the salt water stream from Likas Bay to fill this space according to the tides.

For bird enthusiasts, you can observe the behavior of birds that feed on fly birds and small fish brought by sea water during high tide.

The unique noise disturbance of God's living dwelling on this colony gives a very special experience; original sounds and sometimes goosebumbs.

When visiting here, do not forget to bring a camera (or smartphone) to capture the moments that are hard to see elsewhere. He will also be a sweet memories after seeing with his own eyes the beauty of the natural creation of God; whose location is just behind the modern city.

For those who have not been here, or who want to know some of the backgrounds of the existence and preservation of this place and are kept in a sustainable and orderly manner, here is the story shared by the preservation and conservation of this place:

In the 1980s, A group of environmentalists from WWF-Malaysia and their peers came across the Likas swamp and proposed the ideo of lobbying this area for protection. In 1996, the environmetalists met the Sabah Chief Minister, who was instrumental in approving the designation of the Likas Mangrove as a bird sanctuary to protect the area. Under the directive of the State Government, the Likas Sanctuary Management Committee (LWSMC) was established for an initial period of three years as the coordinating mechanism for planning and implementation of development of the Likas Wetlands area as a conservation area. WWF Malaysia was approved by LWSMC as the technical consultant to produce the Development and Management Plan of the site.

The Management Committee was formerly made up of 16 component members including government agencies, private organizations, community groups and local NGOs, each separately constituted and registered. Together, they formed a unique collaborative partnership aimed to benefit the larger urban and sub-urban community of Kota Kinabalu.

If you are a Sabah citizen, or live in Kota Kinabalu district; you are not legally holding a KK person if you have never been here; what else, do not know where this place is. More if you do not know the existence...

I have to preface this by saying I actually didn’t pay to enter—but only because I waited at the counter for quite some time and no one was there to attend to me. So, I just went in anyway. Even after I finished walking around and returned to the counter, there was still no one there.

The place is nice enough—not sure what more you’d expect from a mangrove forest. Some parts are unkempt, though: the signs look moldy and worn, and trash (bottles, worn sandals, plastic bags) was scattered around the forest—probably brought in by flooding. Even the boardwalks felt sketchy, like they could give way at any moment. There’s an observation deck as well, but the trees have overgrown it, so you can't really see much from the top. Fortunately, I did see a few birds, but most were probably scared off by visitors. The forest is also surrounded by housing areas, a golf range, and a sports centre, so it’s not particularly inviting for birds or other wildlife. You are likely to find tree climbing crabs everywhere in the forest though.

The whole walk likely takes about an hour—or more if you’re stopping to watch birds and the like. You might want to bring binoculars, as some of the birds are deeper in the forest and hard to spot with the naked eye. I think you can also walk into the swamp if you have the proper gear? Not too sure...

If you've been in more mangroves over the world, it would surprise you that this one costs money. The entrance fee is very expensive, 20 RM for foreigners (it's ridiculous that this parks has different prices for tourists and locals) and 15 RM for children.

I could accept this costs if you'd feel you are helping to maintain this part of the mangrove. But the path is terribly maintained and there's a lot of plastic in the mangrove.

I understand they do their best to filter the garbage out of the river coming from the illegal housing. But there's still so much rubbish in the mangrove itself that I don't understand why a staffmember wouldn't remove it. Especially with tourists paying that much. It's also weird to read about how to take care of the environment, but they don't remove the trash here.

Also, you have to rent binoculars or rubber boots! This should be included in the high entrance fee if someone wishes to use them.

So, the mangrove was very disappointing. Not because of the mangrove forest itself, because it's exactly like a mangrove should be. But because of the rubbish, bad condition of the boardwalk and the high fee. So, it's absolutely not worth your money.

It would have been fine for no fee at all or a lower fee...