The Borneo Happy Farm offers visitors a chance to get close to nature and learn about flora and fauna in Kuching.
While it isn’t exactly a zoo, it most certainly can double as one as there’s a lot of animals, insects, plants and so on to be seen here.
Last December, I brought my family to this farm to see and enjoy what the Farm had to offer and here’s what I can share about the whole trip.
Getting there
Due to the on-going construction of the Pan-Borneo Highway, getting to the Borneo Happy Farm is a bit confusing and can I say ‘dangerous’.
This is because road signage along the under construction highway is not only limited, but rather confusing at times.
The management of the Farm does put in effort to help visitors to the Farm by providing the map below, and signage along the way to the Farm.
However, getting into the junction leading to the road to the Farm can be tricky given the poor road signage under the Pan Borneo Highway.
Anyway, if you are from Kuching City, the journey to the Farm would take about 20KM or 40 – 45 minutes.
The route from the Batu Kawa – Tondong main road into the farm itself takes quite a distance and time given that it is a bit narrow although it’s sealed (tarred).
I drove slowly when navigating the road and the Google map below helped.
The Farm’s management marked the route to the farm adequately so it was very unlikely for me to get lost as well.
Borneo Happy Farm fees and tickets
Upon reaching the entrance of the Farm, a huge ‘Borneo Happy Farm’ greeted us.
There was a massive parking area for members of the public, but since it rained, I decided to drive into the ‘no cars’ area when I noticed a car came out from that same space.
I dropped my family down, and parked my car nicely in the ready parking space.
My wife went straight to the ticketing counter and made payment for all six of us.
The entry rates can be seen below. (You get better rates if you bring your Malaysian Identification)
Since it was raining, we paid an extra RM10 per person for the shuttle service.
However, I think if you are able to walk, I would not advice you to take the shuttle service since the Farm itself isn’t as huge as I anticipated.
On top of that, we actually had to walk about 400 meters before we were able to take the shuttle service we had subscribed.
Animals, plants and more
The first station was dedicated to fishes and aptly called ‘Arowana Station’.
I was personally amazed by the massive sizes of the Arowana fishes in the ponds as shadows of these fish swim in the lake as you can see below. (A clearer video of the fish can be seen at the end of this post)
Nearby, there were a lot of aquariums housing different kinds of fishes which my kids and her nephew and niece really enjoyed.
They practically shirked with excitement as we entered the Bunny Station which had rabbits and guinea pigs as they all loved furry animals which they deem to be ‘so cute’.
Me, not so much, but I did take photos of the animals.
I bought three small containers of vegetables and fruits meant for the two furry animals so that the kids could feed these animals.
Next up, I think we should have gone to the Longevity Village, but in our excitement to take the shuttle, we somewhat skipped that area unintentionally.
We instead arrived at the Savanna Station which had horses.
I was told the horses came from Sabah.
Since it was raining, we could only pet them although one could ride them if the weather was better.
There were also goats and cows here, with a huge Tapang tree being the main destination at this section.
This area is partially covered, so we only explored the covered area and didn’t walk to the Tapang tree which was about 200m away from the covered walkway.
The next station we went was the Tropical Rainforest which had displays of insects and snakes.
They had displays on spiders and ants as well, but taking photos with snakes were the main attractions. I opted not to take any photos because I personally do not like snakes.
As we walked to the next station, we saw snakes being kept in different glass compartments with some even being stored above us. Seeing a snake from below is quite a sight, but I forgot to take photos of the snakes because it does sort of creep me out.
I believe this section was also called ‘Wildlife corridor’ because there were also other animals there as well.
The next station was dedicated to vegetation with the Borneo Happy Farm planting fauna which one could find abundant in villages.
These plants are marked and there is also a brief description under each plant.
For someone like me who grew up largely in the kampung, it was still quite fascinating to read what the description said as I did pick up a thing or two from it.
In between the plants there were also man made statues which I thought were a nice addition and good for photo taking.
By the time we reached this area, the kids were starting to ask for food, so we skipped any other attractions and started to walk to the cafe.
I believe there is more to explore in the farm, but kids are cranky when hungry and the rain was no help either.
Food and drinks at Borneo Happy Farm
The restaurant is divided into two areas, with the right side is dedicated to ethnic groups in Sarawak.
Here, I saw traditional attires and equipment’s which are used by highlighted tribes in Sarawak which include the Ibans, Bidayuhs, Chinese, Malays and Melanau.
The second section, or left side, housed the restaurant which consist of the eating area and cooking area.
Food is prepared in the open concept kitchen.
There is limited choices of food and drinks at the restaurant at the farm which range from western dishes, instant noodles and also local delights such as Nasi Lemak and Curry Rice.
I ordered the Curry Rice and I thought it was quite nice. The kids were also happy with their respective meals.
Borneo Happy Farm operating hours
At about 3PM, we decided to head home because we were informed that some of the roads leading to the farm have been partially flooded by about 20cm.
I didn’t want to take the risk to stay longer and maybe get stranded there although the workers reassured us it was unlikely.
Anyway, if you are interested to go here, the Farm opens every Friday, Saturday, Sunday and on Public Holidays from 9.30AM – 5.00PM.
The Farm closes its ticket counter at 3.30PM, so if you can’t reach by then, choose another day.
Conclusion
Overall, I think Borneo Happy Farm is a good place to bring kids especially if they are animal loving ones.
Going to such place allows them to stay away from smart gadgets for a couple of hours, and I do think it’s also an educational experience for them as a whole.
That said, I also made a short video of the visit which you can view below.
Else, check out the links below to read or enjoy related articles to this post.
- Find more attractions in Kuching
- See events in Kuching
- Buy Dayak tribal costumes
- Buy pet food
- Check out what you can eat in Kuching
