The Wild Tropics of Kalimantan

Kalimantan is the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo, comprising three quarters of the island’s area. The non-Indonesian parts of Borneo are Brunei and the East Malaysian states, Sarawak and Sabah.

In 2019, President of Indonesia Joko Widodo proposed that Indonesia’s capital be moved to Kalimantan. The People’s Consultative Assembly approved the Law on State Capital in January 2022. The future capital, Nusantara, is a planned city that will be carved out of East Kalimantan. A government official said construction is expected to be fully complete by 2045.

The name Kalimantan is derived from the Sanskrit word Kalamanthana, which means “burning weather island” or “very hot island”, referring to its hot and humid tropical climate.

The native people of the Indonesian Borneo referred to their island as Pulu K’lemantan or “Kalimantan” when the sixteenth century Portuguese explorer Jorge de Menezes made contact with them.Due to Europeans encountering the Bruneian Sultanate in the north part of the island during the Age of Exploration, the entire island has come to be called Borneo in English.

Covering the southern part of Borneo, the Kalimantan landscape is characterized by dense jungles, winding rivers, and coastal areas, with limited infrastructure making rivers the main transport routes.

It is divided into five provinces: East, West, South, Central, and North Kalimantan.The area is a hotspot for wildlife, with habitats for Bornean orangutans, sun bears, clouded leopards, and hornbill birds.

Top Attractions include:

Tanjung Puting National Park: Famous for its orangutan rehabilitation and research center, Camp Leakey, often visited via traditional “klotok” houseboats.
Derawan Archipelago: Known for its beaches and diving spots.
Dayak Culture: Visitors can explore indigenous Dayak culture, including traditional longhouses, especially in the interior.
Floating Markets: Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan is known for its vibrant water-based markets.
Infrastructure is relatively basic: traveler’s often fly between major cities like Pangkalan Bun, Balikpapan, and Palangkaraya, utilizing river boats for deeper exploration.

Kalimantan is primarily a destination for adventure travel and eco-tourism, offering a more remote alternative to Malaysian Borneo.

Destination: Indonesia