This place stole my heart. Gorgeous primary forest teeming with wildlife and clean, clear waters. So peaceful and picturesque.

Nanga Sumpa Lodge is not luxury accommodations, nor even glamping, for that matter. It's a semi-comfortable, personal way to visit a remote Iban longhouse, experiencing the amazing beauty of the land and culture in authentic surroundings -- occasional warts and all.

A 3-day visit starting from Kuching is really more of a 1-day visit, as it takes nearly a full day to get to and from the lodge via transport and boat. For those willing to take the time and expense (not cheap), Nanga Sumpa longhouse and the surrounding trails and river are a unique Sarawak experience.

Our guided trip focused mostly on the natural wonders surrounding Nanga Sumpa, including a trek over the nearby hills, where we learned about the medicinal and poisonous properties of the various flora and fauna, as well as a detailed history of the settlements and people. This was followed by a boat trip upriver to a waterfall, where my wife and I enjoyed a private swim in paradise while our guides cooked us a traditional (and delicious) meal nearby, a unique memory that will last a lifetime.

We had several visits to the longhouse, both on our own and with our guide. The most memorable of these was an hour one evening spent with the chief, his brother, and a few other men, drinking rice wine and sharing details about our lives and cultures. They were as curious about us as we were about them, and the conversation flowed with the wine. Less engaging was the 'souvenir displays', which seemed to subtly imply that you should buy a trinket from every dwelling in the longhouse, and while this wasn't particularly costly, it did reinforce that in spite of the premium you might be paying to visit Nanga Sumpa, not much of that was making its way to the citizens.

Other reviewers have mentioned the limited electricity, lack of hot water, and general bugginess/dirt of the surroundings. All of that is true, as well as 24-hour rooster crows (most of which appear to be groomed for cockfighting), letting up only when the rain comes, which is frequent. It's hot and humid, meaning things don't dry quickly, if at all, and you need to bring in your own toiletries and towels. And while Borneo Adventure website shows idyllic room photos, complete with flowers on the desk and native bedspreads, our room was barren, save for a mattress cover and sheet, mosquito netting, and bare mattresses surrounding.

Eyes wide-open, we're glad we visited Nanga Sumpa, and our unique trek and waterfall magic were a highlight of an overall fascinating experience. Borneo Adventures has done a good job enabling visitors to spend time with people who are living a beautiful, simpler, and in some ways more challenging life, and that cultural immersion was what we expected and were glad to have received.

We stayed here for 2 nights as part of a tour with Borneo Adventures, we were a bit dubious but thoroughly enjoyed our stay because it was so different. The longboat journey was fun even though it was raining. Yes the lodge is basic so please don't have any hotel expectations, we stayed in a forest room, so had own toilet and shower, bed was off the floor and had mosquito net, we were actually pleasantly surprised. The food is also basic but very tasty. Our guide Rives from Borneo adventures was great and very knowledgable. He took us out trekking and we caught our first sighting of the orang-utans. The trip to the waterfall was good and the BBQ cooked by the Iban people in the bamboo was a great experience and something different. No air con or fan was a challenge but we were expecting this, it was lovely to fall asleep to the sound of the rainforest. Ensure you have your own towel as theses were not provided. Overall a great experience.