Brunei River Safari

One of the pleasures of Brunei is how close wilderness sits to the capital: within twenty minutes of the waterfront, boats turn into mangrove creeks where proboscis monkeys - the big-nosed, pot-bellied primates found only on Borneo - move through the trees in family groups, most reliably in the late afternoon. Saltwater crocodiles bask on the banks, monitor lizards swim across, and kingfishers work the channels. Evening trips continue to firefly trees, where thousands of insects synchronise their flashing in the mangroves after dark, which is the sort of thing that sounds embellished until you see it.

What you actually see

• Proboscis monkeys - the endemic Bornean primates in the mangroves.
• Saltwater crocodiles - basking on the creek banks.
• Firefly trees - synchronised flashing after dark on evening trips.
• Mangrove creeks - the channels within minutes of the capital.

When to go

Year round. Late afternoon is best for proboscis monkeys, which feed and settle before dusk; evening trips add the fireflies. Rain is possible any day and boats run through light showers.

Honest expectations

Boats are small and open with limited shade - sun and rain both reach you. Wildlife is wild and sightings vary, though proboscis monkeys are fairly reliable in the right creeks with a good boatman. Prices are negotiated at the waterfront and vary; agreeing route and duration first avoids disappointment. Mosquitoes on evening firefly trips are serious.

Nearby

Kampong Ayer, the capital's mosques and the Temburong district by boat.