Guided Tours to Become Mandatory for Bako National Park Visitors Starting 2026

suppadmin | September 3, 2025

Starting in 2026, all visitors to Bako National Park will be required to join guided tours, announced Deputy Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts, Datuk Sebastian Ting Chew Yew.

He said the move is aimed at ensuring a more structured visitor experience while raising awareness about environmental conservation and biodiversity in Sarawak’s oldest national park.

“When this policy takes effect, every visitor will need to engage the services of a park guide. Payments will be standardised to ensure fairness,” he explained after officiating the Park Guide Training Course in Bako on Tuesday.

Currently, Sarawak has 231 active park guides out of 400 licensed guides. With the addition of 31 new guides currently undergoing training in Bako, the number has risen to 262.

Datuk Sebastian added that under the Post-Covid-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030, the government has set a target of training at least 300 park guides by 2030. With the present numbers, only 38 more are needed to meet the target.

He also highlighted that Bako National Park welcomed more than 47,000 visitors last year, while in July this year alone it recorded 27,000 visitors. The total is expected to equal or surpass last year’s figures.

Datuk Sebastian further expressed appreciation to local residents, especially those from Kampung Bako, for taking part in the training programme as guides and contributing to strengthening Sarawak’s position as a leading ecotourism destination in the region.