Encompassing a spectacular tract of pristine rainforest and high mountains in Sarawak’s northern interior, this is the state’s top national park, and one of the few in the country designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The accolade derives in no small part from the presence here of the Pinnacles. But the famous, grey-blue limestone shards soaring above the forest canopy share the limelight with a cave network astonishing both for the size and depth of its caverns.

Access to Mulu is easiest by plane. Visitors fly direct to the well organized Park HQ, site of the five-star Mulu Marriott, whose longhouse-like buildings stand on stilts amid the jungle. Popular guided treks in the park include circuits of the main show caves, the largest of which boast passages up to 2km long and 170m tall, and the route through the forest to the great Pinnacles themselves. You’ll also have numerous opportunities to swim in idyllic river pools, discover waterfalls deep in the forest, and watch clouds of bats streaming from the mouths of the world’s deepest caves.