Desa Dairy Farm, Kundasang – Must Visit In Sabah | Best Guide & Tips
No trip to Sabah would be complete without a visit to Desa Cattle Dairy Farm which is located at the scenic town of Kundasang. Also known as the “New Zealand of Sabah”, Desa Dairy Farm boasts one of the most breath-taking views of the Kundasang valley and majestic sights of the Mount Kinabalu range.
Situated on an elevation of 1600m/5200ft, Desa Dairy Farm is packed with locals every weekend as they come here to escape the hot and humid weather in Kota Kinabalu (KK). The temperature here is around 20°C / 68°F so do take along a windbreaker as it can get chilly on a windy day.
When should you visit Desa Dairy Farm?
Desa Dairy Farm is open daily between 8am – 5pm. Tickets to visit the farm is sold mainly online, however you can still try your luck and walk-in to purchase the tickets as they might still have some leftover. As the tickets are always sold out on weekends and public holidays, we suggest either buying your tickets ahead of time or visiting the dairy farm on a weekday.
Desa Dairy Farm Entrance Fees :-
Adult (age 13 years & above) – RM 5
Child (age 7 – 12 years) – RM 4
OKU (Disabled) & Below 7 years old – Free
*Children must always be accompanied by parents / guardians.
How to visit Desa Dairy Farm?
As Desa Dairy Farm is located on the Eastern side of KK, you will have to do a little bit of travelling to reach here. There are plenty of tours and agencies doing shuttle service to the farm, so transportation is not an issue. You can either:-
1. Rent a car. You can check out SoCar as they offer one of the best rates in town.
2. Take a taxi/e-Hailing ride such as Grab/Airasia Ride to Kundasang. Click here to get the best rates for AirAsia Ride! If you are considering this option, do note that it might not be possible to find a taxi/e-Hailing drivers who are willing to drive that far out of town. Therefore, we don’t recommend this option unless you are sure you can get a transport there.
How long is the journey to Desa Dairy Farm?
On average it should take you around 2:20 – 2:45 hours to cover the 100km+ drive to Desa Dairy Farm. However, it may take longer to get here as there is only a 1 lane road to Kundasang which is often congested due to the slower trucks and vehicles. We suggest starting your journey early from KK to maximise your time in Kundasang.
The roads leading up to Desa Dairy Farm are windy, a little steep and foggy at times, so be sure to take your time if you are driving here especially in the morning or evening. To make it easier to navigate, we have included the Google Maps directions here for your ease.
Can I stay overnight at Desa Farm?
Unfortunately, Desa Farm does not offer any accommodation for their visitors. But since there are plenty of homestays and hotels in Kundasang, finding one is not an issue. If its your first time visiting Kundasang, we’d highly recommend you to stay a night or two to check out all the other attractions in the Kundasang and Ranau area.
Any other attractions nearby Kundasang?
Yes, there are plenty of attractions in the area! However, the most popular attraction amongst tourists and locals is the Pekan Nabalu which is located along the way to Desa Dairy Farm.
Pekan Nabalu is one of our favourite places to stop before resuming our ascend up to Kundasang/Ranau area. Here, you can find a mini market, food stalls and souvenir shops selling their local produce and handicraft items. There is also a public washroom for you to ease yourself after a long drive from the city.
Besides checking out the mini market here, you can also enjoy the mesmerising view of Mount Kinabalu from the look-out point here. You can usually see the view of Mount Kinabalu early in the morning or just before sundown, when the mountain won’t be covered by the thick clouds.
Useful tips
- If you plan to drive here, ensure that your car tyre and brakes are working well
- Take your time when driving and don’t speed as there are plenty of blind corners here
- For those doing a day trip to Desa Dairy Farm, we suggest to leave the area before it gets dark (around 6 pm) as there are no street lights at certain areas of Kundasang
- Consider carrying along a windbreaker/jacket as it is chilly here
- Ensure to make your bookings online
- Please keep the area clean so others can enjoy its beauty too
- Make sure to carry along your camera to snap memorable photos
- Try the famous “Sinalau Bakas” (smoked wild boar) sold at the stalls along the way to Kundasang. Click here to get the location of the Sinalau Bakas!
- Consider spending a few days at Kundasang or Ranau to relax and unwind
So getting that out of the way, let’s find out what you can do at Desa Cattle Dairy Farm, Kundasang?
1. Enjoy the beautiful countryside scenery
As you drive along Desa Dairy Farm, you will be rewarded with a gorgeous countryside scenery with Mount Kinabalu as the backdrop. To top it off with that, you will also be able to spot the cattle grazing along the green pastures of the 199-hectares farm whilst you cool off with the chilly Kundasang weather.
The combination of all these views and experiences is what makes Desa Dairy Farm a popular spot among the locals.
There are also various granite boulders on the farm which you can climb up to get a nicer shot of the area. If you do decide to climb up, make sure to take extra precaution and climb at your own risk!
2. Feed the adorable calves
Located just beside the main building, is the mini barn which is one of our favourite spots at Desa Dairy Farm. Here, you can feed and pet the calves and kids for a small fee of RM 1 (bundle of grass) and RM 1.50 (bottle of milk). As cute as they are, these animals always seem to be hungry and can be seen lining up for more food!
3. Have a look at the milking process
Walk straight down from the mini barn and you will see the cow barn which is able to hold over 300 Holstein Friesian cattle at a time. Even though you are not allowed to touch them, you can still have a look at the milking process at the viewing bay which takes place between 3 – 5pm daily.
These Friesian cattle are the highest milk-producing dairy farm animal in the world!
Another processing plant which you can visit is located at the main building, where you can watch how the milk gets packed up into a carton. The raw milk processing here takes place between 10am – 3pm every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.
4. Check out the Desa Dairy Farm’s mini garden
Just after you exit the Desa Dairy Farm’s Agro Pen, there is a miniature version of Mount Kinabalu carved into the bolder of the rock. Just walk along the pathway and it will lead you a mini garden located on the right corner of the farm.
5. Try out Desa Dairy Farm’s latest dairy products
After all that walking around, you will very likely be exhausted and famished. This leads us to the final destination you have to check out, which is inside Desa Dairy Farm’s main building. Here, you will be able to try out their most popular and latest dairy products such as fresh milk, ice-cream, pudding, yogurt and delicious mozzarella cheese.
Their best selling product here is the ice-cream, so make sure to come here early, as the queue can be quite long. After we got our ice-cream, we walked to the side of the entrance where we could watch the cows grazing while enjoying our savoury dessert.
Have any experience or tips on visiting Desa Dairy Farm, Kundasang? Let us know and share your thoughts and questions in the comments section. We’d love to hear from you!
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