01 / THE PHOTOGRAPHIC JOURNEY
Go beyond the view.
Photograph coastal and ocean scenery on boat trips; daily islands, routes and landing conditions await operator confirmation. Plan to visit nearby Bajau communities and photograph daily life with residents' agreement; visit details await confirmation. Plan one night in a water chalet and photography around Semporna's fishing harbour; hotels and sea conditions await confirmation.
Island landscapes
Photograph coastal and ocean scenery on boat trips; daily islands, routes and landing conditions await operator confirmation.
Coastal village life
Plan to visit nearby Bajau communities and photograph daily life with residents' agreement; visit details await confirmation.
Water chalet and fishing harbour
Plan one night in a water chalet and photography around Semporna's fishing harbour; hotels and sea conditions await confirmation.
The journey in pictures
Leading photographers: Jiawei Jiang →
Destination illustrations · select a photo to explore
02 / IN GOOD COMPANY
A different way of seeing.
Leading photographers
Jiawei Jiang · View photographer profile →
Jiawei Jiang
Specializes in landscape and drone aerial photography. He has travelled independently to more than 200 cities and regions across China to create photographic work. These include Tibet, Xinjiang, Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan, Yunnan, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Chongqing, Guangxi, Hunan, Anhui, Hubei, Shandong, Heilongjiang, Beijing, Fujian, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hong Kong and Macao. His overseas destinations include Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia and Vietnam.
03 / THE DAYS AHEAD
A rhythm shaped by light.
Shooting locations, accommodation and transport are subject to confirmation before departure and may change with the weather.
Daily islands, landing conditions, sea conditions, boat trips and underwater activities await operator confirmation; no named island is currently confirmed.
Itinerary dates and text times without their own zone use: Asia/Kuching。Exact times use your selected timezone; dates alone and descriptions such as “morning” are not converted.
DAY 01Apr 6 · Asia/KuchingDay 1: China–Tawau
Fly to Tawau and transfer by road and boat to the planned water chalet. Flights, transfers and hotel await operator confirmation.
Accommodation:Lelebang Water Chalet Resort or equivalent
Final arrangements follow the operator’s departure briefDAY 02Apr 7 · Asia/KuchingDay 2: Bajau community and island photography (islands to be confirmed)
After breakfast, attend the photography briefing and receive boat-trip equipment and life jackets. Visits to nearby Bajau communities and islands are planned, respecting residents' wishes. Islands, routes and visits await operator confirmation; return to the hotel after photography.
Accommodation:Seafest Hotel or equivalent
Final arrangements follow the operator’s departure briefDAY 03Apr 8 · Asia/KuchingDay 3: Fishing harbour and island photography (islands to be confirmed)
Photograph near the hotel, fishing harbour and market in the morning. After breakfast, a boat trip for island landscapes and local life is planned; the two islands and route await operator confirmation. Return to the hotel afterward.
Accommodation:Seafest Hotel or equivalent
Final arrangements follow the operator’s departure briefDAY 04Apr 9 · Asia/KuchingDay 4: Coastal community and island photography (islands to be confirmed)
After breakfast, a boat trip for coastal communities and island scenery is planned. The two islands, route and visits await operator confirmation. Return to the hotel afterward.
Accommodation:Seafest Hotel or equivalent
Final arrangements follow the operator’s departure briefDAY 05Apr 10 · Asia/KuchingDay 5: Tawau–China
Transfer to Tawau Airport at the designated time and fly back to your welcoming home in China.
Final arrangements follow the operator’s departure briefWhere we stay
Day 1: Lelebang Water Chalet Resort or equivalent Day 2: Seafest Hotel or equivalent Day 3: Seafest Hotel or equivalent Day 4: Seafest Hotel or equivalent Hotels and final stays await operator confirmation.
Getting there
[Reference services] Reference services for this trip: Outbound: April 6: Guangzhou–Tawau AK1617/03:30–07:10 Return: April 10: Tawau–Guangzhou AK1618/22:00–01:30+1 Before booking transport, please confirm the departure and travel arrangements through this website. Services are for reference only. Final transport and meeting times await operator confirmation.
04 / A CLEAR PICTURE
Know what is included.
Platform service fee to be confirmed
Deposit USD 746.53 Original CNY 5,000 · Reference rates 2026-09-18 · Frankfurter / person
Included
Photography instruction and services from the photography instructor throughout the trip.
All local transportation (boats);
Accommodation throughout (one night in an overwater bungalow);
Itinerary meals (dinner at the overwater bungalow and all lunches included; 3 dinners excluded, with seafood available to buy at the market and have cooked);
Insurance for the trip;
Not included
Round-trip transport between your departure city and the destination;
Three dinners during the trip;
In exceptional circumstances caused by force majeure, such as natural disasters, war, strikes, or airline delays or cancellations, the organizing team may cancel or alter the itinerary. We may charge additional expenses at expense, including extended overseas accommodation, meals, transportation, and national airfare adjustments, while doing our best to minimize everyone's losses;
amounts above exclude tax. An additional invoice tax charge applies if an invoice is required.
Personal expenses;
Additional attractions or activities outside the itinerary;
Other unspecified additional service charges and personal expenses.
Service fees, supplements, taxes and the final total are subject to written confirmation.
05 / BEFORE YOU GO
Clarity before departure.
Availability and registration
This website accepts expressions of interest in this trip and does not synchronize the operator's remaining places in real time. Please contact us to confirm group departure, availability, the final quotation and booking conditions.
Cancellation and breach provisions
Before departure, participants and the organizing team may sign a written travel contract or give notice terminating the trip agreement. The contract is legally binding. If termination is requested more than 30 days before departure, excluding day 30, neither party is liable for breach. Days are calculated by subtracting the date the termination notice is received from the departure date; the same calculation applies below. If the organizing team terminates the agreement, all travel fees must be refunded without deducting visa or entry-permit fees. If a participant terminates after a visa or entry permit has been processed or a flight booked, the relevant visa, entry-permit and flight cancellation charges are deducted. The organizing team must refund the travel fees within 5 working days of receiving the termination notice. If either party terminates within 30 days of departure, including day 30, the terminating party bears liability for breach. [Liability of the organizing team] If the organizing team terminates the trip agreement within 30 days of departure, including day 30, it must refund all travel fees without deducting visa, entry-permit or similar charges, and pay compensation according to the following schedule: 30 to 15 days before departure: compensation of 2% of the total trip fee; 14 to 7 days before departure: compensation of 5% of the total trip fee; 6 to 4 days before departure: compensation of 10% of the total trip fee; 3 to 1 days before departure: compensation of 15% of the total trip fee; On the departure date: compensation of 20% of the total trip fee. If this compensation does not cover the participant's actual losses, the organizing team must compensate those actual losses. The organizing team must refund the full trip fee and pay compensation within 5 working days of receipt of the cancellation notice. [Participant liability] Participants terminating the agreement within 30 days of departure must pay the organizing team a business-loss charge according to the following schedule: 30 to 15 days before departure: 5% of the total trip fee; 14 to 7 days before departure: 15% of the total trip fee; 6 to 4 days before departure: 70% of the total trip fee; 3 to 1 days before departure: 85% of the total trip fee; On the departure date: 90% of the total trip fee; If these percentages do not cover the organizing team's actual losses, the participant must compensate the actual losses, up to the total trip fee. After deducting the business-loss charge, the organizing team must refund the remaining travel fees within 5 working days of receiving the participant's cancellation notice.
Trip information
[Registration] Registration for this trip is confirmed upon receipt of the deposit. [Transport] 1. Flights booked by the organizing team are economy-class group tickets. Once issued, they cannot be endorsed to another carrier or refunded. 2. Actual flight, driving and boat travel times on the day apply. 3. Airlines and flight schedules above are for reference only. Changes to flight times may require minor itinerary adjustments; the departure notice takes precedence. [Accommodation] The total is based on 2 people sharing 1 room. We will try to pair solo participants with another participant of the same gender. Participants who do not wish to share, or cannot be matched, must pay the single supplement for a room of their own. [Group meals] We try to choose meals suited to Chinese tastes and ensure that every guest receives an adequate portion. [Photography] 1. Photography activities follow the itinerary. In exceptional circumstances, time spent photographing each location will depend on the actual conditions that day. 2. Please read this itinerary carefully and choose a photography trip suited to your circumstances. If you give up part of the itinerary for personal reasons, including health, or request to forgo accommodation or transport, this is considered voluntary withdrawal. expenses already incurred are non-refundable. You are responsible for your personal safety while not participating in the itinerary. 3. Participants may not leave the group without permission during group photography activities, except during free time. Leaving partway through the trip is considered a breach by the participant. Unused photography activities, meals, accommodation and vehicle services are non-refundable, and the organizing team is not responsible for accidents occurring while the participant is away from the group. 4. If force majeure events such as typhoons or blizzards prevent travel according to the agreed itinerary, additional or reduced expenses following changes will be settled according to the travel agency's actual group operating expenses. [total adjustments] the organizing team reserves the right to adjust amounts if major fluctuations in international oil amounts cause substantial increases in fuel surcharges. If the increase is within what we can absorb, the trip fee will not be adjusted. [Departure notice] 1. The departure notice will be sent no later than 1 day before departure. If arrangements are confirmed earlier, we will notify you as soon as possible. 2. If the online itinerary differs from the departure notice, the departure notice takes precedence. [Optional activities at your own expense] Under the Tourism Law provisions prohibiting travel agencies from organizing or arranging optional activities at additional expense, guests wishing to join such activities should contact the service provider themselves for information, amounts and participation. If language difficulties lead you to ask a guide or tour leader for additional assistance, any paid or unpaid help is provided solely in that person's individual capacity, not on behalf of the organizing team or the local receiving agency. the organizing team has no involvement in the expenses, transaction amounts or service standards of free-time activities; guests bear the outcomes themselves.
Additional shared expenses
Meals, staged photography, supplies and instructor expenses outside the included services may be shared separately. The scope and distinction from included services await operator confirmation before registration.
Fitness, equipment and conditions
Equipment and fitness requirements will be provided by the operator.
