Kota Kinabalu to Brunei by land

Understand

Getting from Kota Kinabalu to Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital of Brunei, can be seen as one leg of the "Borneo Overland Trail" which can be covered continuously between Tawau at the southeastern tip of Sabah, and Kuching at the southwestern end of Sarawak. Both states are part of Malaysian Borneo but the trail also requires you to pass through the expensive sultanate of Brunei which lies more or less in between the two states. The stretch covered by this leg can be both challenging and fascinating; challenging because it involves traveling through some of the more remote corners of Sarawak and Sabah where the roads may not be at their best. Traffic is light and, if you choose a more complicated route, public transport connections require a little more time to work out. The trip can also be fascinating because you will get to see what it's like to live in one of the richest countries in the world. The two endpoints are a striking contrast: the calm friendliness and religious focus of Brunei versus the international beach town atmosphere of Kota Kinabalu. This itinerary basically just shows you various ways to get from Kota Kinabalu to Bandar Seri Begawan within a day and does not leave you much time for any diversions (thankfully, there are not too many, although visiting the Pulau Tiga Park, Klias Wetlands, white-water rafting on the Padas River and even exploring to forests of the Ulu Temburong National Park in Brunei are some interesting ones) and opportunities to experience the relaxed atmosphere of the small remote towns along the way. Give it one or two more days and you will get to feel the places a little more.

Prepare

There isn't really that much for which to prepare as the route goes through many towns where you will be able to get food and drinks -- and accommodation if you get stranded -- without any problems. If you are driving, just make sure that your car is in good condition as there are many stretches where you'll have to wait for a while before you can thumb a lift to the nearest mechanic. As the route brings you across state and international borders (it's wonderful for passport stamp collecting -- a maximum eight entrance stamps and eight exit stamps if you choose the correct route), make sure you satisfy the necessary immigration requirements. Check with Brunei: Get in and Malaysia: Get in for details. If you need visas, make sure you get multiple entry ones as you'll be hopping in and out of Brunei and Malaysia several times. The thing you'll probably need the most is patience -- to wait for minivans or buses to show up, to wait for them to fill up, to wait for them to complete their rounds in town just to get more passengers, to wait out connections which don't work out, to wait out breakdowns, to wait in lines at ferry crossings and immigration checkpoints. Once you have mastered that, you'll see a pretty interesting Sabah rural life along the way.

Get in

Besides the two end-points of this itinerary, there are several places where you can join or leave the overland trail from Kota Kinabalu to Bandar Seri Begawan.

Kota Kinabalu: This is the start of the itinerary and you can get here by air, road and all modes of public transport from other parts of Sabah. See Kota Kinabalu's Get in section for details. Beaufort: This is the next major town where you can join the trail and there are several options: One of the most interesting ways to reach Beaufort is to take the train from Tenom in the interior of Sabah. Tenom can be reached by road from Kota Kinabalu and this allows you to have a much more interesting alternative to the direct Kota Kinabalu-Beaufort stretch. The train snakes along the Padas River and you can also go for a bit of white-water rafting here before rejoining the trail. However, you will not likely be able to make it to Bandar Seri Begawan in a day if you use this alternative. You can also reach Beaufort from Labuan, which can be reached from Kota Kinabalu by boat. From Labuan, you can take a ferry to Menumbok where you can catch minivans to Beaufort. This is another alternative to the direct Kota Kinabalu-Beaufort leg of the journey. Using this alternative route may also prevent you from making it to Brunei in a day. Lawas: The first big town you hit once entering Sarawak, Lawas provides you with a very interesting opportunity to leave the trail completely and head up to Ba Kelalan to visit the Kelabit Highlands. An ex-logging road links Lawas to Ba Kelalan and private four-wheel drives and trucks take passengers to the highlands. Limbang: From Limbang, you can take the Headhunter's Trail and head to the Gunung Mulu National Park. You can then fly out of the park to Miri, allowing you an alternative route that bypasses expensive Brunei. Bandar Seri Begawan: You can reach Brunei's capital by various means. See Bandar Seri Begawan's Get in section for details.

Go

There are several ways in which you can make the journey between Kota Kinabalu and Bandar Seri Begawan.

By plane The fastest and most comfortable, but also the most expensive way to travel from KK to Brunei is by plane. Royal Brunei Airlines and Malaysian Airlines operate one or two daily round trip services between Kota Kinabalu and Bandar Seri Begawan. The flight takes about 40 minutes.

By car

As of January 2010 there are two options for the road journey from Kota Kinabalu to Bandar Seri Begawan - road journey along route 1 in Sabah and route 1 sections 83 to 92, or by a ferry journey in Menumbok, a town about 80 km from Beaufort via route 1 and route 502 in Sabah. [1] . The car ferry is pricey but faster - advance booking is essential during public and school holidays. By road all the way even in your own car is taxing, taking anything between seven and ten hours. A lot of time is spent waiting at border checkpoints, at Sindumin/Merapok, Mengkalang/Labu, Ujong Jalan/Pandaruan and Tedungan/Kuala Lurah, which can get very busy with long lines during weekends and holidays. There is also a ferry crossing which can take time too. The ferry crossing at Trusan, Lawas has been replaced with a bridge. The journey is described in stages from Kota Kinabalu to Bandar Seri Begawan below. If you are traveling the other direction, just take the stages in reverse:

Kota Kinabalu to Beaufort (92 km): The drive out of Kota Kinabalu is quite straight forward and well signposted. Road conditions are good and the road heading south from the city is a dual carriageway until reaching the Sabindo Intersection, where there are two possible routes to take - through Papar or around it. Going through Papar saves a few kilometres but are usually full of slow-moving vehicles or even congested during most hours. Taking the old road along route 1 is usually faster although the journey is longer. From this intersection the road becomes a single carriageway two-lane road. The two routes meet at the Benoni Roundabout about 8 km from Papar. The journey continues on route 1 and passes through quiet coastal towns like Kimanis and Bongawan, where it leaves the coast to head to Beaufort. Jus

Go next

Traveling from Kota Kinabalu to Bandar Seri Begawan in a day can be seen as part of the Borneo Overland Trail which stretches from Tawau in the southeastern corner of Sabah, to Kuching in Sarawak. The usual next stop from Bandar Seri Begawan is Miri in northern Sarawak, which can be reached by road and bus. See Brunei's Get In section for details. If you are heading to Kota Kinabalu, then it is highly likely that you'll be setting your eyes on Mount Kinabalu. See Kota Kinabalu's Get In section for details. However, before you proceed along the trail towards the mountain, you could make a detour to the northern part of Sabah. Kota Belud has an interesting tamu (market) and Kudat bills itself being at the northern-most tip of Borneo.