The Pinay Solo Backpacker

Crossing overland to Brunei from Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia is just one part of the Malaysian Borneo Overland Trail which stretches from Tawau to Kuching in Sarawak.

How to get to Brunei from Kota Kinabalu:

By Ferry :

Ferry tickets are sold at Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal Building at Jalan Haji Saman, make sure you have your passport with you when buying the tickets. There are 2 ferry trips : Monday-Saturday 8AM and 3PM for a packaged ferry trip (KK-Labuan and Labuan-Brunei) for RM56  inclusive of RM3 departure tax.  But you still have to fall in line again at the ticket office in Labuan to pay for the RM10 departure tax.

Alternatively, you can just buy a ticket to Labuan (Malaysia)  for RM35 /3 hours/ Monday-Saturday 8AM and 3PM.   There’s a RM3 terminal fee included in the ticket.  Once in Labuan, you have the option to take the 12PM trip or the 1:30 PM trip. You need to buys another ticket again from Labuan to BSB if you opt for this option and pay for the RM10 departure tax.

It is highly recommended that you book a day early if you’re leaving on a public holiday or a weekend or arrive as early as 7am at the port.  You can walk to the port from the city center (10-20minutes).

At the Serasa Ferry Terminal of Brunei, passengers have to go through immigration.  Take note that you are only allowed to bring into Brunei 2 bottles of hard liquor and 12 cans of  beer and it against the law to consume alcohol in public, no worries because you can consume it in your hotel room!

You can exchange your Malaysian ringgit to B$ at the money exchange center at the port but I would recommend to just exchange just a few B$ to cover for the fare to BSB and exchange the rest of your money at the city where the exchange rate is better.  Make sure you ask for receipt, money exchange center employees has a habit of NOT giving the exact exchange so stay safe, ask for receipt. You can also use Singaporean dollar in Brunei, by the way.

By Bus:

Long distance buses to Brunei leaves from Merdeka Field Bus Station at Jalan Padang. Not sure about the time and fare for bus, just the bus leaving from Brunei to KK.

3 Bus routes:

1.  Get on a bus in KK to Bandar Seri Begawan (BSB) Brunei.  The bus leaves daily from KK bus terminal.

2. Take a bus to Munumbuk – then take a  ferry to Muara  and finally, public bus to Bandar Seri Begawan (BSB) Brunei.

3.   Take a bus to Lawas then Bandar Seri Begawan (BSB) Brunei.

Some midrange hotels and guesthouses in BSB is just walking distance from the bus station. Check out KH Soon Rest House (building is along the rows of HSBC Bank near the river and the market) where I stayed for B$30 per day (with AC/2 beds/communal CR). The Brunei Tourism Office is also on the same building (2nd Floor  while KH Resthouse is on the 3rd floor).  Or you can ask around for the cheapest guesthouse at B$10 a night, the hostel is called Pusat Belia (only learned about this from the Filipino bus dispatcher when I was about to leave Brunei. Fail!)

*This is part of my Brunei series.

*********************************************************************************************** About the Blogger : Gael is a Filipina solo adventurer, a dream chaser and a student of life.  Her (mis) adventures are documented in this blog. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter. For advertisement, partnerships and sponsorship, click here. or email me at thepinaysolobackpacker(at)yahoo(dot)com. **********************************************************************************************

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