Kota Kinabalu

[Englishman2010]

Has anyone been there? What's it like? What is there to do?
I'm in Brunei/Borneo for a couple of weeks next month and was thinking of heading over to KK for a few days. Cheers

[Terpe]

To be honest, I'd never even heard of it until I met someone in the Hard Rock Cafe in Kuala Lumpur who actually came from it. Unbelievable.
I don't think I've ever heard of it since that meeting.

BTW, better to be very careful in the Hard Rock Cafe in Kuala Lumpur.

Sorry Englishman not much use for you I'm afraid

[purple]

Hi Englishman.. hubby's been there and went to climb the Mt. Kinabalu and went to there forest. It is not a big city I think like KL. Will pm you in FB I'll ask hubby.

[Englishman2010]

No problem Terpe

Thanks for the tip, as it happens I'll be a very long way from KL, but if I ever go there I'll give the HR cafe a miss

[Englishman2010]

Hi Englishman.. hubby's been there and went to climb the Mt. Kinabalu and went to there forest. It is not a big city I think like KL. Will pm you in FB I'll ask hubby.

Thanks Purple

[Rosie1958]

Hi Englishman

I went to Kota Kinabalu in 2007 and it's very different to Kuala Lumpur (been to KL 4 times) and much smaller in comparison.

The main attraction appears to be the mountain and there were plenty of enthusiasts in the area wanting to climb it. Both the airport and KK town were quite under- developed when I was there although building works were in progress. There were open sewers in the town and very smelly in places, etc. There was a filipino night market and a number of open air eating places with entertainment and food stalls that people were enjoying.

There were also a number of shifty looking characters on street corners at night which made us feel uncomfortable. Despite taking precautions, I was heavily feasted on by the local mosquitos at night. There were a few water sports available and we were lucky enough to take a helicopter trip from our resort around the bay which was a great experience. One can't visit Borneo without seeing the orangutans and we went to a small reserve next to another Shangri-la resort about 45 minutes drive away but many choose to fly very early in the morning to an island in search of the orangutan in their natural habitat.

Glad I went as I love travelling to different places and our resort was very nice but wouldn't go back again as there wasn't much there and I'm not into mountain climbing. However, I would be interested to know how it has been developed since my trip so if you do go, it would be good to hear what it's like now .......

[Englishman2010]

Many thanks Rosie TBH you've described it very much how it looks to me on the various internet searches I've done, so I'm not going there expecting it to be a tropical beach paradise with western sanitation. I'll probably go there for 2 or 3 days only, as I don't think there's much to offer except the mountain and nature reserves, but as you say, no trip to Borneo is complete without seeing the orangutans.
Brunei will be my base, and I would like to see as much of northern Borneo (Sabah & Sarawak) as possible, and ideally some great beaches. If anyone has any tips on where to go, how long it will take from Brunei and what the local transportation is like, that would be very useful info

[stevewool]

hi there Ian , the places i go to around the world has 2 places in Sarawak, Kucking the place is never been myself Damia beach resort is 1 and riverside majestic the other, if intrested we could do a deal

[Englishman2010]

hi there Ian , the places i go to around the world has 2 places in Sarawak, Kucking the place is never been myself Damia beach resort is 1 and riverside majestic the other, if intrested we could do a deal

I'll look on google maps to see where they are SteveTBH they will probably be too much for me though, due to the amount of times I travel, I have to do it on a shoestring and stay in budget hotels

[Rosie1958]

Just wondering if Steve means Kuching rather than Kucking. We landed there on our way back from KK to Singapore. Only saw the airport but it was better than KK's!

[aposhark]

Nice place Englishman2010.

I went for a couple of nights back in the 80's and it seemed very Chinese in atmosphere.

Had a few beers and a lovely meal in a Chinese restaurant, the ones where there are no windows and open to the street.

Wandered back to the hotel and caught a flight the next day over to a place near to the diving in Sipadan.

It was a nice place, a real lift after working for about a year in Brunei

[Englishman2010]

It was a nice place, a real lift after working for about a year in Brunei

I've already been warned Brunei is very, very quiet with not a great deal to do and an alcohol prohibition, hence why I want to go into Malaysian Borneo for a few days

[Terpe]

............... an alcohol prohibition...

Oh dear, that's not for me then.
What a dull place

[Englishman2010]

Oh dear, that's not for me then.
What a dull place

I think it is a fairly strict country (similar to middle eastern states) and drinking is not the done thing. Although I was expecting there to be a ban on pork too, but apparantly not, pork can be bought at the butchers/market. I've been told that there are a few Chinese restaurants where beer/wine can be bought illegally and served in a teapot
I have to admit that Brunei is not my idea of a holiday destination, I'm only going there as I already had a flight to Manila planned for April, but my other half had to go to Brunei to see her sister and family. Hence why I am quite keen to escape from Brunei and head into Malaysia with her for a more entertaining time. Fortunately, we'll both be going back to Manila together to enjoy the last few days of my trip.