Travel information
Don't expect much tasteful and stunning architecture you would normally find in Southeast Asia. Most buildings are just plain and box-shaped.
- Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque when open to visitors (i.e. when it is not being used for prayers - opening times are posted by the gate). They are quite friendly and you will be given a robe on entry. Remove your shoes before entering and be respectfully quiet inside as there may be some people there meditating and praying. Consider visiting other mosques too.
- Kampong Ayer (the water village). Best visited by taxi boat. It's a beautiful sight to see hundreds of houses seemingly floating on water. The water village people are very friendly and many open up their homes to visitors year-round. Water taxis can be found by walking along the Brunei river or the main market in Bandar Seri Begawan and waving one down. Try to negotiate the price down. You shouldn't pay more than B$30 for an hour-long tour of Kampong Ayer. If you'd rather not shell out the dough for a water-taxi tour, consider wandering around the villages yourself. You can start from behind the Sultan's Mosque or from the other side in towns like Batu Satu.
- Royal Regalia museum near the city centre displays gifts received by the Sultan. Definitely worth checking out.
- Brunei Museum on the Kota Batu road has an excellent display in the Islamic Art Gallery. It is highly recommended.
After visiting the Brunei Museum, walk along the road toward BSB to visit two tombs: the first is the Tomb of Sharif Ali, the third sultan of Brunei. The green sign by the road is written entirely in Arabic lettering. Further down the road is the Tomb of Sultan Bolkiah, the fifth sultan of Brunei. Both tombs are in easy walking distance from the Museum. On your walk you may see some pitcher plants by the side of the road.
Photos from Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
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See the main Brunei article for entry formalities.
By plane
Brunei International Airport [1] is the main airport in Brunei. See Brunei | Get in for details of flight connections. Getting there/away: A taxi from the airport to Bandar Seri Begawan takes 20 minutes and costs around B$25. A covered walk down to the end of the car park away from the Terminal (turn right when exiting from Arrivals) leads to a bus stop for Purple buses to the city centre (B$1).
By road
All main roads in Brunei (save for those in isolated Temburong District) lead to Bandar Seri Begawan. The main road into/out of Bandar connects to the coastal road to/from the Sarawak border via Tutong, Seria and Kuala Belait. Other main roads lead to Muara and Kuala Lurah where there is a border crossing into the Limbang division of Sarawak. Take this road if you are driving to Temburong but you will have to go through two sets of immigration checkpoints - at Kuala Lurah (Tedungan on the Sarawak side) and Puni (Pandaruan on the Sarawak side) - before you reach the district administrative centre, Bangar.
You can continue further from there all the way to Kota Kinabalu. See the Kota Kinabalu to Brunei in a day page for details. Caution: during several days of travelling by rented car it was not possible to find an accurate road map. Asking lokals for direction is however met with incredible friendliness and willingness to help, with people sometimes taking kilometers of detour just to be helpful.
By bus
The main bus terminal where all long-distance and local buses leave from and arrive is at Jalan Cator in the city centre. It occupies the ground level of a multistorey carpark.
- To/from Seria: Regular buses leave for Seria (where you can change buses to Kuala Belait and onward to Miri) leave from the main bus terminal. They usually display the departure time on the windscreen. Journey time is about one hour and the fare is B$6 one way. If you want to go all the way to Miri, make sure you start early. For details on bus transfers to/from Miri, please see Brunei | Get in section.
- To/from Kuala Lurah: Local purple buses run from the bus terminal right up to the Kuala Lurah checkpoint throughout the day. Journey is about half hour and fare is B$1 one way. At Kuala Lurah, walk across the border and either catch a bus or taxi into Limbang.
- To/from Muara: Regular buses depart from the bus terminal, including some direct non-stop buses, to Muara. Not all Muara buses go to the Serasa Ferry Terminal so check before boarding.
By boat
- To/from Temburong: Speedboats leave for Bangar in Temburong District from the jetty near the foodstalls at Jalan Residency just over the bridge across Sungai Kianggeh to the east of the city centre. Regular boats run between Bandar and Bangar throughout the day.
- To/from Limbang: Speedboats leave for Limbang in Sarawak from the ferry terminal at Jalan McArthur in the city centre. The boats leave when they are full.
- To/from other destinations: Boats to other destinations like Labuan, Lawas and other towns in Sarawak leave from the Serasa Ferry Terminal in Muara. See Brunei | Get in section for details. Getting there/away: Buses leave for the ferry terminal from the Bandar Seri Begawan bus terminal in Jalan Cator. Please note that not all Muara buses go to Serasa.
Photos from Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
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- The Mall. Probably the best place to shop. Located in Gadong, it is also combined with the Rizqun Hotel.
Photos from Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
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- Aminah Arif Restaurant. One of a few local restaurants that features the Bruneian delicacy ambuyat and a pretty good range of other food too.
- RMS Portview, opposite the Yayasan Shopping Centre. The terrace offers a great view overlooking Kampong Ayer, great for cooling down after sightseeing.
- Gerai Makan, on the waterfront in the southeastern corner of the city, just across a bridge. Here there are a number of outdoor restaurants serving cheap and tasty fare. It's a great place to relax and soak in the local atmosphere. Great views of stilt villages and water taxis speeding back and forth.
Photos from Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
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- Tagz Lounge, Sheraton Utama Hotel. The closest you can get to a bar in an alcohol-free country, here you can bring your own booze and buy the mixers. Access theoretically only for hotel guests, but getting in is rarely a problem.
Photos from Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
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