Kota Kinabalu is Sabah’s capital city. It is located on the West coast of Sabah. Kota Kinabalu was previously called Jesselton during British colonial times. Today it is a bustling city of about 300,000 people, mainly Chinese, Malay and Kadazandusun. In Kota Kinabalu you will find many classy hotels, delightful restaurants and modern amenities.

Top Day Trips

If you have a day to spend in Kota Kinabalu, a great thing to do is to take a motorboat ride to any one of the five islands of Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park, a group of five islands just off the coast of Kota Kinabalu. The most well-established island among the five is Pulau Manukan (’Pulau’ means island in the Malay language).

After a 15 minute boat ride, you will arrive at the jetty of Pulau Manukan. If you look down, you will be able to see right to the bottom of the clear waters of the South China Sea. You will be amazed at the corals, beautifully colored fishes and all kinds of marine life like sea urchins and sea cucumbers. You are allowed to feed the fishes with pieces of bread. In fact, these beautiful fishes are so tame they will nibble at the pieces of bread right off your hand!

You can enjoy all kinds of water activities in Pulau Manukan. One favorite among tourists is snorkeling. You can rent the equipment and snorkel right near to where the fishes and corals are. Again, if you hold out a piece of bread to the fishes, they will readily swarm all around you for a bite!

Other activities include kayaking, swimming, picnicking and others. Or, if you prefer, you could just spend the day lazing on the beach getting a tan. Most people would spend the entire day at one or more of the islands. Other than Pulau Manukan, other favorites among tourists are Pulau Sapi and Pulau Mamutik. These are not as established as Manukan but with decent enough facilities. If you don’t like crowds, then these less established islands are more suitable than Pulau Manukan.

If you’re not the sand and sea type, you can spend the day shopping in Kota Kinabalu. You can pick up good bargains for souvenirs at the Filipino market at Little Manila. But be prepared to bargain and compare prices. If you are in Kota Kinabalu over a weekend, check out the Gaya Street Fair on Sunday mornings. You can find all kinds of things sold by street vendors ranging from small trinkets to food to even pets.

For more up-market goods, head to any one of Kota Kinabalu’s shopping malls. The newest ones are the most modern and trendy. They include Warisan Square in the heart of the city, City Mall which is located in a suburb about 10 minutes’ drive away from the city center and the biggest mall of all called One Borneo Lifestyle Hypermall just outside the city. One Borneo is the largest shopping mall in Borneo. It has hundreds of trendy retail outlets, two hotels and condominium suites in its vicinity.

One Borneo Lifestyle Hypermall in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

Here's what One Borneo looks like inside

Other places of interest that you can visit on a day trip are the Sabah State Museum and the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park which is the de-facto state zoo. The Sabah State Museum has many interesting historical exhibits that give information about Sabah’s history, its people, their culture and tradition besides a natural history section that’s sure to be a hit with smaller children. Within its compound is also a Cultural Village where live replicas of native longhouses are built. For the ardent history lover, a visit to the museum can take up the entire day.

If you’re an animal lover, you should go to the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park located about a 30 minutes’ drive from Kota Kinabalu.

Lok Kawi Wildlife Park Sabah Malaysia

This is a zoo with many animals from around this region such as the Asian elephant, the clouded leopard, many types of birds, giant reptiles like the king cobra, the python and monitor lizard, plenty of mammals like the rhinocerous, orang utans, tigers and Malaysian sun bear (the only bear species in Malaysia and the world’s smallest bear).

One of the curious animals in Lok Kawi Zoo is the Proboscis Monkey

There is an entertaining animal show that features an orang utan, hornbills, parrots and even a baby python. For the children, there is an elephant ride that will thrill them to bits. Entrance fee into the zoo is only about $4 per adult.

Thrill your children with an elephant ride!

An expert trainer handles a baby python in Lok Kawi Zoo, Sabah Malaysia

Not too far from the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park is the KK Adventure Park. This is a specially designed park just beside the beach where various fun activities can be enjoyed such as the Flying Fox, the kids’ trampoline, the high wire walk, rock climbing and beach buggy drive. Package costs start from about $25 per person.

Another interesting day trip not to be missed is the boat ride down Sungei Klias (’Sungei’ means River in the Malay language) near Beauford town. You get to watch monkeys swing through trees, fruit bats fly overhead and thousands of fireflies congregating together around trees at night as your boat meanders down the Klias River.

If you drive about an hour away from Kota Kinabalu, you will come to the Tuaran Crocodile Adventure Land, home of hundreds of crocodiles and some other animals also. In the Tuaran Crocodile Farm, you will be entertained to a live crocodile show where crocodile trainers put their lives on the line everyday to perform with the crocodiles.

Crocodile Adventure Land Sabah Malaysia

You will also see hundreds of crocodiles of various species on display.

Live Crocodile in Crocodile Adventure Land Sabah Malaysia

There is also a cultural dance show at a specially designed longhouse in the area. Finally you can buy some crocodile memorabilia at the Crocodile Farm.

Abut three hours away from Kota Kinabalu by car; you will arrive at Kudat, the northernmost town of Sabah. Kudat’s main tourist attraction is an area close to the town called Tanjung Simpang Mengayau, which is the most northern tip of the entire island of Borneo.

The Northernmost tip of Borneo island in Sabah, Malaysia

Besides this, Kudat is known for its dried and fresh seafood which can be bought at very reasonable prices.

Another top tourist activity is to visit Kinabalu National Park, a beautiful site just above the foot of Mount Kinabalu.  From here you can catch a view of the peak of Mount Kinabalu, at 4096 m or 13,350 ft, the tallest mountain in South-East Asia on a bright clear morning (by mid-morning, the peak is completely shrouded in cloud).  It takes two and a half hours to drive there from Kota Kinabalu city so it’s a good idea to start off early.  Many people spend the entire day picnicking or visiting the various restaurants and exhibits there.  There is an exhibition center with numerous flora and fauna found on Mount Kinabalu on display.

To find out more about all the hotels, hostels, backpackers lodges available in Kota Kinabalu, read my page on Lodging and Food in Kota Kinabalu.

There is no place in the world like Sabah, East Malaysia. Come and see for yourself!