Must-see attractions in Sabah

  • View of waterfall at Tawau Hills Park, Sabah, Malaysia

    Tawau Hills Park

    Sabah

    This small reserve has forested hills rising dramatically from the surrounding plain. If getting into the Maliau Basin or Danum Valley feels like too much…

  • Kinabatangan Sabah Malaysia May 9, 2016 : Carved coffin made from belian tree believed to be about 500-690 years old at ancient burial cave Agop Batu Tulug in Kinabatangan Sabah.; Shutterstock ID 419637439; Your name (First / Last): Lauren Vastine; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: BiA Imagery

    Agop Batu Tulug

    Sabah

    This hill, 2km north of the Batuh Putih bridge, features three caves housing the ancestors of local Orang Sungai (People of the River). Because the…

  • Pantai Tempurung

    Sabah

    Borneo's loveliest beach is a long, almost-pristine stretch of white sand, lapped at by clear waters. The waves are gentle and great for swimming. You…

  • Gomantong Caves Beauty - Borneo Sabah Malaysia

    Gomantong Caves

    Sabah

    Imagine a cathedral-like inner chamber shot with splinters of sunlight and a cave floor swarming with cockroaches, and you have the Gomantong Caves. The…

  • Sandakan Memorial Park

    Sandakan

    A beautiful rainforest garden marks the site of a Japanese POW camp and the starting point for the infamous WWII 'death marches' to Ranau. Of the 1793…

  • Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park

    Sabah

    The islands of Manukan, Gaya, Sapi, Mamutik and Sulug, and the reefs in between, make up the 49-sq-km Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park. Only a short boat…

  • Tun Sakaran Marine Park

    Semporna

    Also known as the Semporna Islands Marine Park, this 350-sq-km protected area, a short boat ride from Semporna, comprises eight islands and two reefs…

  • Sipitang Sabah Malaysia - Aug 30, 2014:Murut lady in traditional costume with colorful beads during folklore festival in Sipitang Sabah.Murut is among the largest ethnic group in Sabah interior.; Shutterstock ID 369534461; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    Mari Mari Cultural Village

    Kota Kinabalu

    With its three-hour tours, Mari Mari showcases various traditional homes of Sabahan ethnic communities – the Bajau, Lundayeh, Murut, Rungus and Dusun –…

  • Agnes Newton Keith (July 4, 1901 ? March 30, 1982) was an American author best known for her three autobiographical accounts of life in North Borneo (now Sabah) before, during, and after the Second World War. The second of these, Three Came Home, tells of her time in Japanese POW and civilian internee camps in North Borneo and Sarawak, and was made into a film of the same name in 1950. She published seven books in all.Sabah, Borneo

    Agnes Keith House

    Sandakan

    This atmospheric two-storey colonial villa, Newlands, tells the story of American writer Agnes Keith and her British husband Harry, the Conservator of…

  • Kota Kinabalu Floating Mosque with Dramatic Clouds and Reflection.

    City Mosque

    Kota Kinabalu

    Built in classical style, this mosque is far more attractive than the State Mosque in both setting and design. Completed in 2000 it can hold up to 12,000…

  • Proboscis monkey.

    Kota Kinabalu Wetland Centre

    Kota Kinabalu

    This centre features 1.4km of wooden walkways passing through a 24-hectare mangrove swamp, where you can expect to see scuttling fiddler and mangrove…

  • Tambunan Rafflesia Reserve

    Sabah

    Near the top of the Crocker Range, next to the main highway, 20km north of Tambunan, this park is devoted to the world's largest flower. The Rafflesia…

  • Sabah Agriculture Park

    Sabah

    About 15km northeast of Tenom and originally set up as an orchid centre, this vast park has become a major research facility and tourist attraction,…

  • Dusun Museum

    Sabah

    Well worth a peek, this museum showcasing traditional Dusun culture is located inside a traditional bamboo dwelling. Inside you'll find antique Chinese…

  • Kundasang War Memorial

    Mt Kinabalu & Kinabalu National Park

    At Kundasang, beside the KK–Ranau Hwy, 10km east of Kinabalu National Park headquarters, is this poignant memorial conceived in 1961. It commemorates the…

  • Labuan Marine Park

    Sabah

    Pulau Kuraman, Pulau Rusukan Kecil and Pulau Rusukan Besar are uninhabited islands lying southwest of Labuan that are now protected by the federal…

  • Chinese Cemetery

    Sandakan

    Sandakan's Chinese Cemetery is huge. As you wander along the cemetery, you'll notice the graves become older and more decrepit – many have been claimed by…

  • Sabah Tea Garden

    Sabah

    A pretty tea plantation huddles in the mountains near Ranau, producing the famous Sabah Tea. Contact the garden to arrange tours of both the plantation…

  • Signal Hill Observatory Platform

    Kota Kinabalu

    Up on Signal Hill, among the art deco mansions at the city-centre's eastern edge, there's an unmissable UFO-like observation pavilion. Come here to make…

  • Night Market

    Kota Kinabalu

    KK's Night Market is an unmissable immersion into local culture. It's authentic, bustling, aromatic and noisy. At the southwest end you will find stalls…

  • Labuan Museum

    Sabah

    This museum provides a good (if dry) introduction to the island's history and culture, from precolonial days through British and Japanese occupation, WWII…

  • Japanese Cemetery

    Sandakan

    A poignant piece of Sandakan's ethnic puzzle, this cemetery was founded in the 1890s by Kinoshita Kuni, known as the successful madam-manager of Sandakan…

  • Puu Jih Syh Temple

    Sandakan

    Wrapped in the usual firework display of reds, golds and twining dragons, festooned with lanterns illuminating the grounds like a swarm of fireflies, this…

  • St Michael's & All Angels Church

    Sandakan

    One of the very few surviving pre-WWII buildings, this pretty stone church (1893) sits as a relic of colonial times and a monument to Christian worship on…

  • WWII Memorial (Labuan War Cemetery)

    Sabah

    A dignified expanse of lawn with row upon row of headstones dedicated to the nearly 4000 Commonwealth servicemen, mostly Australian and British, who lost…

  • Sunsuron Guritom

    Sabah

    Partially eroded by the elements, the stone skull topping this squat stone container, resembling a postbox, gives a clue as to its past use. Back in…

  • Memorial Stone

    Sabah

    There's a small monument to Private Thomas Leslie Starcevich, an Australian WWII veteran. In 1945 Starcevich single-handedly overwhelmed a Japanese…

  • Mahua Waterfall

    Sabah

    Around 26km northeast of Tambunan, this gorgeous 17m-high waterfall plunges into a deep pool below, perfect for a refreshing dip. There's a spartan hostel…

  • Rungus Museum

    Sabah

    At the Tampat Do Aman guesthouse, this worthwhile museum aims to preserve traditional Rungus culture, with detailed displays on marriage and funeral rites…

  • Fatt Choi Coffee Factory

    Sabah

    Mr Foong Choon Sang founded this coffee factory in 1986 and became a local legend, growing Malaysia's best coffee – a lowland robusta bean. Come here to…

  • Kudat Turtle Conservation Society

    Sabah

    Run by Roland, the Kudat Turtle Conservation Society is based at the south end of the Bavang Jamal beach. There's an education centre nearby and it's…

  • Labuan Bird Park

    Sabah

    This pretty park offers refuge to a wide range of species (580, apparently) in three geodesic domes, and a swath of rainforest. The birds look a little…

  • Labuan Marine Museum

    Sabah

    On the coast just east of the centre, the Labuan International Sea Sports Complex houses a decent little museum with a good shell collection and displays…

  • Botanical Garden

    Mt Kinabalu & Kinabalu National Park

    Many of the plants found on Mt Kinabalu and in Kinabalu National Park are cultivated in the Botanical Garden, north of the visitors centre. Guided tours…

  • Sunday Market

    Kota Kinabalu

    On Sundays a lively Chinese street fair takes over a section of Jln Gaya. It's vividly chaotic, with stalls cheek by jowl hawking batik sarongs, puppies…

  • Sabah Art Gallery

    Kota Kinabalu

    The first 'green' building in Sabah has outdoor sculpture displays and hosts contemporary art exhibitions by the likes of Francis Cheong and Awang Fadilah…

  • Ranau Night Market

    Sabah

    Packed with aromas and produce from all over the region, this is where locals come to haggle and barter every Saturday evening. It's especially photogenic…

  • Pulau Balambangan

    Sabah

    This large island is known for its 12 beautiful caves, one of which you can explore.