Kudat

With its sunburnt buildings, fishing boats on the bay and slow tropical pace, Kudat may grow on you. Believe it or not, sleepy Kudat used to be an important trading post and capital of Borneo back in the late 19th century. You may notice some of the streets have Chinese names, harking back to the British administration's request to the Chinese to come and run its coconut plantations. Many of their descendants are still here today, along with a warm cast of Bajau, Rungus and Filipino.