I have to be honest. Travel in Brunei has never been at the top of my list for a variety of reasons. Life had other plans and I landed up spending three months in the country, making Borneo the island that I had spent the longest on.
One thing that I did realize after those three months is that I had been wrong about the country on so many counts and right in a few others. Do I miss Brunei? I do.
I miss the forests and the peace that the country has and most of all I miss Shawn because he had to stay back for a couple of months while I returned to India. With three months of exploring and travel in Brunei, I feel competent enough to write a detailed guide to the country so let’s plunge in shall we?
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The Global Consensus And Actual Travel In Brunei
Before I headed out to Brunei, I did a lot of research on the place. I looked at the news articles and the travel blogs. I must say that while the Brunei travel blogs talked about a smattering of things to do in Brunei, the media talked about how restrictive the country was.
Staying for three months in such a country did not seem pleasant to me but at that point I did not have much of a choice. Three days in however and my whole perspective took a drastic change. Why?
The thing about Brunei is that it has been in the news for all the wrong reasons and since traveling through the country is not popular because of its location, it is hardly ever explored properly. It doesn’t take you long to realize that the people in Brunei are some of the friendliest people you will meet.
I had someone hand me a box full of jackfruit on day one for free just because I said I loved it. It was something that happened (with other things) over and over again throughout my stay and it emphasizes just how generous people are.
What about the Sharia Law?
Now while I did fall in love with the country, I have to say that I did not agree with a lot of things. The Sharia law was one of those things. Unfortunately for us, we were in the country when the second wave of the Sharia law implementation took place.
My particular beef was with the laws involving the LGBTQ community. Luckily, the Sultan was forced to backtrack from some of the harsher punishments that were due to be implemented.
To Write Or Not To Write About Travel In Brunei
With all this in mind, I found myself at a crossroads. Do I write about travel in Brunei or not? I finally decided that I would write about it largely to talk about my feelings and the things that I did like about the country.
After all, Brunei is not very well documented, and I found myself exploring lesser visited destinations. Talking to the expats and the locals in the smaller town that I lived in reminded me that I wrote for the people who needed it. Factual tips about travel and living in a country that I spent a long while in.
Navigating Through The Brunei Travel Guide
In order to help you navigate through Globetrove’s Brunei Travel Guide, I have divided it into sections so that you can scroll directly down to the part of the post you want to access.
Expect the post to be long because I have a lot to share and talk about. I hope that the Brunei Travel Guide will help you if you do consider travel to the country or find yourself inside its borders for some reason.
BRUNEI TRAVEL GUIDE: Facts About Brunei
Travel in Brunei is not complete without visiting the board walk.
Let’s talk about the country before we get into the specifics about travel in Brunei. I always find that knowing about the location you head to in advance gives you a more immersive feel when you actually touch down. That is why I like to read up a bit on the weather, geography, history and culture before I start exploring.
History
Brunei has an interesting past. Today, the country is ruled by a Sultan but it wasn’t always so. In 1888, Brunei became a British protectorate. Till date you will find a British Garrison in Brunei. Things however began to change around 1929 when petroleum production began.
It was this production that turned the tides for Brunei and till today it is what sustains the economy of the country. For a brief period during 1941-1945 in the World War II, Brunei found itself being occupied by he Japanese. The British however later returned and eventually, negotiations were made for the independence of Brunei.
Once Brunei stabilized politically in the 1970’s, it quickly rose to become one of the most flourishing economies in the world thanks to the amount of petroleum that was and continues to be produced in the country. It does not come as a surprise therefore that there are a lot of expats (who are linked to the oil industry) that live in the oil towns of Brunei.
Landscape
One of the first things that I realized during my travel in Brunei was that the entire landscape appears green. Okay, you may not see as much of this in Bandar Seri Begawan which is the capital of Brunei but the moment you start heading out of the city, the landscape changes rather dramatically.
The forest cover of the country is spectacular and many of the locals love walking through the numerous forest reserves and natural parks. Ulu Temburong however remains the most popular natural park that tourists visit.
Climate
Brunei has a tropical climate which means that you can expect it to be hot and humid. It rains during a large part of the year and when I say rains, I mean that it pours! So you need to plan what to pack accordingly. I recently wrote a whole guide to what to pack when visiting Brunei. You can find the link to the post below.
RELATED ARTICLES: The Ultimate Packing List For Brunei
Currency
The currency in Brunei is called the Bruneian Dollar and is often abbreviated as BND. Since it is benchmarked against the Singaporean dollar, both currency are valid tender in the country. I found this rather surprising at first but then I realized that it was part and parcel of life in Brunei.
Food
One of the things that surprised me about travel in Brunei was the food. The food is surprisingly multicultural with large influences from the Malaysian, Singaporean,, Indonesian and Indian cuisines. That however isn’t all. It also has a thriving fast food industry.
Burgers are big deal in the country and you see them at all the local stalls. Italian food is also highly loved. I won’t do into the details of it since I have already written an in depth article about the food in Brunei.
RELATED ARTICLES:
BRUNEI TRAVEL GUIDE: Facts For The Visitor
If you are considering travel in Brunei, then you may want to arm yourself with a couple of facts like how to get into the country, what is the transportation like, where should you stay etc. In order to make your quest for this information a bit easier, we have compiled as much pertinent information as we could in this segment of the Brunei Travel Guide.
Entering The Country
There are two main ways to enter Brunei and those are by the land borders and by air. I have however heard that the government is encouraging cruise ships to dock in Brunei to promote tourism in the country.
Flying into Brunei is a popular choice if you are heading just to the country itself. Many however choose to take one of the cheaper flights to either Kota Kinabalu (Sabah, Malaysia) or Miri (Sarawak, Malaysia) and then backpack their way through. There are a couple of cheapish flights that ply between these cities and the route through remains a popular one.
Transport
One of my pet peeves in Brunei was the transport. There is not much public transport to talk off. A couple of stray buses that head out of the main city but that is it. Everyone owns a car and, in some cases, multiple cars. There are cabs but they are extremely expensive when you compare the rates to the rest of Asia. Yes! Brunei is expensive so keep that in mind too!
Accommodation
Accommodation is definitely something that you will need to consider when you think about travel in Brunei. While we personally stayed closer to Kuala Belait which is a small town in Brunei, I wouldn’t recommend heading that far out if you are just passing through.
Most of the spots that you would see as a tourist are in or close to the capital city named Bandar Seri Begawan. Finding accommodation there would be the wisest. If you are looking for an experience, then think of staying in Kampung Ayer also known as Brunei’s water village.
Dress Code
One of the things that you should keep in mind when it comes to travel in Brunei is the dress code. While there are a couple of foreigners that wear knee level shorts, I would suggest staying modest. Loose cotton clothes is the way to go especially since the weather is hot and humid.
Avoid thicker fabrics. I preferred white and light colours for this very same reason. Carry a scarf or a shawl that you can use to cover your head when you enter a mosque or religious building. As a rule, most people are not bothered about what you wear but I would still err on the side of caution.
BRUNEI TRAVEL GUIDE: Things To Do In Brunei
Travel in Brunei should definitely include visiting the different religious structures in the country.
When I talk about travel in Brunei, a lot of people stop me and ask me where Brunei is. Unlike its popular neighbours Malaysia and Indonesia, Brunei covers just a small piece of land on the mighty island of Borneo. A large part of this land is covered with forests and hence it does not come as a surprise that there are few tourist related activities to indulge in.
Main Cities In Brunei
Bandar Seri Begawan is the capital city of Brunei and is the place with most of the activities that as a tourist you would seek out. In fact, as far happening places in Brunei go, this is as bustling as it gets. The other cities are smaller and definitely less touristic.
Kuala Belait and Seria are two sleepy towns that lie closer to the Malaysian border. These two are oil towns and are largely populated by expats. Jerudong, Tutong and Gadong are other popular cities.
Religious Monuments
One of the main items that everyone talks about when they head to Brunei is the gorgeous mosques in the country. While I have had a chance to just visit one of them, I have seen many of them as we passed by. They are without a doubt gorgeous and well worth exploring if you have the time.
National Parks
Remember when I mentioned that Brunei is covered by forests? You can see this as you swoop in with your flight. Brunei has a number of forests that are protected and luckily deforestation is not a threat here as compared to neighbouring Malaysia.
They do however have some problems with forest fires during the hotter months and it can get bad with the highways being closed. Most of these forests however have parks that are incorporated into them so you can trek and enjoy nature. They are so profuse that you will definitely find a green spot no matter which part of Brunei you stay in.
RELATED ARTICLES: Forest Reserves and Recreational Parks in Brunei
BRUNEI TRAVEL GUIDE: Experiences You Should Not Miss
As with every country, you will find that while you travel in Brunei, there are a couple of experiences that you really should not miss. While most of the notable sites can be covered in a two to three days (if you choose to visit Ulu Temburong), most of the sites are within the city of Bandar Seri Begawan and you don’t have to travel far.
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