How To Spend 48 Hours In Labuan – Best Guide

How To Spend 48 Hours In Labuan – Best Guide

Located approximately 10km off the northwest coast of Borneo, Labuan is known for its sandy beaches, historical sites, tax free shopping and top diving spots. Also known as “The Pearl of Borneo”, Labuan is the main hub for deep water oil and gas activities in the region and attracts mainly tourists from Brunei, Sabah and Sarawak. 

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So when should you visit Labuan?

Since Labuan has a tropical climate, there are only 2 seasons throughout the year, the wet season (October – February) and the dry season (March – September). Your best bet, is to come here during the dry season and even then, you will have days with heavy downpour as the weather here can be unpredictable. Pack an umbrella or a raincoat with you and consider spending an extra day or two here to cater for any unexpected weather.

Tropical climate in Labuan, Malaysia

Wet season in Labuan

How many days should you spend in Labuan?

Generally speaking, spending 2-3 days is more than enough to cover all the sites in Labuan. However, if you are planning to dive at the wrecks, you will probably need to extend your stay a few days longer. 

Labuan Island – veroalex

Labuan has one of the best diving spots

How to get around Labuan?

Since Labuan is a small town, you can get around by foot, bus or taxi. Another option would be to rent a car/bike at the airport/ferry terminal. In our opinion, we suggest you to either rent a car/bike or just take the ride-hailing service (Grab) while you are here as the public transportation here isn’t as frequent and efficient. 

Labuan Map

How to visit Labuan Island?

i) Take the MAS Wings flight 

– Fastest way to travel (35 minutes flight time)
– Most expensive way to travel

 

Take the MAS Wings flight (Image credit: Maswings)

 

ii) Take the ferry from Jesselton Point (Kota Kinabalu) direct to Labuan Island

– Average journey time 3 hours (Not recommended for those who gets seasick easily)
– Cheaper option
– Only does 2 trips a day (Less flexible timing)

 

Ferry from Jesselton Point

iii) Take the bus from KK Sentral to Menumbok

– Catch the bus from KK Sentral 

Take the bus from KK Sentral to Menumbok – Labuan

 

Bus ticket from KK Sentral to Menumbok – Labuan

Waiting for the bus at KK Sentral to Menumbok (Labuan)

Speed boats in Menumbok

If you haven’t read our post on 18 BEST THINGS TO DO IN LABUAN, MALAYSIA, we highly recommend you to check it out. Labuan, which is a Federal Territory of Malaysia has a time zone of (GMT+ 8), which is the standard time throughout the country. 

Layang-Layang Beach – Labuan

Day 1 – Visiting the Duty Free Island

For us, since we were already in Kota Kinabalu (Sabah), we decided to go for the more economical and relaxing option (ii), which was to take the ferry at Jesselton Point to Labuan Island. Being the main ferry terminal in Kota Kinabalu, Jesselton Point also offers various boat trips to Brunei and the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park which consists of nearby islands (Manukan, Mamutik, Sapi, Sulug and Gaya Island).     

Boarding the ferry at Jesselton Point

Ready for Labuan

Our “Business Class” tickets 😆

We managed to get some shut eye in the ferry as the ride was quite smooth that morning. Upon arrival at the Labuan Ferry Terminal, we rented a car as it was much more convenient to get around the island. After checking in our hotel, we headed to the first location of the day, the Labuan War Cemetery which is located at Tanjung Batu, 4km away from the airport.

Labuan War Cemetery

You might be wondering why visit a cemetery? Well, the cemetery is a memorial place for Commonwealth World War II fallen heroes which were made up of militaries from various countries such as Australia, British, Malaysia, New Zealand and so on. Here, the memorial place is well kept with neat rows of plaques and flowers for each soldier.   

Memorial site for the Commonwealth World War II military

Neat plaques and flowers for each soldier – Labuan War Cemetery

We then continued our journey to the Labuan International Sea Sport Complex which is located not far away from the memorial site. The complex is a world class sports centre and used to host various international fishing tournaments and kayak challenges annually.

Labuan International Sea Sport Complex

While you are here, do check out the Labuan Marine Museum which is made up of a 2 storey gallery, consisting of over 14 aquariums and a touch pool. Here you can see a variety of sea creatures such as the black tip shark, sand shark, eel, king crab, starfish and stingrays. For those who are going for a dive in Labuan, the lower level gallery is definitely a good place for you to check out as the information section here shows the details and facts of the 4 popular shipwrecks in Labuan (American Wreak, Australian Wreak, Blue Water Wreak and Cement Wreak). 

 

Labuan Marine Museum

Explore the 4 shipwrecks in Labuan

After we were done exploring the museum, we headed to the biggest shopping mall in Labuan, the Financial Park Complex. Since there are not many malls in Labuan, this is probably the best place to shop for your necessities. Do remember that Labuan is a duty-free island, so while you can purchase tobacco, alcohol and chocolates at a cheaper price, everything else is more pricy than usual. 

 

Financial Park Complex

A walk in town will find you many smaller retail shops offering better discounts than at the mall, so be sure to check them out as well. You can consume as much alcohol as you like in Labuan, however you can only bring back a maximum of 1 Litre of Liquor and 1 crate of beer (24 cans). If you do exceed the limit, you won’t have your goods confiscated, but you will be charged customs duty on each of the excess goods you carry.

 

One of the popular duty free shops in Labuan

 

After we were done with shopping, we dropped by Labuan Square(Dataran Labuan) which is one of the many popular landmarks here. This square is located in the city centre of Labuan and used to host major events such as Independence Day, Malaysia Day and Hot Air Balloon festivals. At the centre of the square, you will see the flags of Malaysian states flying high on the poles. 

 

Hot Air Balloon Festival – Labuan Square

 

Malaysian Flags – Labuan Square

Located at the other end of the island isChimney Museum, which was our next destination. The museum has a 2 storey gallery showcasing the Labuan’s history as the biggest coal mineral producer in the region. The chimney here was built in the 19 century and its existence has been a controversial topic for many people over the years. As the chimney does not have any traces of smoke, there were many claims on what the chimney was originally used for. Claims that the chimney was used as a ventilation shaft, a light house or an unfinished mansion was one of the more common misconceptions of the chimney. 

 

Chimney Museum

Inside the Chimney Museum gallery

Coal mining wax figures – Chimney Museum

After checking with the local guide here, we finally solved the chimney mystery! The chimney was actually part of a brick factory’s furnace system and was the only structure left untouched after the rest of the factory demolished over time. 

 

Inside the chimney – Chimney Museum

The controversial Chimney Tower

Yes, I can fit right in ! Chimney Tower

The last location of the day was back at our hotel, Palm Beach Resort. Being one of the best beach resorts on the island, you can unwind here and enjoy the scenic ocean views or try out the golf course, jungle trekking and kayaking activities here. After we were done exploring the beach, we went back and changed for dinner at the hotel.  

 

Creative surf boards design – Palm Beach Resort Labuan

 

Enjoying the view here at Palm Beach Resort Labuan

Sit back and relax – Palm Beach Resort Labuan

Try out the Ais Batu Campur (ABC) on a hot day (Image credit: palmbeachresort)

 

Where shall i go? Palm Beach Resort Labuan

Rent a bike here – Palm Beach Resort Labuan

Enjoy your dinner here by the sunset bar

Day 2 – 48 Hours Done! Till we meet again Labuan

On our last day in Labuan, we managed to squeeze in a few more sites to explore before ending our trip. After breakfast, we headed to Surrender Point which is located around 10km from the airport. Surrender Point is the most important landmark for Labuan as it marked the end of the World War II in Borneo.

 

 

Labuan’s historical landmark – Surrender Point Labuan

 

The small wooden shed here is where the Japanese officially surrendered their ruling over Labuan (in 1945) to the Australian in charge. It is believed that after the surrender, the Japanese soldiers performed a mass suicide ritual known as hara-kiri, along the beach.

Surrender Point Memorial Labuan

The Peace Park which is beside the Surrender Point was built to pay tribute to the fallen heroes during World War II. This park signifies the end of the war and marked the beginning of Malaysia and Japan friendship. 

Peace Park Labuan

 

Once we were done checking out the area, we drove back to the Labuan Ferry Terminal to catch the afternoon ferry ride back to Kota Kinabalu. To sum it up, even though it was a short trip, we enjoyed our time here as we got to do a bit of exploring, whilst taking our time to relax and unwind from the busy city life.  

Relax at Palm Beach Resort

 

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Have any experience or tips on travelling in Labuan? Or are you planning a trip soon? Let us know and share your thoughts and questions in the comments section. We’d love to hear from you! 

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