Kota Kinabalu
Kota Kinabalu, colloquially referred to as KK, is the state capital of Sabah, Malaysia.
Kota Kinabalu, colloquially referred to as KK, is the state capital of Sabah, Malaysia. It is also the capital of the Kota Kinabalu District as well as the West Coast Division of Sabah. The city is located on the northwest coast of Borneo facing the South China Sea. The Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park lies to its west and Mount Kinabalu, which gave the city its name, is located to its east. Kota Kinabalu has a population of 452,058 according to the 2010 census; when the adjacent Penampang and Tuaran districts are included, the metro area has a combined population of 628,725. The 2020 Census revealed an increase in the municipal population to 500,421, while the wider area including the Penampang and Putatan districts had a population of 731,406.
Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Worth seeing in and around Kota Kinabalu
10 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.
- 01Kota Kinabalu City Mosque
The Kota Kinabalu City Mosque is the second main mosque for the city of Kota Kinabalu in Likas, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, after the State Mosque in Sembulan. The head imam is Hafiz Bin Hamzah.
4.5 km · mosque in Malaysia · Wikipedia - 02Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park
The Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park comprises a group of five islands located between 3 and 8 km off Kota Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia. The park is spread over 4,929 hectares, two-thirds of which cover the sea.
8.1 km · national park in Malaysia · Wikipedia - 03Universiti Malaysia Sabah
Universiti Malaysia Sabah is a comprehensive public university in Malaysia. It was officially established on 24 November 1994 as the ninth public university in the country.
8.5 km · university in Malaysia · Wikipedia - 04Tun Mustapha Tower
Tun Mustapha Tower is a 30-storey, 122 m tall glass tower in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. It was built in 1976 by Mori Building Company, a Japanese property development and management firm.
6.2 km · skyscraper in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia · Wikipedia - 05Sabah Museum
The Sabah Museum is the state museum of Sabah, Malaysia. It is sited on 17 hectares of land at Bukit Istana Lama in Kota Kinabalu, the state capital.
1.6 km · museum in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah · Wikipedia - 06Sabah State Mosque
Sabah State Mosque is the state mosque of Sabah, in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. It is located at Bulatan Sembulan on Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman.
1.8 km · mosque in Malaysia · Wikipedia - 07Likas Stadium
Likas Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Likas, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. It is mainly used for football and athletics, located within the Likas Sports Complex.
2.7 km · stadium in Malaysia · Wikipedia - 08Atkinson Clock Tower
The Atkinson Clock Tower is the oldest standing structure in Kota Kinabalu. It was originally known as the Atkinson Memorial Clock Tower and sits in solitary on the bluff along Signal Hill Road overlooking this seaside city and capital of Sabah, Malaysia.
1 km · clock tower in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah · Wikipedia - 09Sacred Heart Cathedral, Kota Kinabalu
Sacred Heart Cathedral is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu, and the seat of its current archbishop, John Wong Soo Kau. The current cathedral was built from 1979 to 1981, with its dedication held on 21 November 1981.
1.1 km · church in Sabah, Malaysia · Wikipedia - 10Merdeka Square, Kota Kinabalu
Merdeka Square is a square located in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. The square has a capacity of around 5,000.
800 m · square in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia · Wikipedia
Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What Wikivoyage says to see
- 01Atkinson Tower
- 02City Park
A small park and the only park in the city center opposite the court complex.
- 03Chinatown
Located in the city centre surrounding Gaya Street and Pantai (Beach) Street.
- 04Sembulan Riverfront
- 05Double Six Monument
A memorial site on the location of the 1976 plane crash which killed the state chief minister Tun Fuad Stephens and other state cabinet members.
- 06Sabah State Museum
A good place to understand the history of Kota Kinabalu and Sabah.
From Wikivoyage: Kota Kinabalu, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Things to do
Try dives, leisure diving, technical diving and snorkelling are all available from Kota Kinabalu. Several interesting dive sites can be enjoyed as day trips from Kota Kinabalu with nearby World War II wrecks accessible for scuba diving. Some are in the 24-45 m depth range whilst other wrecks are only suitable for technical diving.
From Wikivoyage: Kota Kinabalu, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Where to eat
Kota Kinabalu is a cultural melting pot. Here Chinese meet Malays and Bruneis, Javanese, Filipinos and even a couple of Europeans, all of whom have brought along their own cuisine. Try out the many specialties offered at the various kedai kopi (often in buffet form making it easy to order) and shun fast food chains. For meals, head to the outdoor food stalls fronting the sea or coffee shops along the streets.
- 01Night Market
An outdoor street market with street food and music.
- 02El Centro
32 Jalan Haji Saman (Opposite Wisma Merdeka).
- 03Tavern Kitchen & Bar
Lot G-93, Imago Shopping Mall, KK Times Square Phase 2, Jalan Coastal (Opposite Soho Bar, same row as Starbucks on ground floor of Imago Mall), contactus@tavern.com.my.
- 04Gaya Vegetarian
Vegetarian Chinese restaurant with large portions, especially the soups.
From Wikivoyage: Kota Kinabalu, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Getting to Kota Kinabalu
- Airports
- Kota Kinabalu (BKI), 5 km · Brunei (BWN), 171 km
- Stations
- Kota Kinabalu International Airport, 5.4 km · Putatan railway station, 9.4 km · Secretariat railway station, 1.8 km · Tanjung Aru railway station, 3.5 km
- Bandar Seri Begawan → Kota Kinabalu174 km · quickest by road, 4h 25m · $21–29
- Kuching → Kota Kinabalu805 km · quickest by air, 4h 33m · RM320–500
- Puerto Princesa → Kota Kinabalu511 km · quickest by air, 4h 55m · ₱4,830–7,480
- Plan a tripFrom anywhereThe planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.
No local-transport research exists yet for Kota Kinabalu
Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Kota Kinabalu. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.
- Get inTerminal 1 serves full-service airlines such as Malaysia Airlines, Asiana Airlines, while Terminal 2 serves air cargo, a tourist helicopter service, and charter flights.
- Get inYou can also catch buses/minibuses doing the shorter run to Ranau.
- Get inMinibuses leave once full from Terminal Bas Bandaran Berjaya (Updated August 2022).
- Get inYou can also make the journey by minivans but you may have to change at Beaufort or even at Papar and Sipitang.
- Get inCatch them from the minivan station opposite Wawasan Plaza.
From Wikivoyage: Kota Kinabalu, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.
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If you know how people move in Kota Kinabalu – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.
Next door to Kota Kinabalu
- Penampanghuman settlement in Malaysia8.1 km
- Penampang Districtdistrict in Sabah, Malaysia8.1 km
- Tanjung AruDistrict of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia4.4 km
- Inanamhuman settlement in Malaysia6.8 km
- Kota Kinabalu Districtdistrict in Sabah, Malaysia600 m
- Donggongonhuman settlement in Malaysia7.9 km