Bandar Seri Begawan

Understand

Bandar Seri Begawan is a modern city with wide streets and palace buildings. For its history, it was once a Malay fishing village and has been on the Brunei River in which people lived in riverside dwellings and was subject to attacks by pirates, the Portuguese and the Spaniards.

Get in

See Brunei#Get in for Brunei's entry requirements.

Get around

Try to pick up the official map of Brunei Darussalam, as it is easy to read and the public bus lines are easy to follow. The people of Brunei are very helpful to visitors, so don't be surprised after a few minutes of conversation they offer a ride to one of the attractions, as they know how much easier it is to drive there than get there any other way.

Downtown is quite small and can be easily navigated on foot. At several intersections there are walking maps of the Heritage Trail which includes the Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque, Tamu Kianggeh (Kianggeh Market), and the Royal Regalia Museum.

See

Don't expect to find much tasteful and stunning architecture like you would normally find in Southeast Asia. Here, most of the buildings are just plain and box-shaped. However, an interesting twist to the billboards around here, is that the "Jawi" (Arabicized Malay writing) are prevalent among them. Sometimes, foreign names are translated literally, e.g. "Pizza Hut" to "Pondok Pizza".

thumb|Jame' Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque|182x182px thumb|Kampong Ayer|187x187px thumb|Walking through the Water Village After visiting the Brunei Museum, walk along the road toward BSB to visit two tombs: the first is the Tomb of Sharif Ali, the third sultan of Brunei. The green sign by the road is written entirely in Arabic lettering. Further down the road is the Tomb of Sultan Bolkiah, the fifth sultan of Brunei. Both tombs are in easy walking distance from the Museum. thumb|View from a water taxi on the way to see proboscis monkeys

Buy

Several currency exchange places can be found downtown. thumb|Durians for sale at Gadong Night Market

Eat

Gerai Makan, on the waterfront in the southeastern corner of the city, just across a bridge. Here there are a number of outdoor restaurants serving cheap and tasty fare. It's a great place to relax and soak in the local atmosphere. Great views of stilt villages and water taxis speeding back and forth. PGS Cafe, near the Palm Garden at Kiulap. Charges buffet dining at $6 per head in a pleasant air-conditioned restaurant. Kaizen Sushi Yayasan, One Riverside on Jalan Macarthur. One of the best restaurants in BSB with views across the Brunei River. Wide selection of sushi and Japanese dishes, but prices are comparable to restaurants internationally. BR$20-30 per person, though you could spend more. They also have additional branches in BSB.