Road trips from Kota Kinabalu

During our Borneo family holiday, we rented a car and began a Sabah road trip from Kota Kinabalu. We spent a week road tripping in Sabah, driving in a loop. Our road trip from Kota Kinabalu took us to a river, the mountains, and the beach, with some fantastic views along the way. All of these places can be visited individually, whether you’re looking for day trips or a longer road trip from Kota Kinabalu.

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Renting a car in Kota Kinabalu

After looking at some local car rental places on Google Maps, we were a little suspicious of the perfect 5-star reviews. When our enquiries went unanswered, we turned to the larger global rental car companies. We ended up renting from Europcar, located at Kota Kinabalu International Airport. After staying 3 nights in a Jesselton Quay apartment, we got a grab to the airport to pick up our rental car.

The car was an older Nissan Almera with numerous dents and scratches, but it was reliable throughout our Sabah road trip. We didn’t opt for the cheapest available vehicle, choosing to spend a little extra for more power, as we were aware of the steep driveway at our Kundasang accommodation and hills along the way.

We have previously rented a car and driven around mainland Malaysia; however, driving in Sabah, Borneo, was much more relaxed. In Malaysia, drivers can be aggressive, speeding up behind you and flashing their lights or honking so you move out of their way. We didn’t experience any of this in Sabah, Borneo.

The road condition was generally ok, although you do need to watch out for potholes. I assume the road conditions would worsen during the rainy season. A 4WD would be necessary during the wet season, as we were travelling in the dry season, we were ok in a standard sedan car. The road that worried us the most was the unsealed road to the beach parking area. There were some hills to go up and down the dirt road, not something we would want to drive on in a 2WD if it were wet.

Driving on the windy roads from Kota Kinabalu to Kundasang and then onto Ranau was slow. The road leads all the way to Sandakan, so there are a lot of trucks using it. The trucks are very slow-moving up the steep parts, and a line of traffic forms around the bends. Allow extra time for travel and just be patient. Motorbikes/scooters were overtaking, at times on dangerous corners, and we just kept as far to the left as possible to give them space.

Fuel cost in Sabah, Borneo

Fuel costs around where we went in Sabah were 2.05 – 2.20myr per litre. We went to a fuel station in Kundasang and another before the KK airport, both required pre-payments. In Kundasang, we were filling the tank and paying cash, which confused things. At the fuel station near the airport, Tim tapped our card at the pump.

The biggest benefit of self-driving in Sabah, Borneo, is of course the flexibility. We could make stops along the way to places, time trips around our bookings and drive to explore nearby areas.

We were also able to create a budget road trip in Sabah. Fuel costs were very low; we filled the tank for less than 60myr. Even with driving up hills and doing a full loop, driving from Kota Kinabalu and back, we only filled the tank once and topped it up before returning the rental car.

Road trips from Kota Kinabalu

I will list our full Sabah road trip itinerary below, but all these places can be visited individually as day trips, an overnight stay or for a few days. You can pick and choose what suits your family’s Sabah road trip holiday.

This is a fun little stop on a road trip from Kota Kinabalu to Kundasang or Kota Belud. The bridge is painted in bright colours, and walking across it over the river while it wobbles is a fun way to break up a drive from KK. Just by the bridge is a small shelter where locals dressed in traditional clothing play various musical instruments. On the other side of the suspension bridge is a small market. There is a history and a folktale associated with the lower car bridge, which can be read about on the Sabah Tourism page.

We came across Grace Guesthouse on booking.com and loved the idea of staying in a house by the river. This was not a location I associated with a trip to Borneo. There are many guesthouses with camping sites or larger campgrounds along the river, so it must be a popular area for locals to stay.

The house was cute, and just out the back door was a footpath alongside the river. Being the dry season, the river was lower, so we were able to walk right down to it. In the afternoon, the sky was cloudy, but in the morning, we walked along the stone riverbank and came to a great view of Mt.Kinabalu.

A suspension bridge took us across the river to a main road and a well-stocked 99 Speedmart store. There were a lot of stray dogs around the area, but they were all harmless. A pack was also near the house, and we think the neighbours may look after these. The smaller one came for a walk with us.

This felt like such a relaxing part of our trip, just wandering along the riverbank and spending time by the water.

On the way to Kundasang, there is a spot worth stopping for. Pekan Nabalu Market has vendors selling souvenirs, clothes and fruit. In the same area is Mt. Kinabalu Viewpoint, with views out over the mountains and, if you’re lucky and it’s not clouded over, a great view of Mt. Kinabalu.

Kundasang has a lot to offer. We stayed for 3 nights in a ‘hobbit house’ that had amazing views of Mt.Kinabalu and the surrounding hills. While in Kundasang, we went hiking, bought fruit at the market, paid our respects at the war memorial and sipped iced lattes at a cafe with a view. We stayed at B-Inspired Abode & Hobbits. You have to book through WhatsApp, if that’s not your thing, check out some other options on Booking.com.

Ranau

Located in Ranau is The Poring Hot Spring, known for its hot sulphur spring baths. The Poring Canopy Walk is also here; unfortunately, it was closed during our visit. The Poring Hot Spring is a substation of Kinabalu Park. We spent the day hiking to Langanan Waterfall.

Other popular attractions in Ranau include a fish spa, where you can walk into the river and the fish nibble your feet and the Sabah Tea Resort Restaurant. We drove to Ranau from Kundasang, but there is also accommodation around the area if you want to stay here instead.

You can visit the northernmost tip of Borneo in under 4 hours by driving from Kota Kinabalu. With that amount of driving time, you would need to stay somewhere nearby. This felt a little too far out of the way for our family road trip in Sabah, so we gave it a miss.

Stay at a secluded beach

We had to get a boat to this accommodation, which already made it seem awesome. Our overnight stay at Big Fin Beach Resort, Kota Belud, was an amazing part of our Sabah road trip. We paid a small fee to park the car overnight at another accommodation before we were picked up and taken across the ocean to the resort.

Owned by Big Fin Divers, the resort offers snorkelling and diving trips. You can also rent kayaks, paddleboards, or book a jungle walk. Accessed only by boat, you feel like you’re on a secret beach.

Our room was a family chalet with a double bed and a bunk bed. The balcony had views of the ocean and mountains, with a bench seat and two hammocks. When we arrived, the tide was really far out, too shallow for kayaking. We decided to just wade around in the shallow waters. Finding a deeper spot to sit in, the water was so warm it felt like being in a warm bath.

Another family spotted a lion fish and called us over to come and see it. After watching it swim around, blending into the sand and coral, we walked around to see what else we could find. We saw lots of different fish, including zebra fish, swimming in the shallow water. When walking along the sand, lots of little crabs popped up and scurried off towards the ocean.

From late afternoon all through the night, it rained quite heavily. We enjoyed just chilling on our balcony, reading, writing, drawing and watching the rain. The rate for Big Fin Beach Resort included 3 meals, and they were all incredibly delicious. All information is on the Big Fin Divers website.

A short drive from Kota Kinabalu is the Kokol Hill area. From high up, you get views looking down over the ocean, Kota Kinabalu, and the surrounding islands. We stayed at Kokol Haven Resort as an alternative to staying in the city the night before returning the car to the airport. Our room was large with a loft for the kids to sleep, and we enjoyed the balcony with views over the mountains, even a glimpse of Mt. Kinabalu in the morning.

The place felt a little outdated and uncared for, but the kids had fun playing mini golf and basketball, and posing at the photo props.

Unfortunately, the food in the on-site restaurant was not good, microwaved to barely warm. After not enjoying our dinner, we chose to skip the included breakfast.

We enjoyed lunch and drinks at the cafe Hillside Kokol. It was a little pricey (everyone has to order a drink), but they do have a fantastic view. This would be a great option if you just want to spend the day enjoying the view without staying overnight.

Our Sabah road trip itinerary from Kota Kinabalu

There are lots of places you can road trip to from Kota Kinabalu. If you are in Sabah for a longer period of time, you could also do a larger road trip across more of Sabah. We originally thought about driving to Sandakan/Sepilok, but decided against it as the long drive didn’t make sense for a 2-week trip.

Our Sabah road trip itinerary was for a family of two adults and two kids aged 13 and 10. We drove a loop, starting and ending in Kota Kinabalu. This road trip was part of our Sabah, Borneo itinerary, which also included Sandakan, Sepilok and the Kinabatangan River.

Sabah road trip itinerary with kids

Day 1: Drive from Kota Kinabalu Airport to Grace Guesthouse by the river. Stop over at Tamparuli Suspension Bridge.

Day 2: Drive from Grace Guesthouse to Kundasang. Stop over at Pekan Nabalu Market and Mt. Kinabalu viewpoint.

Day 3: A day around Kundasang. Drove to Kinabalu Park HQ, Anooh Coffee and the town centre.

Day 4: Drove from Hobbit House to Poring Hot Springs and hiked to Langanan Waterfall.

Day 5: Breakfast at Anooh Coffee. A 2-hour drive to the parking for Big Fin Beach Resort.

Day 6: Breakfast and morning on the beach, checked out, and drove to Kokol Haven Resort.

Day 7: Returned rental car to Kota Kinabalu airport before our flight to Sandakan.