AFTER spending a few days travelling the mountains, sea, and nearby places, it’s now time to explore the beautiful landmarks and visit the picturesque buildings of Kota Kinabalu’s (KK) city center.
We began our city tour on our second day since we arrived home early from island hopping and also because our feet and hands were already itching since our first day to stroll around and take photos (ehem blogger alert lol) of the different landmarks and buildings in KK. And so after our quick power nap, we freshened up and went for an afternoon walk to the nearby landmarks with the help of our city map. Thanks to our very accommodating and helpful hotel staff.
Since our hotel is situated at the center of the city, walking is a great option as the places that we want to go to is just a few blocks away. The afternoon weather was also fine and sidewalks are perfect for walking as well.
Here’s a list of the places we went to:
KK City Park – British North Borneo War Monument
Just a short minute walk from our hotel building (Asia City), we first went to the KK City Park wherein you can also find the British North Borneo War Monument. The monument was said to have been built back in 1923 by the North Borneo Chartered Company as a memorial for the World War I fallen British soldiers and was later extended to include fallen Australian soldiers in World War II.
Gaya Street Market
Even though Gaya Street is famous for its Sunday Market, it also still has some food stalls present during the afternoon time. Something like the Davao City Roxas Night Market but purely food.
Atkinson Clock Tower and Street Art Graffiti Building
Atkinson Clock Tower, which is known to be the oldest standing structure in the city, was one of Claudette’s listed landmarks to visit. It is located at Signal Hill Road so you need to climb the stairs in order to see it up close. I was the one who suggested to visit the Street Art Graffiti Building which is located just beside Suriah Sabah Mall. This is a ruin of an old British Colonial building which is now filled with beautiful street artworks.
KK Boulevard and Central Market
If you want to take some touristy photos then visiting the KK Boulevard is for you, it is also near the Central Market which is also the best place for seafood lovers as there are lots of food stalls to choose from.
KK City Mosque
Also known as the floating mosque as it is surrounded by a human made lagoon, KK’s second main mosque is really beautiful. They have clothes for rent if you want to visit inside the mosque and since it was Ramadan time when we visited we got the chance to also see children learning the Quran. People there are very friendly as well.
Signal Hill Observatory
The best place to go to if you want to see the whole city. There’s no entrance fee here but you just need to ride a taxi. In our case, our hotel gave us a free tour around the city so we were very thankful for that.
Sabah Art Gallery and North Borneo Railway
We also visited the Sabah Art Gallery (Entrance fee RM 3) where we saw paintings from local artists and a collection of Japanese dolls which I know my mom would love to see! Our last landmark stop was the North Borneo Railway, it was still not open to the public and our guide told us that we were the first tourists that he has brought there. We saw the beautiful North Borneo Train which goes on tour every Wednesday.
For places to shop for pasalubongs, I suggest taking a visit at the Filipino Market which is located just ahead of the Central Market. They sell some good deals on Malay snacks and there are also handicrafts sold there. As for malls, if you’re into designer brands you may want to visit Imago Mall (they have Sephora!) and Suriah Sabah. Other fun malls to also check out are Centre Point and Wisma Merdeka.
Budget Breakdown
For the most awaited part, here’s our budget breakdown note that I travelled with my friend so some of this is my half of the payments:
Airfare (Davao-Manila-KK-Manila-Davao): P7,238.57
Accommodation (4 days via Airbnb): P1,384
Terminal Fee in Davao: P200
Travel Tax: P1,650
KPark Tour (via Amazing Borneo): P2,315
Pocket money for transportation, pasalubong, and entrance fees: P8,000
Emergency fund: P1,500
Total: 22,287.57
I just want to emphasize that we did not gathered this amount overnight instead we spent by phases. We first bought the tickets, then booked the hotel, and so on. We pre-paid almost all the necessary ones so we did not have the need to bring a lot. Our hotel was also very accessible so we mostly just walked.
This was a very long article but I hoped that you had fun reading my KK Adventure! Cheers to more tipid travel stories!
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Hi, I’m Kriztja and thanks for reading My Notebook! Check out my blog: rainbow-wishes.blogspot.com for more. Comments? Suggestions? Email me at: kriztja.labrador@gmail.com.