Hello
I plan to spend a short time in brunei. Im travelling alone and am female. if you have spent time there alone, did you feel safe? what would you recommend? i dont have a lot of money either so i cant go on expensive tours.
thank you!
lone traveller/where to visit and feel safe?
The best time to travel to Brunei is during the festive time, such as the Sultan%26#39;s birthday. There is a one month long celebration for that. Will have to check www.bruneitourism.com for activities. Yes, Brunei is safe for female traveller. There is a few budget accommodation here, such as KH Soon Services %26amp; Resthouse (khsoon_resthouse_brunei@hotmail.com), Jubilee Hotel (jubilee@brunet.bn) and Capital hotel. Some of the major attraction in Brunei (and free) are the Jame Asr Mosque (built afew years ago to commemorate the 25th anniversary of HM%26#39;s reign), Omar Ali Saifuddien mosque (built in 1968, one of the most impressive mosque in Southeast Asia), water village (houses on stilt. Recommend you to take the boat ride to go around. Rate negotiable but should not cost more than B$20 for a roundtrip), Royal Regalia (a good historical background of the royal tradition), the Brunei Museum and The Malay Technology Museum. All these are accessible by bus, which cost something like B$1 per ride. The fee-paying that maybe worth to go is the Proboscis monkey tour (about 3 hour) and Ulu Temburong National Park (one day trip). I think the Ulu Temburong cost around B$150 per person. For a real local experience, do try to savour some of the food at Gadong market foodstall (only available from 6 pm onwards and food cost as cheap as B$1 per pack). There is also a weekend bazaar in Bandar starting from Sat 6 pm to Sunday evening.
lone traveller/where to visit and feel safe?
If you are reading the reports on KH Soon resthouse and its web site I suggest you read it very carefully. Have a look at the dates of the posts, the language in them (I suspect the posts and the web site are by the same person), the room rates and remember that in UK and eleswhere it would be described as a backpackers. I have seen this building from the outside, not been inside and I would be very suspicious of the 4 Star rating.
I have just returned from a four day solo visit to Brunei (in July 2006), during which I spent several hours walking around Bandar Seri Begawan alone by day and by night. I am not female, but I can assure you that, from a crime and personal safety point of view, this is probably one of the safest places on the planet. (A consequence, I suspect, of a generally wealthy population, an authoritarian state, and the fairly strict application of Shariah law to the country%26#39;s Muslim residents.) As long as you don%26#39;t say anything critical of the Sultan, I would imagine that you would be a lot safer than you are in Leicestershire or most other places in the UK, Europe or North America.
According to statistics and anecdotal evidence, this country is virtually crime free. A small indication of this was the fact that, during my stay, the local newspaper gave fairly prominent coverage to the arrest of two people who had been caught stealing cell phones. There are not too many places where this would make news.
Tours are available, but they are quite expensive. If you don%26#39;t want to take tours, I would recommend that you stay in the heart of Bandar Seri Begawan rather than on the outskirts of town, since taxis are expensive.
I suggest a visit to the Royal Regalia Museum, which is a lot more interesting than its name suggests. Although not intended as such, it is a monument to the excesses of Brunei%26#39;s sultan. (Indeed, much of the country is a monument to the excesses of the Sultan and his family.) Also take a walk around the Omar Saifuddien Mosque, and be sure to walk around the back as well as the front. There you will see a part of the water village that isn%26#39;t visible from the river, a scene that makes it clear that not everyone in this country is wealthy. A relatively cheap way of seeing the sights from the river is by taking a water taxi. You would need to take a regular taxi to the Brunei Museum, and it isn%26#39;t worth it (unless you want to see a dated exhibit on the oil industry sponsored by Shell, or an exhibit of the Sultan%26#39;s Islamic Art)
Another recommendation: Take an early morning walk to the open air market, opposite the Brunei Hotel. This is a primarily a food market, and you will see spices, fish (live, dead, and dried), fruit, and vegetables for sale. You won%26#39;t find anything tourist oriented here, or in most other parts of the country, since tourists are still a relative rarity here. But the market is interesting to see, and great to photograph.
Have a look at CaRolCaFe%26#39;s posting on K H Soon Resthouse.
As I said earlier take care.
Thanks bigw. Travelling in Brunei alone is safe even for a female dressing ';unappropriately'; --%26gt; it was tooooo hot for me to ';dress up';. Showing the shoulders and the knees would not be strangely-obsevered. All big mosques listed in the guide or the city map as major attractions are equipped with long robes but please also bring a scarf along with you so you can also cover your hair when you%26#39;re visiting the mosques.
As bigw mentioned before I%26#39;ve just returned from Brunei (21 - 23 August) and actually stayed at the KH Soon Resthouse. The rooms are spacious but smelly and dirty, big cocroaches can be easily found on the corridor/walkway. Every time I had a shower the washroom flooded with water leaked out to the bedroom.
There were ';prostitute-like'; women sitting around the front desk every evening. That really made me sick!!! I paid B$39 per room per night and I regreted not paying a double for a decent clean room in Jubilee or Capital...sigh...
Good luck and enjoy.
I live here and am an aussie.This place is as safe as houses!!!Dont worry about covering up,but dont wear a mini or anything too obviously revealing.A t-shirt and 3/4 pants are fine,or skirt.You dont need a scarf,if you visit a mosque they have a robe for you to put on.
In 3 years i have heard of a mobile phone stolen and a wallet.But these people were being careless.Use common sense!They are so honest here they count your change usually 3 times!!!!But there are some very poor indian,and phillipino workers here...so not everyone is well off.
I spend time here on my own and have never felt safer.The people here are just delightful,and very laid back about the Muslim religion.
They understand that western ways and dress is different.They are a wonderful example of a religion that has been much maligned.
Eating out is FAB!!! here.Lots to try.If you have any more to ask...feel free.Do a water taxi ride about 10 dollars in the city around the water village.Go and visit the mosque in town(free) eat anywhere..they are very very clean,even grubby looking places!Take toilet paper(they dont tend to use it)..they shower instead!Do a boat trip(city) on low tide to see probiscis monkeys,about 50 dollars..brueni money.Golf is cheap and excellent if you want a game.Gadong markets near the fish markets....free from about 6 onwards.Bring lots of changes of clothes...you will sweat as its very very humid.Hope this helps.Ahhh Jerudong fish market is nice,on the beach,well opposite from 5 onwards,local fish market and fruits..interesting.All very very safe.English is spoken by nearly everyone.
