Day 1 – Arrived in Kota Kinabalu!

I actually arrived in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah in the late afternoon. But since I had to wait for my friends from Indonesia, I ended up hanging around the airport until 10 PM. We finally reached our friend’s place (yep, crashing there! 😆) around 11 PM.

But before heading home, we made a quick stop at the night market for some bites! I grabbed 1 piece of fried chicken for RM 3 (around 0.72USD) and a plate of fried noodles for RM 5 (around 1.19USD). Yummm!

We didn’t really do much that night, just spent time talking since they were all my college friends. Long story short, we went to bed around midnight and had to wake up early the next day. By around 5:30 AM, we were already getting ready to start the holiday.

The plan for today was to hit the beach, since Kinabalu is so close to the sea.

And this was the point where we took a boat to cross over to another island. The area felt a bit like a night market, with plenty of food stalls, shops, and all sorts of things around.

There were so many tour vendors offering different packages for activities on the islands, and we decided to go with this one. The price was RM 135 (around 32.50USD), which already included round-trip boat rides, sea walking, and snorkeling at two different islands. The trip ran from 8 AM until about 2:30 PM, so roughly six hours of fun in the sun.

After registering and checking in, we were given life jackets. Each vendor had their own distinct life jacket design, making it easy to recognize which group you belonged to.

Of course, I couldn’t forget to wear my favorite shorts — the elephant-print ones I got from Thailand, haha!

All set to hop on the boat, it took us about 15 minutes to cross to the first island. Luckily, we got a boat with a roof, but it still had open windows on the sides, so we could enjoy the view along the way.

There was an additional entrance fee to the first island (Manukan Island) for foreigners, which was RM 25 (around 6USD). After that, there weren’t any extra costs unless you wanted to grab some snacks.

There were small local stalls, kind of like simple eateries, selling snacks like instant cup noodles. It was a bit of a pity to see some trash along the shoreline, but in the morning we noticed staff cleaning it up.

Here, we didn’t go snorkeling yet — we just hung out by the beach, played around the shore, and took some photos.

Around 9 AM, we were still just enjoying our time by the shore. Even in the shallow water, there were plenty of little fish swimming around!




We took a short break since we were getting a bit hungry — no breakfast yet, haha. Luckily, there were plenty of trash bins around, so no excuses to litter here!

A little while later, around 9:30 AM, the staff called us over for our first mission — sea walking! It’s basically walking on the ocean floor at a certain depth while wearing an air helmet, so you can get up close with the fish.

First, we had to put on these special shoes to protect our feet, just in case we accidentally stepped on sharp coral.

I was already starting to look tanned and a bit messy, haha — and that was just after a short time playing on the beach.

The helmet was actually quite heavy, so the staff had to help us both when going down and later when coming back up.

It wasn’t actually that deep, maybe only around 3 meters, but my ears did feel a bit of pressure. That’s why the staff gave us some instructions beforehand.
Underwater, we mostly just watched the fish for about 15–20 minutes (I kind of lost track of time). The staff also took photos with a GoPro, which they would send to us afterward. I really enjoyed seeing the beautiful fish up close, especially since some of the staff scattered food around us to attract them.

After finishing up, we went back to the same spot where we had started earlier.

This time, it was snorkeling time! We borrowed the gear, like the snorkel masks, and even though we were just along the shallow shore, there were still plenty of fish swimming around — both big and small. If you’re lucky, you might even spot some with beautiful colors.

As the day went on, the place started getting busier and busier!

Around noon, the staff called us again to move on to the next island. It was still pretty close by, just about a 5–10 minute boat ride.

Here, there was no extra fee — we could just walk right in. The island had two beach areas, and we decided to go for the quieter one.

So yeah!! From around 12 to 1 in the afternoon, right under the blazing sun, we went snorkeling! It was amazing — luckily the water was crystal clear, so we just went for it and enjoyed watching all the cute little fish. I even swam out a bit further to see more variety of fish and coral reefs.

After that, I headed back to cool off and rest in the shade under a tree, escaping the midday heat.

And surprise! I spotted two monitor lizards, probably a pair, just chilling on the beach.

We stayed at this second beach until around 1:30 PM, and then finally decided it was time to shower and freshen up.

But the only option was a shared rinse area — no separate shower rooms. So we just had to make do there. Inside, there was only a toilet.

While rinsing off, I checked to see if I had gotten really dark from the sun. Looking closely, it didn’t seem too patchy, so no awkward tan lines yet!

By around 2:30 PM, we were ready to head back to the city.

After a whole day of playing around from morning till afternoon, we were starving. So, we went to try one of the most famous spots for seafood here — Welcome Seafood. It really looked like a row of shop-houses, the restaurant was super long! We picked several dishes to try — Thai-style grouper, crispy fried shrimp, battered squid, some vegetables, and even fried bitter melon.

While waiting for the food to arrive, you could check out the live fish on display at the restaurant.

The food turned out to be really good! Definitely a must-try if you’re ever in Kota Kinabalu. We also ordered drinks for each of us. In total, the bill came to RM 160 (around 40USD) for four people — so roughly 10USD per person.

I forgot what this drink was called, but it tasted like orange juice mixed with a tangy candy — a bit sour, really refreshing, and so good!

And here it is — the full spread of dishes for the four of us!
Alhamdulillah, we finished everything — not a single bite left. Simply delicious, period.
In the evening, we stopped by a snack shop called Mix Inanam. It’s a store full of imported snacks, with goodies from Indonesia, China, Thailand, and more. We grabbed a few snacks here to stock up for tomorrow’s adventure.

This is my favorite instant fried noodle! I’ve had it before in Malaysia.

They even had Indomie on the shelves!







So, where should we head to next tomorrow?

To be continued...