Tawau

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Tawau port.

Buzzling fish market in Tawau.

The third largest town of the state of Sabah, situated on the island of Borneo. It is a relatively new town in Malaysia, boomed in early 80's for its lumber and cocoa farming industry. Today Tawau is a bustling town where it is a transit point to all neigbouring islands such Sebatik, Nunukan, Tarakan, Jolo and Semporna islands.

[edit] Get in

[edit] By plane

Tawau International Airport (IATA: TWU, ICAO: WBKW) is the second international airport of Sabah. There are flights to Kuala Lumpur (2 hr 30 min, daily), Johor Bahru (2 hr 30 min, every Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun), and Kota Kinabalu (45 min, five daily)on Malaysia Airlines and Air Asia.

The airport is about 35 km away from the town. Airport taxis available and operated by the Malaysian Airport authorities charge RM55 for one way trip to the town.

The going rate for a taxi ride from the airport to the city is around RM31 (as of October 2006).

Alternatively, there is an airport bus service operated by Kasah Transport (S) Sdn. Bhd. (Tel: 089-950208) to the city for RM15. The departure times of the airport bus from the city to the airport are as follows: 6.30am, 8.15am, 11.00am, 1.00pm, 4.30pm (as of August 2006).

Caution: there are ATMs and a currency exchange at the airport but if you're arriving late it'll almost certainly be closed and the ATMs are not always working, so make sure you've got some Malaysian ringgit before you arrive as you'll need it for the taxi or the bus.

[edit] By coach

There are daily buses from Kota Kinabalu's North City Bus Station, but it's a long eight-hour journey. There are half a dozen companies and the fare is RM55.50.

There are also bus from Lahad Datu, 2.5 hours away. Departure at 3.30pm, RM15.

[edit] By ferry

The main ferry connections are to the Indonesian cities of Nunukan and Tarakan, both in East Kalimantan province.

To/from Nunukan: Two departures daily from Tawau, Tawindo Express, Labuan Express, at 10 AM and 3 PM. From Nunukan, departures are at 9 AM and 2 PM. Tickets cost RM41 one-way and journey time is 1 hour.

To/from Tarakan: One departure daily except on Sunday from Tawau. Tawindo Express sails every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 11.30am, while Indomaya Express departs every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 10.30am. Tickets cost RM79 one-way and travelling time is 3 hours.

[edit] Get around

Taxi - Taxi fares around town would cost around RM5, and to housing area at RM7 at most.

Bus - RM 2 to travel within town areas. And about RM2 to the rural areas like Balung and Merotai.

[edit] See

[edit] Do

[edit] Diving

• Sipadan - The only oceanic island in Malaysia, rising about 5000 feet above seabed.
• Within Sabah, tourists can also dive from the islands of Lankayan, Mataking, Mabul, etc.

[edit] Buy

• Central Market or known as Pasar Sri Tanjung Tawau, Pasar guntung tawau,Pasar fish market.It offers goods arrived locally and neigbouring islands.(such as Nunukan and Tarakan).

[edit] Eat

• Sabindo Hawker Center offers a variety of seafood stalls at Sabindo centre. From Chinese, Malay and Thai tomyam seafood stall, it is just located along the waterfront in town. The stalls offer very competitive prices for selective catch of the day.

• Makanan Laut 101 serves excellent crab and shellfishes with vegetables at incredibly low prices.

• Mongolian Chicken Rice on Jalan Chester offers one of the tastiest Chicken Rice in town. The small outlet is always crowded.

At night, numerous stalls set up around the town. Many sell

• Sulawesi Soto Makassar (buffalo soup), a Bugis specialty; Pisang Goreng (fried bananas), Ubi Goreng (fried tapioca), Onde-onde (glutinous rice with savoury taste roasted in banana leaves), Kuih Pandan (Pandan rice cake), Karipap (Curry Puff), Kuih kacang (Peanut pancake spread with coconut jam), Bubur Chaca(local dessert served with tapioca, sweet potato and sago), etc.

• Nasi Kuning or yellow rice is an Indonesian specialty that cannot be found anywhere else in Malaysia except Tawau. The rice is cooked with turmeric (known as kunyit in Malay) and coconut milk - which in turn made the rice look yellow in colour. It is usually served with a piece of fish deep-fried in dried chilli sauce. This can be found in almost any Malay restaurants or stalls around Tawau but sometimes also sold in some Chinese coffeeshops. To further enhance the taste, the rice is usually wrapped in banana leaves. Price ranges from RM 0.40 to RM 3.00 per serving.

• Kam Ling Seafood (Add: 25 Sabindo Open Air SeaFood Stall, Tel: 089-756457, 016-8262511, 017-8982511, 019-8832511), contact Mr Wong to place reservation if you like to taste fresh seafood. Dinner for 2 with fish and 2 dishes costs about RM35. You may like to try Kam Ling's very own Kam Kat Lemon (金秸柠檬, lime lemon juice, RM3.10) drink after seafood to clear the heat.

[edit] Drink

• Zenzi Dance Club, behind Maxim seafood restaurant, Sedap corner at Fajar. RnB Club formerly known as Frequency.

[edit] Sleep

[edit] Budget

• Hotel Murah - RM41 for double room.

[edit] Mid-range / Splurge

• Belmont Marco Polo Hotel

• King Park Hotel

• Heritage Hotel

• Hotel Emas Tawau

• Hotel Monaco 2000

• Hotel kingston

[edit] Stay healthy

There are a number of medical and dental clinics available. Majority of them only operate until 5 pm but some open until 10 pm. Klinik Famili have courteous doctors at 4 branches around Tawau and its branch at Kompleks Tanjung operate until 10 pm everyday including weekend and public holiday.

[edit] Get out

• Nunukan - an island in East Kalimantan, Indonesia, is just one an hour away by ferry. 2 departures daily from Tawau port.

• Tarakan - a town on an island of the same name in East Kalimantan, which is about 120km south of Tawau.

WikiPedia:Tawau World66:asia/southeastasia/malaysia/kotakinabalu