Tawau
Tawau is the third largest city in Sabah after Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan, with around 370,000 inhabitants. For most of our guests it plays one simple role: Tawau airport (TWU) is where you land for Sipadan, and the road transfer to Semporna takes about 1 hour 15 minutes. Fly in late and you sleep here; fly in before noon and you can be on a boat to Mabul, Kapalai, Pom Pom or Mataking the same afternoon.
The town itself deserves more credit than it gets. Tawau grew rich on timber in the 1970s and then on cocoa - it remains the historical cocoa capital of Malaysia - and today it is a proper working city with a lively old town, the best-value hotels in eastern Sabah, and some genuinely wild country inland at Tawau Hills and the Maliau Basin. Below is our verified guide: every hotel listed was individually checked as open, renames are flagged, and the ghosts have been moved out of the way.
Tawau Airport to Semporna Transfers
Scheduled minivan and private transfers run all day between Tawau airport, Tawau city and the Semporna jetty (about 1h15 by road). If you are booked on an island package, the transfer is usually part of it; if not, we can arrange it.
Contact us for the latest airport transfer timetable
Which are the Best Hotels in Tawau?
Tawau's hotel money congregates around Jalan Bunga and the Fajar Complex - several of the hotels below are literally in the same building block. Two of the biggest names have been renamed in recent years, so book under the names we give here, not the old ones.
Borneo Royale Hotel (formerly Promenade Hotel, 4 stars)
The former Promenade Hotel has traded as the Borneo Royale since mid-2019, and it remains the flagship: 16 floors (the tallest hotel in Sabah), 180 rooms, the biggest ballroom in the state, and it is attached to the Eastern Plaza shopping centre on Jalan Kuhara. The Cafe@se7en on the 7th floor has the best dinner view in town. If you want one comfortable, predictable night between flight and boat, book here.
Marco Polo Hotel Tawau (formerly Belmont Marco Polo)
Tawau's grand old hotel from the timber-boom years, on Jalan Clinic in the old town - it even hosted the King and Queen of Sweden on their 1996 visit. The "Belmont" has been dropped from the name, the wood-carved lobby and big free car park remain. Old-school comfort with thousands of solid reviews behind it.
Heritage Hotel (3 stars)
An 88-room hotel in the Fajar Complex on Jalan Bunga, in the middle of the banking-and-hotels block. Divers should know one detail: the Mataking Reef Resort has its agent desk in the Heritage lobby, so many island guests start their trip right here. Rooms come with and without windows - ask for a window when booking.
Shervinton Executive Boutique Hotel (3 stars)
Directly opposite the Heritage and probably the best all-rounder in the block: boutique-styled rooms, a sauna and spa treatments, room service and a free buffet breakfast that guests consistently rate above its neighbours. Well over a thousand positive reviews say the formula works.
Prince Hotel (3 stars)
The southern anchor of the same hotel block as the Heritage. A long-standing, dependable mid-ranger that trades on location: banks, kopitiam and the evening food streets are all on foot.
City Garden Hotel
One of the best-scored hotels in town at the moment: bright modern rooms in white and light wood, some with sea views, about five minutes' walk from the waterfront. Excellent value in the gap between budget and business class.
Astana Hotel (3 stars)
A dependable mid-range hotel now listed on the booking platforms under the "Hotel O Astana" flag - same property, same team. Free parking and fair prices keep it busy with Malaysian business travellers.
MB Hotel - May Blossom (3 stars)
A modern mid-ranger that shows up on every current Tawau shortlist. Clean, functional rooms aimed at the overnight-before-the-islands crowd.
Kingston Executive Hotel & Kingston Hotel
Two hotels, one family: Kingston Holiday Sdn Bhd runs the Executive in the main-town hotel district (spacious rooms, ironing boards and kettles, everything walkable) and opened the simpler walk-up Kingston Hotel on Jalan Haji Karim in 2023 for the pure-budget crowd. Book the Executive for comfort, the Kingston for price.
Walai Tokou Boutique Hotel (2 stars)
A small boutique-styled hotel, verified open and listed on the main platforms. A characterful alternative to the concrete mid-rangers at a similar price.
My Inn Hotel (2 stars)
Ninety-six rooms on Jalan Dunlop with LCD TVs and Astro channels, a 24-hour KFC nearby and the airport about 30 minutes away. Simple, big, and easy to get a room in when the Jalan Bunga block is full.
LA Hotel
A straightforward modern budget-plus hotel, verified in the current listings. Does the essentials well and nothing more - which at these prices is exactly the deal.
King Park Hotel Tawau (3 stars)
Part of the small Sabahan King Park group, with elegant-for-Tawau rooms, satellite TV and sea views from the better floors. A solid step up from the old-town budget stock.
Istana Monaco Hotel
The best of Tawau's "Monaco" family of hotels, with sea-view rooms and one of the highest couples' ratings in town. Central, friendly and fairly priced.
Monaco Dynasty Hotel
On Jalan Bunga near the centre (note the spelling - it is "Dynasty", whatever older lists say). We keep it here for completeness because it is open and cheap, but recent guest reports on cleanliness and hot water are rough; look at the Istana Monaco or City Garden first for similar money.
Hotel Emas Tawau
One of the old town's long-established hotels, ten minutes' walk west of the Marco Polo, still open and listed. Dated but functional, with the night market streets close by.
De Choice Hotel (2 stars)
A compact budget-plus hotel, verified in the current listings. A fair pick when you just need a clean bed near the centre.
Kuhara Court Apartment Suite
Apartment-style suites near Jalan Kuhara for families and small groups who want a kitchen and space rather than a hotel room. Verified open; book early on holiday weekends.
Also worth knowing: newer arrivals Check Inn Hotel (Jalan Bunga, next to the MiliMewa supermarket) and Blu Sentral Hotel are both active and well reviewed, if the classics above are full.
Which are the Budget Hotels in Tawau?
Tawau is the cheapest hotel town in eastern Sabah - clean budget rooms here often cost half of what Kota Kinabalu charges. These are the verified names:
Hotel Soon Yee
An old-school local favourite in Pekan Lama, the old town, about ten minutes' drive from the centre. Basic but very clean rooms, good WiFi, a famously friendly owner, and the Pasar Tamu market nearby for cheap eating. The classic honest cheap sleep.
North Borneo Hotel
A simple town hotel, verified open in the current listings. The name is bigger than the building, but the price is right.
Aradah Hotel (now OYO 89621 Aradah Hotel)
The Aradah now runs under the OYO flag, which in practice means standardised bedding and app-cheap rates. Book under the OYO listing.
T-Hotel Tawau
A no-frills budget hotel, verified in the current listings. Bed, aircon, hot shower - the Tawau budget trinity.
The old-town locals
Tawau's old streets also hold a cluster of small, cash-run local hotels that have served plantation workers and traders for decades: names like the VS Hotel Guesthouse, Ocean Villa, Hotel Monaco 2000, Putra Hotel, Telaga Indah (the former Grace Hotel), Laksamana, Grace @ Chester, Grace Inn, Oriental, Chester, Loong, Merdeka, Dunlop, Sutera, Hotel Tawau, North City and Quail. Most take walk-ins only and none maintain a reliable online presence, so we cannot vouch for which of them are trading in any given month - the same applies to the Dream Hotel - Holiday Hotel and King Lee Hotel from older lists. If you are counting every ringgit they are worth a look on foot; if you need a confirmed bed, book one of the verified hotels above.
Which are the Resorts near Tawau?
Sipadan Mangrove Resort
Chalets on the mangrove waterline between Tawau and Semporna - closer to the airport than Semporna is, and far quieter than either town. See our dedicated page for rooms and packages.
Balung River Eco Resort
River-stone and timber chalets set in the old Balung plantation at Mile 33, with the rainforest of Tawau Hills Park as the backdrop - a Sabah Tourism "Best Nature Attraction" winner back in 2003, about 30 minutes from the airport. Fair warning from recent guests: the last stretch is a long gravel plantation road and the facilities have aged, so come for the setting, the fruit orchards and the birdlife rather than polish. There is a small per-person airport shuttle on request.
What are the Tawau Top Attractions?
- Tawau Hills Park - rainforest park 30 minutes from town, home to some of the tallest tropical trees ever measured, waterfalls, and an easy canopy of trails. The best half-day in Tawau.
- Teck Guan Cocoa Villa & Museum - the shrine to Tawau's cocoa story. Tour the museum, taste the locally grown chocolate, and understand why Tawau calls itself Malaysia's cocoa capital.
- Table Waterfall - a broad, shallow cascade inside the Tawau Hills area where locals picnic on the rock shelves. Go on a weekday morning and you may have it to yourself.
- Ulu Kalumpang Forest Reserve - protected forest catchment east of the hills, for birders and true green-season adventurers.
- Tawau Hot Spring - a natural hot spring on the flank of the hills park, reached by a jungle trail. Combine it with the waterfall for a full Hills day.
- Maliau Basin - Sabah's "Lost World", a vast unspoiled conservation basin several hours inland. A serious multi-day expedition, not a day trip, and worth every leech.
Boats to Indonesia: Nunukan & Tarakan
Tawau is also eastern Sabah's border town: there are daily ferry connections from the Tawau waterfront to Nunukan and Tarakan Island in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. If your Borneo plans cross the border, this is the crossing - bring your passport to the terminal early, as immigration formalities take time.
That is Tawau: land, sleep well and cheaply if you must, eat something involving local chocolate, and then get yourself to the water.
Contact us to arrange your Tawau arrival and island transfer