Popular Places

Labuan Back

Financial Park

Recently completed, the Financial Park at Jalan Merdeka houses international offshore banks, and insurance and trust companies. A 1,500 sitting capacity convention hall and large shopping mall is also available for visitors. This modern complex is reputed to be the only one of its kind in any International Offshore Financial Centre throughout the world.

Labuan Market

Located in the heart of Labuan town, the Labuan Market is a lively place full of colors, sights, smells, and sounds. Test your bargaining skills while finding your way around the bustling crowds. A variety of local produce such as fruits, vegetables, fresh spices, fish, prawns, batik, rattan and other handicrafts are sold. Products from around the region are also sold here.

Beaches & Islands

Labuan and its neighboring islands are a sun-seeker's paradise with breathtaking panoramic views of the South China Sea, secluded white sandy beaches, and lots of tropical sunshine. The remote islands of Papan, Kuraman, Daat, Rusukan Besar, Rusukan Kecil, and Burong have plenty to offer. Visitors can spend the day exploring the beaches or the dense jungle inland, which is home to a variety of plants and animal lives. There are also a variety of watersports, such as jet skiing, wind surfing, scuba diving, fishing, and even wreck diving. The crystal clear water offers a window to the rich marine life of the South China Sea.

Wreck Diving

Labuan offers ideal diving conditions all year round for beginning, novice, and seasoned divers. Crystal clear waters and an opulence of shipwrecks have made Labuan the region's center for wreck diving. Four shipwrecks have been discovered so far. Two were sunk during World War II and the other two were commercial vessels that sank in the 1980s. Diving expeditions can be arranged to Labuan's four major wrecks: American, Australian, Blue Water, and Cement Wreck.

Located southwest of Pulau Rusukan Kecil, the American Wreck is the USS Salute, which is a minesweeper built in late 1943. It was sunk by a mine in 1945 and now sits on a sandy bottom at 33m. The Australian Wreck site lies approximately 23km from Labuan and southwest of Pulau Rusukan Besar. The identity of the ship is still uncertain. It was a freighter built in Rotterdam in 1900, captured by the Japanese in 1942, and sunk by the Royal Australian Air Force in 1945. Hence it was aptly named after its foe. The Cement Wreck is the MV Tung Hwang. It was a freighter, which hit a sandbank in 1980 while carrying cement for the Sultan of Brunei's new palace. Located east of Pulau Kuraman, it sits upright in 30m of water and its masts are 8m below the surface. The Blue Water Wreck sits approximately 34km offshore Labuan, northwest of Pulau Kuraman. It was the MV Mabini Padre, a Philippine trawler that sank in November 1981. Being further offshore, this wreck usually has the best visibility. Among all the wrecks, the Cement Wreck is the easiest to dive and is usually used for wreck-dive training. The American and Blue Water Wreck are for experienced divers only.

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