The main transport artery in Brunei is the Pan-Borneo Highway, a joint project with neighbouring Malaysia.

You can get around the country by bus, taxi or hire car. However, public transport is mainly concentrated in the capital and its immediate surroundings.

Car hire

Hiring a car is one of the best ways to get around Brunei if you want to explore the smaller towns and villages.

Bear in mind, however, that most tourist attractions are located in Bandar Seri Begawan, where the DART taxi app works well, or in the rainforests, which you can only reach via an organised tour through a travel agency anyway.

Hiring a car is particularly worthwhile if you want to explore the non-touristy parts of Brunei and visit more remote villages.

Where and how to book a car?

Several major international car hire companies, specifically Avis andHertz, have counters right at Brunei BWN Airport.

You can also try booking via one of the major search engines such as Booking.com or Skyscanner.com; however, in Brunei in particular, car hire companies reserve most of their capacity exclusively for direct bookings on their own websites.

Car hire prices in Brunei

The usual price for hiring a standard compact car is around 80 bnd per day.

The price does not vary with the season, but we strongly recommend booking your car well in advance, as car hire capacity in Brunei is limited.

Driving and traffic regulations

In Brunei, they drive on the left.

Road conditions are very good even outside Bandar Seri Begawan, and local drivers are considerate and adhere to the traffic regulations.

Traffic in Brunei is considerably calmer than in Thailand or Indonesia, for example.

You’ll mainly come across conventional cars on the roads. Motorbikes and mopeds aren’t as widespread here as in other countries in South-East Asia.

The speed limit on roads outside the city is 80 km/h and 100 km/h on motorways.

Road signs are very clear and written in both Malay and English.

Taxis, the DART mobile app

For getting around towns and cities, as well as travelling between them, the most reliable option is the DART mobile app, which is the local equivalent of Uber or Grab.

Uber, Grab, GoJek, Bolt and other well-known ride-sharing apps do not operate in Brunei.

However, DART works on a very similar principle and the app is extremely easy to use.

Car availability is best in the cities of Bandar Seri Begawan, Muara, Seria and Kuala Belait, though you can also use this service from small villages in the interior. You just need to allow for a waiting time of over an hour.

Fares outside Bandar Seri Begawan are, however, very high; for example, a journey to Kuala Belait will cost over 100 bnd.

If you want to venture outside Bandar Seri Begawan on your own, it’s definitely worth hiring a car.

We provide detailed information on how the DART app works in our guide to Bandar Seri Begawan.

Public transport – buses

Public transport is provided exclusively by buses. There are no trains, trams or underground services in Brunei.

Intercity transport outside Bandar Seri Begawan is very sporadic and consists of practically just two bus routes:

• Bandar Seri Begawan – Tutong – Seria
  • Once an hour
  • approx. 6.00 am to 6.00 pm
  • Fare 2 bnd
• Seria – Kuala Belait
  • Once an hour
  • approx. 6.00 to 18.00
  • Fares 1 bnd

There is a much denser bus network in Bandar Seri Begawan and its immediate surroundings. We describe public transport in the capital in detail in our guide to Bandar Seri Begawan.

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Ferry services

Although more than 8 per cent of Brunei’s land area is covered by water, there are no regular domestic ferry services.

You can only take scenic cruises organised by some of the local travel agencies (such as freme.com), take a motorboat to the water village of Kampong Ayer (a 1-minute boat ride from the centre of Bandar Seri Begawan) or catch an international ferry to the Malaysian island of Labuan.