Water Villages of Labuan

Kampung air

Kampung Patau-Patau 2 runs one of the last remaining water village homestay programmes in Malaysia. The houses stand on stilts over the water and are linked by boardwalks. Access is by water taxi.

At a glance

Who lives there

The residents of Kampung Patau-Patau 2 are descendants of fishermen, sailors and traders from neighbouring Brunei who settled here several generations ago. The village is made up of stilt houses connected by boardwalks.

Staying overnight

The homestay programme is the main reason visitors come. Guests join the villagers’ daily activities rather than viewing the village from a boat.

Getting around

Water taxis are the usual way to move around the water villages.

These are private homes, not an attraction. Ask permission before photographing anyone, dress modestly, and arrange the homestay through the village programme rather than arriving unannounced.

Source: Tourism Malaysia, Labuan Map & Guide (updated December 2023).

Kampung Bebuloh

Another of Labuan’s stilt settlements built out over the water, in the same tradition as the Patau-Patau villages.

What it is

Kampung Bebuloh is one of Labuan’s water villages: houses raised on stilts over the water and linked by boardwalks, the same form as Kampung Patau-Patau 2. The residents of these villages descend from fisherfolk, sailors and traders from neighbouring Brunei who settled here generations ago.

Visiting

Access to the water villages is by water taxi. Bebuloh has no visitor programme of its own, so anyone wanting to stay overnight in a water village should look at the Patau-Patau 2 homestay.

Source: Water village structure, ancestry and access from Tourism Malaysia, Labuan Map & Guide (updated December 2023).

A residential village. Visit respectfully, dress modestly, and ask before taking photographs.

Kampung Patau-Patau 1

One of Labuan’s stilt villages on the water west of the town centre, next to the better-known Patau-Patau 2.

What it is

Kampung Patau-Patau 1 is part of the same group of water villages as Kampung Patau-Patau 2, which runs the homestay programme. The villages are made up of houses on stilts over the water, connected by boardwalks, west of the town centre.

Visiting

Water taxis are the way to get around the water villages. Most organised visits are arranged to Patau-Patau 2, because that is where the homestay programme operates.

Source: Water village structure and access from Tourism Malaysia, Labuan Map & Guide (updated December 2023).

This is a residential village with no visitor facilities. If you go, go quietly and briefly, keep to the main boardwalks, and ask permission before photographing people or houses.

Kampung Patau-Patau 2 (Homestay)

Kampung Patau-Patau 2 runs one of the last remaining water village homestay programmes in Malaysia. Stilt houses over the water, linked by boardwalks, reached by water taxi.

Who lives here

The villagers are descendants of fisherfolk, sailors and traders from neighbouring Brunei who settled on Labuan many generations ago. The settlement is made up of houses on stilts connected by boardwalks.

The homestay

The homestay programme is the main reason visitors come, and it is the highlight for most of them. Guests take part in the daily activities of the villagers and experience the local way of life directly, rather than looking at the village from a passing boat.

Source: Village ancestry, structure and homestay programme from Tourism Malaysia, Labuan Map & Guide (updated December 2023).

Getting there

Water taxis are the usual way to reach the water villages. The village sits on the water immediately west of the town centre.

How to behave here

These are family homes on a working village, not an attraction with an entrance. Book the homestay through the village programme rather than arriving unannounced, dress modestly, ask before photographing anyone, and remember that the boardwalks are people’s front paths.