Taman Awam – In Miri Malaysia (2 + hours drive from Brunei)

Venue Type: Public gardens, swimming pool and suspension bridge.

Description: One of the attractions in the city of Miri (Malaysia) for parents with kids. If spending a few days over the border in Malaysia (See Miri Marriott post), this is a convenient place to visit to break up the day. About a 10 minute drive away from the Miri Marriott, Taman Awam is a lovely venue set on a hilltop amongst fairly well-kept gardens. The trails through the gardens are nice to explore with little stone carvings and sculptures placed in the wilderness. Avoid the middle of the day due to the heat.

Location: http://goo.gl/maps/DJYBy

Entry Fee: Free

Serves Food: No.

Nearby locations: Miri Marriott, Miri Crocodile Farm, Piasau Boat Club

McDonald’s (Gadong)

Venue Type: Fast food restaurant.

Description: It’s a McDonald’s with a small but clean play area. What else do you need to know?

Location: http://goo.gl/maps/wgpnJ

Nearby Facilities: Gadong Mall, Westpark #1 and #2 Funlands, Fratinni’s Pizza-making.

Jerdong Park Playground

Venue Type: Theme Park.

Description: The Sultan’s famous theme park is being slowly renovated. Now only one tenth its former size, plans are apparently afoot to restore it to a semblance of its former glory. Featuring a carousel, pedal boats, bumper cars, mini-golf, a ferris wheel, a huge outdoor playground, a train, a mini piate ship and more…this place sounds promising…

Its usefulness is somewhat sabotaged by the heat which limits the times young ones can be taken there. 4pm onwards is manageable (and there is a 30 minute window of “downtime” around 6pm for cultural reasons); Depending on your household bedtime(s), this may not leave much time to take advantage of all the facilities.

Location: Jerudong Park Playground, Jerudong.
http://goo.gl/maps/jtSC6

Admission fee: $50 for a family of four (unlimited rides).

Serves Food?: Lots…there’s a Burger King, KFC and assorted other stalls that sell food for about $5 per meal.

Nearby Facilities: Jerudong Park Playground, Polo Club, Tarindak Restaurant.

(A grumpy post script: On the second day of re-opening, the ferris wheel was closed due to a mechanical failure. Time will tell if this theme park will be able to maintain its assets).

Kianggeh Market

Description: A small (by SE Asian standards) local “traditional” market located by the Brunei river. Fresh fruit, veggies, spices, fish and tatt for sale. As Brunei goes, this is one of the more authentic local “cultural” places to visit. You can catch a boat from the steps to Kampong Ayer (if  you’re brave, ask to go to “Jeti 3” in the water village where there’s a local restaurant that serves food over the murky Brunei river – most meals are about $5. The boat ride is $1per person one way).
Overall, this is a fun little market that interests kids with all sorts of sights, sounds and odd smells (make sure they keep their hands to themselves!).

Location: Kianggeh Market, http://goo.gl/maps/0wrP9

Other info: Parking is awkward, so parking along Jalan Residency is probably best.

Nearby Locations: Kampong Ayer, Fratinni’s on the Water, Radisson Hotel.

Entry Fee: n/a

Empire Hotel “E Kids Club”

Description: Featuring a pool, a massive artificial lagoon for swimming and kayaking, a small clean beach, swings, a small waterslide, an indoor play area (with a nap room and baby change facilities) and a shaded pool deck for ordering food…this place is brilliant for families.

Cost: For Empire members, all facilities are free (Membership is $100 per month, but there is a massive joining fee…about $3000). For non-members, it’s $50 per visit.

If you are a guest of the hotel, the facilities are free (a cheeky idea which works is to spend a night in the hotel sans kids…get them babysat…enjoy a night imagining you’re a crazy young couple in love again in a “6 star” hotel room…then have someone bring the kids to the hotel in the morning to take advantage of the facilities)

Location: Empire Hotel
http://goo.gl/maps/B6pih

Serves Food: Yes. Expensive. $16 for minimalist fish and chips.

Other info: Pools are open from 7am, but the Kids E Club doesn’t open until 9am.

Nearby Facilities: The Polo Club, Bukit Shabandar

Website: http://www.theempirehotel.com/

West Park Kiddieland #1 (Gadong Mall)

Venue Type: Soft play area.
Description: Multiple ball pits, carousels, slides and trampolines feature in this large indoor play area. One of the larger soft play areas in Brunei, is very clean and well-maintained. Conveniently located on the 3rd floor of the Gadong mall, there are lots of shops and restaurants nearby.

Location: The Mall, Gadong. http://goo.gl/maps/oKqzP (3rd Floor)

Admission fee: $7 per child per hour.

Serves Food?: Kids meals for $5 (Fries + a main)

Nearby Facilities: Lots of shops, and a food court is one floor up.

Other info: Can be hired for parties. It has a large party area available for hire.
Website: https://www.facebook.com/pages/West-Park-Kiddieland-The-Mall-Gadong/241075902590166

Uni Arcade Funland (and Gadong Mall Foodcourt)

Venue Type: Foodcourt and gaming arcade.

Description: Located on the 4th floor of the Gadong Mall, this is a handy place to take kids when you’re halfway through your shopping or weekend “to do” list. Lots of different food types are available from lots of food vendors. The arcade is crazy, loud and fun…but only with about 20 minutes of entertainment for young ones. Games, rides and bumper cars, all designed with 3-8 year olds in mind, are ok for passing the time. At about $1 (2 tokens) for 3-5 minute rides, your money can disappear quickly if you don’t limit your time.

Location: The Mall, Gadong. http://goo.gl/maps/oKqzP

Admission fee: Free. But all rides cost $1 (buy 50c tokens from the counter to operate the rides).

Serves Food?: Great variety in the food court.

Nearby Facilities: Westpark Kiddieland, The Mall Cinema.
Website: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Uni-Arcade-FunlandBrunei-Darussalm/211683372231402

Manggis Sugar Bun ( incl. small “soft play” area)

Venue Type: Restaurant (with small soft play area).

Description: In its own right, this fast food restaurant is unspectacular…but it is rather handy. It has a very small “soft play” area in the dining area. Located on the third floor of the Manggis Hua Ho Department store, it is convenient if you i) have got shopping to do, ii) are on your way home along Jalan Muara, iii) want to eat in peace while your children wreak havoc in a contained area ( 🙂 ).

Don’t go out of your way to visit here, but take advantage of it if you are nearby.

Location: 3rd floor. Manggis Hua Ho building. http://goo.gl/maps/uSfKh

Admission fee: Free

Serves Food?: Fast food done easy. Menu includes burgers, fried chicken, fries, nuggets etc. Kids meals are available for $6 (main item + fries +drink). For adults, the Laksa ($4) and Beef Claypot ($7) are surprisingly good.

Other Info: Can be hired for parties (Minnie Mouse comes out, plays musical chairs, dances about and leaves).

Open 10am – 10pm.

Jubilee Park

Venue Type: Outdoor playground.

Description:Big outdoor playground modelled in the shape of a ship. Slides, swings, ladders, climbing frames…it’s got what you expect from a playground. As with everywhere in Brunei, the heat kicks in between 9am-3pm…it is very exposed here.

Due to heat and rain, the plastic seems to degenerate in places regularly. While it is fairly adequately maintained, just keep an eye out for some sharp plastic edges.

On the weekend, especially Sunday, there always seems to be some event/festival/celebration being run by some Ministry (the weekend just gone, our kids got free henna tattoos and face-painting as a part of the “Healthy City” event).

Evenings are lovely here as the sun falls, a cool breeze rises, the burger stands fire up and the sounds of the Ultimate Frisbee players echo around the park.

Location: Taman Jubli Perak http://goo.gl/maps/TcYyb

Admission fee: Free

Serves Food?: After about 4pm, burger stands start cooking. Not healthy, but, it is what it is.

Nearby Facilities: Jungle Gym, Tasek Lama, Fun Factory,

Radisson Hotel (Buffet and Swim)

Venue Type: Hotel restaurant with pool.

Description: On Saturday and Sunday if you spend $10 at the restaurant, The Radisson offers free use of their pool. The poolside tables allow you to graze comfortably.

The morning buffet is $18 for adults, while children under the age of 4 eat for free. An easy few hours for a family can be spent gorging and swimming for under $40.

There is a small shaded baby pool. The big pool is partially shaded and has easy steps for a safe entry in the shallow end. The deep end is over 7 feet deep.

Location: http://goo.gl/maps/Hf2tG

Admission fee: Minimum spend of $10 per adult in the restaurant.

Serves Food?: Lots! Full buffet, a la carte, or just pick a slice of cake from the cabinet.

Nearby Facilities: Tasek Lama, Supasave, Fun Factory.
Other info: Pool closes at 4pm.
Pool area can be reserved for kids’ parties.