Getting Around Bintulu
Bintulu is a coastal town in central Sarawak, on the island of Borneo, and the capital of the Bintulu District and Division. It grew from a small fishing village into an industrial and port town after oil and gas reserves were discovered offshore, and it also serves as a gateway to the Samalaju Industrial Park and to attractions such as Similajau National Park, Tanjung Batu beach, Jepak village and the Tamu Bintulu and Pasar Utama markets. For a visitor, the practical picture is simple: the compact old town is easy on foot, local buses and boats cover the surrounding areas, taxis and long-distance coaches handle the bigger hops, and the airport sits unusually close to town.
Rail, Metro and Trams
Bintulu has no rail, metro or tram network, and none is described in the available sources. Getting around relies entirely on road vehicles, boats and walking, so plan your movements around buses, taxis and your own two feet rather than any train service.
Local Buses
Local bus services in Bintulu are run by City Public Link (also referred to as Jepak Transportation), reaching minor parts of the town and outlying areas such as Sungai Plan, Nyalau and Tatau/Kuala Tatau. Municipal buses can be found at one stop at the Pasar Tamu Bus Terminal. Fares are cheap — the local flat-rate fare programme puts them at around RM1, and a bus ride to other parts of town costs less than RM2.
A few practical points help set expectations:
- Bus passengers are typically rural residents and lower-income urban and suburban commuters rather than tourists.
- English is not commonly used by bus travellers here, so a few words of simple Bahasa Melayu, Bahasa Iban or Sarawak Malay go a long way.
- If you are a first-time visitor, treat the bus as a local, functional way to cover short hops rather than a sightseeing service.
Long-Distance Buses
For travel beyond Bintulu, the regional express bus terminal is at Medan Jaya, not far from Farley Supermarket. (One source also notes buses stationed at Medan Pasar Malam.) Bintulu is well connected by coach to major Sarawak towns and cities including Kuching, Sibu, Miri, Mukah, Betong, Sri Aman, Sarikei, Batu Niah and Sungai Tujuh, with operators such as MTC Transport, Biaramas, Eva Transport, Epstar, Borneo Highway Express and others. Some destinations — such as Sg. Asap in the Belaga area and Bakun — are served only from Bintulu's terminal. International links to Brunei (via Sungai Tujuh) and to Pontianak in Indonesia can also be bought at the terminal.
As a rough guide to journey times and costs, the trip to Miri takes approximately four hours and costs around RM50, while Kuching is roughly a nine-hour journey, sometimes with a transit through another main town. Fares are subject to change without prior notice, so confirm at the counter when you buy.
Boats and River Transport
Express boats are stationed at the River Front and link Bintulu town with smaller suburban and rural communities rather than with Sarawak's major cities. Typical destinations include Sebauh, Pandan, Labang, Tubau and Binyo, with fares ranging from around RM2 up to RM80 depending on the destination. Departures are generally clustered in the morning, with some early-afternoon sailings.
For something more adventurous, you can rent a perahu or speed boat to reach minor towns — but budget generously, as rental can run up to around RM500 per day, excluding engine oil. Note that no express boats connect Bintulu town to other major towns and cities in Sarawak; for those, use the coach network or fly.
Taxis and Ride-Hailing
Taxis are available to serve the town centre and are the straightforward option for trips that are too far or too hot to walk. The clearest fixed-price example is the airport run: a taxi from the coupon stand just outside arrivals into Bintulu town is a fixed RM35. Buy your coupon at the stand rather than negotiating with a driver. Beyond that, treat taxis as a metered or negotiated arrangement and agree the fare before you set off.
Walking
Bintulu's old town is quite pedestrian-friendly, with plenty of traffic lights that include pedestrian phases, so the historic core is comfortably explored on foot. Outside that core, walking becomes tiring — particularly to the Parkcity Commercial area and Medan Jaya — and a bus costing under RM2 is a sensible substitute for those longer legs. In short: walk the old town, ride for everything else.
Getting from the Airport into Town
Bintulu Airport (BTU) is the main gateway to the Bintulu Division and can also put travellers on the way to Sebauh, Tatau, Selangau, Belaga and Niah. Airlines serving it include Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia with daily connections from Kuala Lumpur and Kuching, an AirAsia international service from Singapore several times a week, and MASWings links to Mukah, Miri, Kota Kinabalu and Belaga. Note that all flights originating outside Sarawak are treated as "international", even if you are only travelling elsewhere within Malaysia. There is a restaurant on the ground floor and another in the boarding hall (Niah Cafe).
Reaching town from the airport is easy:
- Taxi: the town is about a 20-minute drive away, and a fixed RM35 coupon from the stand just outside arrivals is the standard, low-hassle option.
- Bus: no buses serve the airport directly. A determined traveller can walk roughly 1.5 km out to the airport crossing and catch a Jepak bus into Bintulu town, but this is extremely rare in practice — keep cash aside for a taxi instead.
One quirk worth knowing: Bintulu Airport sits immediately adjacent to the town centre, close enough that passengers can in principle walk from the airport straight onto the main street — a proximity that has been cited as a record for the town sited nearest to an airport. In practice, most visitors still take the taxi.
Practical Summary
- No trains, metro or trams — plan around buses, boats, taxis and walking.
- Walk the old town; take a cheap local bus (around RM1–2) for Parkcity, Medan Jaya and beyond.
- Long-distance coaches leave from Medan Jaya and connect to most major Sarawak towns, plus Brunei and Pontianak.
- Express boats from the River Front serve rural and suburban destinations only, not major cities.
- From the airport, buy a fixed RM35 taxi coupon outside arrivals; there is no airport bus.
- Fares change without notice — confirm prices when you buy tickets.