The geography of the border between Brunei and Malaysia is unique, as the Malaysian state of Sarawak completely surrounds the small, oil-rich sultanate, even splitting it into two separate parts. Your land journey through this part of Borneo is an exercise in map-reading, often involving multiple border checks in a single day.
The main crossing is at Sungai Tujoh, connecting the Malaysian city of Miri with the main part of Brunei. To travel by land to Brunei’s Temburong exclave, you would historically have had to exit Brunei, enter Malaysia, and then re-enter Brunei at the Labu border post. There are four border posts in total along this route.
This unusual situation has been recently simplified by the opening of the Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien Bridge, a 30-kilometer bridge that now connects the two halves of Brunei, allowing you to bypass Malaysia entirely. However, for travel between Brunei and Sarawak, the land borders remain the primary route. The process is generally straightforward, but the repetition can be a novelty.
This fragmented border is a direct result of the complex history of the Sultanate of Brunei, which once controlled large parts of Borneo. The modern border reflects the historical shifts in power and territory on this incredibly biodiverse island.