Memorable Miri Sarawak Holiday Itinerary Highlights • What to See, Do, Eat in Miri

The city of Miri is Sarawak's oil town and an underrated destination. The atmosphere here is laid back, blessed with the riches of the South China Sea, natural wonders like the Niah National Park and Caves, cuisine is diverse, delicious yet unique, the culture and people are friendly and fun loving. Its attractions are organic and authentic, and therein lies its appeal.

Easily accessible from Singapore, Miri is an enriching yet affordable getaway with a difference.

Miri is the second largest city in Sarawak, East Malaysia (after Kuching). Located right at the border with Brunei, it is about two hours flight time from Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. Miri has a population of less than half million people. It is a young city, founded only in 1910 by Royal Dutch Shell when it dug the first oil well on Canada Hill.

Our two hour direct flight from Singapore to Miri was a breeze. Arrived slightly ahead of schedule at Miri International Airport on a bright sunny day with clear skies.

Note: AirAsia uses Terminal 4 at Changi Airport. If you are taking public bus, do allow for extra time as the airport shuttle to T4 runs at 30 minute intervals.

First stop after clearing immigration was rojak Miri style. This was actually my second time in Miri, and once again, the first thing I tasted was Sarawak rojak. It looks very similar to Singapore or Johor rojak but the Sarawak gula apong gave it a special, refreshing, more delicate kind of sweetness. Gula apong is made from the sap of nipa palm. Sarawak rojak is a salad of jicama bean, cucumber, pineapple, squid, fried crisps, etc., topped with crushed peanut, chili sauce and prawn sauce (hae ko) with gula apong. I have a detailed post about this popular Sarawak rojak hangout in Miri 👈 click

On the way to the hotel, we stopped briefly at Embun Citra Cake House for their famous Sarawak kek lapis. Their signature layered cakes are freshly made and baked.

The layered cakes are similar to Indonesian kek lapis but each layer is a different colour to make the beautiful eye catching patterns (which emulate traditional Sarawak weaving). It's a treat for the eyes and for our sweet tooth.

Checked in at Imperial Hotel. The room was huge, and clean. Simple, no frills. Comfortable and nice for the peaceful rest I need during travel.

The view from my room. Yeah, Miri doesn't have a skyline filled with gleaming skyscrapers.

We had dinner at Medan Saberkas Miri. There were many food stalls here and a large section was dedicated to grilled dishes. There were all kinds of fish large and small, chicken and offal, all marinated with spices then grilled over charcoal or cooked on sizzling griddle.

At Medan Saberkas Miri, the air was filled with greasy white plumes from oil dripping onto the red hot embers.

So much food to choose from, I swooned over these buntut ayam (bishop noses) at RM1 a stick. There's spicy and sweet type marination - I enjoyed both but preferred the spicy one.

The Seahorse Lighthouse at Coco Cabana. The 25 metres tall Seahorse is the symbol of Miri and a must for visitors just like the Merlion at Marina Bay in Singapore.

Prawn noodle for breakfast the next morning. This is a Hockchew style prawn noodle using large river prawn. The noodles were stir fried and then smothered with a prawn broth prepared separately. The noodles had a bit of toasty wok hei as they were stir fried. The prawn broth had heavy thick body and super crustacean umami savoury flavour. Get this prawn noodle for breakfast. Here's my post on the prawn noodle we had at Thien Sin Prawn Mee 👈 click

After breakfast, we drove around Miri to take in the city sights. It's a calm, laid back place with quite different vibes from the maddening crowds of Kuala Lumpur or Singapore.

The stretch of scenic seaside along Pantai Batu Satu was particularly fascinating. There were little stalls dotted along the coastal road. When the fishing boats come back with their catch, they pull right up onto the beach, directly dump their catch at these stalls which put them up for sale. This stall had a small mountain of white shrimp.

One of the stalls had a giant wild grouper fish which weighed 57 kilos 😲

Miri Crocodile Farm Mini Zoo has over 1,000 animals. Popular with families and schools, it is exciting and educational, especially appealing to children. The daily feeding is open for public viewing.

Niah Cave at Niah National Park is just 100km from Miri city. Over 10 hectares in size, Niah is one of the largest caves in the world and was inhabited since 40,000 BC till the 1800s. Prehistoric cave paintings and boat shaped coffins were discovered in Niah Cave.

The sight and presence of Niah Cave is breathtaking not only because of its scale but also that it is one of the earliest known sites of human habitation. Being here takes us back to the times when caves were homes that sheltered humans from the weather and fierce animals.

The local market is one of my favourite places to visit, everywhere I go. Miri's Emart Commercial Centre has dozens of stalls selling fresh vegetables, herbs, and other local produce and wild plants not found anywhere else.

At Emart, we had wild durian isu. The meat was thin and the round seeds were large. The meat had a delicate sweetness that reminded me of cempedak fruit and had little fragrance. Quite different from the fleshy, pungent smell and robust bitter-sweet taste of cultivated Peninsula Malaysia hybrids.

Unique Sarawak laksa makes a wonderful snack anytime 😋 The laksa has coconut sweetness overlaid with crustacean umami savouriness (from prawn) and loaded with dozens of spices but everything comes together in delicious harmony with overload of ooomph. Widely available here, we got our Sarawak laksa fix this time at 63 Cafe in downtown Miri 👈 click

Every visitor checks in at The Grand Old Lady on Canada Hill. Repeat visitors, check in again 😃

Dusk at the mock up of the historic Well #1 by Royal Dutch Shell which started it all in Miri. This site is named Canada Hill because the first driller Charles McAlpine was a Canadian. When I realised that the early oil wells had to be manually drilled, I have so much more respect for the spirit of the pioneers.

Next time, I shall make time to revisit the Petroleum Museum here on Canada Hill. It was closed by the time we got here.

From Canada Hill we can get a panoramic view of Miri city and the South China Sea over the horizon. Most people are here for one of the best views of Miri.

Another lookout point for a panoramic view of Miri city and the sea is from Miri City Council building. But, here you need a guide to get permission to get to the higher floors.

We capped our day with Miri Country Music Festival 2022. The atmosphere was electric ⌁ I love the vibes here and can't help but got swept along by the overflowing enthusiasm of the audience. Everyone was having so much fun!

Truth be told, I have not been following country music, but tonight I instantly become a Tantowi Yahya convert.

Hope to be back for Miri Country Music Festival's Tenth Anniversary next year (2023). Pure infectious electricity. Mark your calendar, even if are you not yet a big country music fan.