10 Best Hotels in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei (2026)

The Empire Brunei isn't a normal 5-star — it's a former palace built in the 1990s by Prince Jefri Bolkiah, the Sultan's brother, then opened to the public in 2000. It sits in Jerudong on the South China Sea, about 14km from central Bandar Seri Begawan, on grounds of roughly 180 hectares. The main building opens into an eight-storey atrium lobby floored in Italian Carrara marble, hung with a giant crystal chandelier, gold-leaf staircases and a hand-painted ceiling. Of the 423 rooms and suites, the smallest start around 60 sq m, and many balconies look onto the Jack Nicklaus 18-hole course or the open sea. You also get a 1km private beach, six pools, an 8-lane bowling alley, a private cinema and 8-plus restaurants. Guest reviews keep landing on the same words: palace-like, quiet, never crowded. Strong fit for couples, families and anyone chasing genuine palace luxury at a price that surprises people.

Radisson Hotel Brunei Darussalam has held Tripadvisor's #1 spot in Bandar Seri Begawan for several years straight, and the reasons are practical rather than flashy. It sits right on Jalan Tasek in the heart of BSB City Centre, a 10-minute walk from the buzzing Gadong Night Market and the riverside Yayasan Complex mall. The 142-room tower was fully renovated in 2014 and the rooms start at a roomy 32 square metres — noticeably larger than the Southeast Asian chain average. You get an L-shaped outdoor pool ringed by tropical greenery, the Cantik Beautyline spa that locals actually book, and Zaika, an Indian restaurant repeatedly rated the best in Brunei. The free 24-hour shuttle to Brunei International Airport (BWN), roughly 10 km out, matters in a country where ride-hailing is thin. Real guest scores: Agoda 8.4, Booking 8.3, Trip 4.5/5. Rooms from about $137 a night.

The Rizqun International Hotel is a 5-star tower most people book for one reason: location. It links directly into The Mall Gadong, Brunei's largest shopping centre, through an air-conditioned indoor walkway, so you step from the lobby to the food court without ever hitting the heat. The 14-floor building holds around 144 rooms that run wider than the regional norm, with soft king beds and a choice of city or pool views. The headline nearby is Pasar Malam Gadong, Brunei's original night market, about 5 minutes on foot and stacked with nasi katok, satay and cheap local sweets. Inside you get an outdoor pool, a 24-hour gym, a halal restaurant and a breakfast buffet reviewers rate highly. The main gripes: service can lag at peak times, and the lanes around the mall jam up after dark. Overall 8.5/10 — ideal if you want to wake up and shop and eat real Bruneian food without a taxi.

The Brunei Hotel is a 4-star, 64-room boutique in a 7-storey building on Jalan Pemancha, right in the old heart of Bandar Seri Begawan. It opened in 2007 and trades on one thing above all: position. The gold-domed Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque is a 5-minute walk, the Kampong Ayer water-taxi jetty just 3 minutes, and the Tamu Kianggeh morning market 4 minutes away — so you can do the whole compact city on foot without renting a car. Rooms run a contemporary wood-and-cream look, clean and tidy rather than lavish, and the south-facing ones look out over the Brunei River to the mosque. Reviews repeatedly single out the warm, genuinely helpful staff who line up restaurants and boat trips. Breakfast covers both local Bruneian plates and the usual international spread. Rates open around $90 a night. Overall 8.3/10.

Orchid Garden Hotel is a 4-star Superior Tourist Class property in the Berakas district north of Bandar Seri Begawan, just a 5-7 minute drive from Brunei International Airport (BWN) and about 10 minutes from Istana Nurul Iman, the largest residential palace on earth. Its roughly 102 rooms wrap around a genuine orchid garden and an outdoor pool, so the mood is calm small-city resort rather than glossy high-rise. The feature guests bring up most is the free airport shuttle that runs all day — a real asset in a country where street taxis are hard to find. Inside you get a spa, a 24-hour gym, and a restaurant serving Brunei-Malay plates like Nasi Lemak and Ambuyat in a relaxed setting. Rates start around $70 a night, it scores 7.7/10 on Agoda and 7.8/10 on Booking, and it suits business travelers, overnight transit guests, and families who don't plan to walk the city much.

Riverview Hotel is a 4-star riverside hotel on the Kedayan River that lands smack between downtown Bandar Seri Begawan and the Gadong shopping district. That position means a 5-minute drive to The Mall Gadong for food or shopping, 7 minutes to the city's icon, Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque, and just 10 minutes to Brunei International Airport (BWN). The feature most guests fall for is the long outdoor pool with a jacuzzi and sauna, plus apartment-style suites with a small kitchen and an in-room washing machine — genuinely useful if you're here a week or in town to work. Some rooms look out over the Kedayan as it slips under a small bridge, which beats waking up to a car park. Rates start around US$83 a night (about B$110), low-thousands in Brunei terms. The overall 7.9/10 suits families, business travelers, and couples who want a mobile location with full facilities at a price that doesn't sting.

The Centrepoint Hotel is a 4-star, 217-room property built into the same complex as The Mall Gadong (officially the Abdul Razak Complex), the shopping hub at the centre of Gadong — Brunei's busiest eating-and-shopping district. Step out of the lift and you walk straight into the mall: a Hua Ho supermarket, a large food court, and dozens of local and international restaurants. On-site you get an outdoor pool, a tennis court, a gym, and a lobby restaurant. The old town of Bandar Seri Begawan is about a 10-minute drive, and Brunei International Airport (BWN) roughly 15 minutes. Combined Agoda and Booking ratings land at 8.2/10. At around $70–110 a night, it suits travelers who want everything in one building and no rental car.

Times Hotel is a modern 4-star, roughly 92-room property in the Berakas district, built directly on top of Times Square Shopping Centre. That stacking is the whole pitch: the airport sits just 1 km away (a five-minute drive), so it has become the default pick for anyone flying in or out of Bandar Seri Begawan. Ride the lift to the ground floor and you land in a supermarket, a busy food court, local Bruneian kitchens, coffee shops and Excapade Sushi — one of the most talked-about Japanese restaurants in the country. Rooms run contemporary and plain: warm beige tones, firm beds, free Wi-Fi and a buffet breakfast. Rates start around $63 a night and top out near $108, which is solid value for a 4-star in a city where good hotels are thin on the ground. It earns 7.6/10, and suits business travelers, transit passengers and families who want a clean bed close to the runway.

The Centrepoint Hotel is a 4-star, ~217-room property spread over 12 floors inside the Abdul Razak Complex, in the heart of Brunei's Gadong/Kiulap shopping district. Its headline trick: a covered internal link straight into The Centrepoint mall, so you ride the lift down and walk to Japanese, Korean, Indian and Middle Eastern restaurants, a supermarket and souvenir shops without ever facing Brunei's wet heat. Families gravitate here for the shallow kids' pool set apart from the main one, which means parents can actually relax poolside. Rooms run larger than the city standard, with soft beds and a bathtub from Deluxe grade up. It's a 2-minute drive to Gadong Night Market, 10-15 minutes to central BSB and the Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque, and about 15 minutes from Brunei airport (BWN). Rooms start near $70 a night, and real guests rate it 8.6/10 on Agoda. Best for families and shoppers who value being next to the food over a balcony view.

Grand City Hotel is a low-key 3-star boutique tucked into the heart of Kampong Gadong, the liveliest shopping and dining quarter in Bandar Seri Begawan. It sits just 10 minutes by car from Brunei International Airport (BWN), and the hotel throws in a free airport shuttle on top. The building is small — around 60 rooms done in a bright, modern style, pale wood furniture against white walls that read cleaner and roomier than the price suggests. Step out of the lobby and you're a 5-minute walk from Centrepoint Mall, The Mall Gadong and the Cinema Complex, with late-night local eateries ringing the block. Wi-Fi is free throughout and quick enough for email and video calls. Guest scores land at 7.8 on Agoda and 7.7 on Booking for an overall 7.8/10 — a smart pick for travelers on a short Brunei trip who want a good location and easy transfers over outright luxury.

Mulia Hotel is a 4-star, roughly 166-room property in the Berakas district that plenty of regulars still call by its old name, Orchid Garden Hotel, from before the rebrand. The selling point is obvious the moment you start comparing options: it sits just 2.9 km from Brunei International Airport (BWN) and runs a free airport shuttle around the clock (book ahead). Rooms are warm-toned, clean and simple, with king beds that reviewers repeatedly call easy to sleep on after a late landing. The breakfast buffet is the real draw — a wide Western and Asian spread with made-to-order eggs, roti, nasi goreng and noodle soup. There is an outdoor pool, a gym and mid-size meeting rooms. It works best for travelers using Brunei as a stopover or business guests who want quick airport access. Rates start around $66 a night, strong value for the tier, and the overall score is 7.7/10.

Badi'ah Hotel is a roughly 84-room, locally run 3-star place in the Berakas district, a 10-minute drive from Brunei International Airport (BWN) with a free airport shuttle. The point every review lands on is the rooms: noticeably larger and cleaner than you'd expect at roughly $45-70 a night, many with a balcony over the garden or pool. There's an outdoor pool and a green courtyard for a slow afternoon, and the local staff get repeated praise for being warm and for arranging Brunei's headline trips in one stop, a full-day Ulu Temburong rainforest run, a half-day paddle through Kampong Ayer water village, and a visit to the gold-domed Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque. Downtown Bandar Seri Begawan sits 15-20 minutes away by car. It suits budget travelers who want value and genuine Bruneian hospitality over polish, and it pulls an 8.4/10 from guests worldwide.

Higher Hotel is a new boutique stay in Kiulap, one of the most enjoyable eating-and-drinking pockets of Bandar Seri Begawan. Step out of the lobby and you are straight into cafes, local Malay eateries, and a supermarket you can browse all day. The thing reviewers agree on most is the room size — meaningfully larger than the typical 3-star in town, in warm cream-and-brown tones, with soft beds, clean new bathrooms, free Wi-Fi, and free parking that matters a lot in a city where a private car is the main way to move. The location is shrewd: calmer than crowded Gadong, yet a 5-minute drive to The Mall Gadong and 10 minutes to Brunei International Airport (BWN). Rates start around US$57 a night, guest scores land at 7.8 on Agoda and 7.7 on Booking, and the overall comes to 7.8/10 — a smart pick for budget-minded travelers who want a roomy new room and easy in-and-out access.

Jubilee Hotel is a family-run 3-star with about 50 rooms, planted in Kampong Kianggeh at the heart of Bandar Seri Begawan, where everything is within a short stroll. It's roughly 5 minutes on foot to the Royal Regalia Museum, about 10 minutes to the gold-domed Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque, and a quick street-crossing to bustling Kianggeh Market. The real draw isn't luxury — it's the package. Rates start around US$37 a night and include breakfast, free airport pickup and drop-off, plus a free 45-minute city tour right after check-in that loops the main sights. Guests consistently praise the staff as warm and genuinely helpful, the rooms as clean and tidy, and the small Malay-Chinese-Western breakfast spread as a solid start. The total 7.4/10 suits solo travelers, budget-minded couples and small families wanting a good base in central BSB.