I had the chance to spend a couple of hours in Sim Sim in September 2013 with my girlfriend. Our Bradt guide gave a nice description of it and we decided to go there in late afternoon to take some good pictures and having dinner at pier 8. We didn't expect much but this water village was surprisingly nice, the highlight of Sandakan for me, together with the market. For us it was even difficult to imagine something like this. There are several piers with many houses raised on wooden sticks. Just take some time to walk until the end of some piers, if you like to take pictures it is a very nice place to do it. The people there are extremely nice, some kids asked us to take a picture of them and almost everyone welcomed us saying hi. I think the village is very safe. a couple of tips: go by taxi from Sandakan because it is not a nice walk till there and if you have the chance have a dinner at the seafood restaurant on pier 8, the one on right because there are 2 with a very similar name.See more..
4.0Kampung Gong Matunggong(10 reviews) - Not much to see really Spent < 1 hour Neighborhoods
A village that sells gongs. I didn't actually see anyone making gongs, just hut after hut of board looking locals with stalls to sell gongs. There were rather too many stray dogs around which made my wife reluctant to leave the car and explore. It's something to do if you happen to be nearby, but I wouldn't travel any distance just to see this. I think it's just a bit too far out of the way to attract enough tourists to pay for making the place somewhere you "must" visit but without becoming somewhere to visit, it will never have enough tourists.See more..
5.0Koisaan Cultural Village(1 review) - Worth the money Thursday: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Spent 1-2 hours Neighborhoods
The Village represents a living museum to preserve the multi-ethnic Kadazandusun culture. It aims to share the knowledge, history, and cultural heritage of the multi-ethnic Kadazandusun community. The KCV offers you the opportunity to see and experience the culture and lifestyle of how the indigenous ethnic communities of the Kadazandusun in Sabah, North Borneo used to live in the past.See more..
