Old Town and the Waterfront in Kuching (Sarawak)
Part of the Kuching (Sarawak) travel guide — see every topic in All Kuching (Sarawak) Guides.
Kuching's old town runs along the south bank of the Sarawak river in a compact grid you can walk end to end in twenty minutes. The waterfront promenade, landscaped in the 1990s, is the spine: a kilometre of paved riverside with food stalls, benches and views across to the Malay kampung, Fort Margherita and the Astana on the far bank. Behind it lie Main Bazaar's antique shops, Carpenter Street's Chinatown, India Street's textile trade and a run of colonial civic buildings from the Brooke era.
The waterfront
A kilometre-long landscaped promenade along the south bank, at its best in the late afternoon and after dark when the far bank is lit. The Darul Hana Bridge, an S-shaped pedestrian bridge completed in 2017, crosses to the north bank and is itself a landmark, lit at night. Tambang — small wooden passenger boats — have ferried people across the river for generations and still do, for a ringgit or two; taking one is the cheapest and best thing to do in Kuching. Food stalls and a night market operate along the promenade.
The old streets
Main Bazaar, running parallel to the river, is a row of nineteenth-century shophouses now full of antique, handicraft and textile shops selling Iban pua kumbu weaving, beadwork, carvings and a great deal of reproduction. Carpenter Street behind it is the Chinatown core, with temples, coffee shops and food. India Street is a pedestrianised textile and goods street with a Muslim Indian food scene. The Old Court House complex, built from the 1870s, and the Square Tower and Round Tower complete the Brooke-era civic set.
Across the river
The north bank holds the Astana, built in 1870 by Charles Brooke as the rajah's palace and now the governor's residence, its gardens open at limited times; Fort Margherita, a white crenellated fort of 1879 built to defend against pirates and now the Brooke Gallery; and the Malay kampungs of Boyan and Gersik, villages of timber houses that predate the city and are pleasant to walk. The Sarawak State Legislative Assembly building, opened in 2009 with an umbrella-like nine-pointed roof, dominates the skyline.
Practicalities
The whole old town is walkable and largely flat, and Kuching is small enough that this is genuinely the way to see it. The tambang boats run from several points on the promenade all day and into the evening. Go along the waterfront in the late afternoon, cross by boat or bridge for sunset from the north bank, and come back for the night market. Most museums and forts open around nine and close by five, and several close on Mondays.
Old Town and the Waterfront at a glance
| The spine | A 1 km landscaped riverside promenade |
|---|---|
| Crossing | Tambang wooden boats, RM 1–2 — or the 2017 Darul Hana Bridge |
| The palace | The Astana, 1870, built by Rajah Charles Brooke |
| The fort | Fort Margherita, 1879 — now the Brooke Gallery |
| Old streets | Main Bazaar (antiques), Carpenter Street (Chinatown), India Street |
| Best time | Late afternoon into the evening |