Mari Mari Cultural Village is located only about 30 minutes drive from the center of Kota Kinabalu, a place not to be missed when you want to explore the unique features of your Brunei travel itinerary. When you arrive here, you will have the opportunity to experience Mari Mari Cultural Village with unique and traditional activities, bringing you into the authentic life of Sabah tribes.
Immerse yourself in Sabah tribal life at Mari Mari Cultural Village
Mari Mari Cultural Village – An attractive destination in Brunei travel itinerary. (Photo: Collected)
The journey to experience and explore the Mari Mari cultural village opens up to you a unique cultural world of the Sabah community. Not a simulated tourist area, Mari Mari is where Sabah tribes still live and promote their traditional cultural identity every day.
The first thing that impressed me was the way the locals welcomed guests: no show, no script, but with rustic sincerity. Here, visitors can visit the typical stilt houses of tribes such as Dusun, Rungus, Bajau... Each house clearly reflects the customs, architecture and typical lifestyle, providing an opportunity to deeply understand the culture through a journey to explore the culture of the Sabah tribe. The peaceful, rustic space helps you clearly feel the traditional rhythm of life that the tribes still preserve in Mari Mari.
Being able to touch the traditional houses with my own hands and listen to how they preserve and practice their beliefs, I understand that culture is not just for looking at, but for living with.
Enjoy the authentic taste of traditional Sabah tribal cuisine at Mari Mari Cultural Village
Wild honey and bamboo rice – Traditional cuisine of the Sabah tribe. (Photo: Archana Singh)
An integral part of the cultural experience at Mari Mari Village is enjoying the typical cuisine of the Sabah tribes. When experiencing tourism at Mari Mari Cultural Village, you will taste pure wild honey, sticky rice cooked in bamboo tubes, traditional rice wine and specialty cakes such as penjaram, kuih jala and cool pandan leaf juice.
The way people prepare food is also part of their culture: lighting fires with bamboo, cooking in clay pots, wrapping cakes in banana leaves… Everything is about connecting with nature and appreciating each ingredient. Each dish is not just to fill the stomach, but to tell a story – about the seasons, about beliefs, and about sharing between people.
The cuisine here is not just about food but also about the storytelling of the tribes, showing a strong connection with nature and culture. It is these distinctive flavors that contribute to the uniqueness of your Brunei trip .
Learn Traditional Life Skills – Fire, Weaving and More at Mari Mari Cultural Village
Learn how to make fire from bamboo – A unique traditional skill at Mari Mari cultural village. (Photo: Collected)
During the journey to explore the Mari Mari cultural village, I not only enjoyed the traditional crafts, but also participated in them, which I had only seen in books and newspapers before. The guide taught me how to make fire from a bamboo stem. It sounded easy, but in practice, I struggled to get the first spark. It felt magical, as if I was returning to the primitive beginnings of man. Then I learned how to distill rice wine, watched the process of making fabric from tree bark, and was thoroughly explained how each community uses nature to survive without destroying it.
This activity not only helps visitors better understand the lives of indigenous communities but is also an indispensable part of exploring Sabah tribal culture. Skills passed down from generation to generation are the bond that binds the community spirit and preserves cultural identity.
Enjoy Traditional Art – The Soul of Mari Mari Cultural Village
The high-jumping dance on the bamboo floor at Mari Mari Cultural Village is a unique highlight in the journey to explore Sabah tribal culture. (Photo: Collected)
Music and performing arts are an indispensable part of a Brunei tour when visitors come to Mari Mari Cultural Village to explore the life of the Sabah tribe. At the end of the show, I enjoyed traditional art performances in the common yard. The sounds of gongs, animal skin drums, and bamboo flutes resounded loudly, inviting visitors to join in the dance. The most special was the high jump on the elastic bamboo floor, a performance that both requires physical strength and shows a connection with nature.
Henna tattoo art, a beautiful form of body decoration (Photo: Collected)
Next to it is the traditional tattoo area, where people use symbolic motifs for each ethnic group. Each drawing has its own story, associated with beliefs or wishes for luck, strength, fertility... The art at Mari Mari is not for performance, but to convey a message and to remind: "We are still here, and our culture is still alive".
For those who love to explore culture and want to have authentic experiences, Mari Mari Cultural Village is a great choice. Here, you can not only see but also live with, feel and appreciate every aspect of Sabah tribal culture. And if you are also looking for a truly different Brunei travel experience , then why hesitate to refer to the Brunei - Kota Kinabalu tour: Journey to discover the largest island in Asia - Borneo (6 days 5 nights) .
Source: https://www.vietravel.com/vn/am-thuc-kham-pha/trai-nghiem-doi-song-bo-toc-sabah-lang-van-hoa-mari-mari-v17587.aspx
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