Seria

Brunei oil town on the coast, built around the petroleum fields that transformed the country

Seria is a small oil town on the coast of Brunei, about 70 km southwest of the capital Bandar Seri Begawan. It exists because of petroleum — Brunei Shell Petroleum has its headquarters here, and the town grew up around the oil industry that has made Brunei one of the wealthiest countries in Southeast Asia. A nodding donkey oil pump sits on the beach as an unofficial town monument.

There is not a great deal to do in Seria itself, and most visitors are oil industry workers rather than tourists. The Oil and Gas Discovery Centre, a hands-on science museum focused on the petroleum industry, is the one genuine attraction and is surprisingly well done, especially for families. The Billionth Barrel Monument on the coast road marks the spot where Brunei's billionth barrel of oil was extracted from the Seria field.

Seria sits on the main road between Bandar Seri Begawan and the Malaysian border at Kuala Belait, so you may pass through even if you do not plan to stop. The town has basic facilities — a few shops, restaurants serving Malay and Chinese food, and a British Army garrison that has been stationed here since Brunei's independence. If you are interested in Brunei beyond its mosques and palaces, Seria offers a glimpse of the oil wealth that underpins everything else in the country.

Guide

Getting There

Seria lies on the coastal highway between Bandar Seri Begawan and the Malaysian border, about 70 km southwest of the capital. Buses from BSB run regularly and take around two hours; shared taxis cover the same route in less time and are a reasonable option if you are in a group. The road is straightforward and well-maintained.

If you are continuing to Malaysia, Kuala Belait is about 30 minutes further west by road. From Kuala Belait there are ferries across the river into Sarawak, making Seria a natural stopping point on a Brunei-to-Malaysia overland route. Most travellers heading that way pass through Seria without stopping; a half-day is enough to see the main sights if you want to break the journey.

Guide

Things to Do

Seria is not a tourist town and makes no apology for it — it is an oil town, and the oil industry is the reason to come. The beach is modest, the streets are quiet, and the main sights are monuments to petroleum. But for travellers curious about how Brunei's extraordinary wealth was actually made, Seria rewards a half-day stop: the Oil and Gas Discovery Centre is genuinely well done, the Billionth Barrel Monument carries real historical weight, and the sight of nodding-donkey pump jacks scattered across the coastline is unlike anything else in Southeast Asia.