GAYA STREET
05°58′N / 116°04′E · SABAH, MALAYSIA
In Kota Kinabalu, Sunday starts with a cup of kopi and a street slowly warming up.
Start walking ↓Not a checklist of sights — the pulse of a street.
Gaya Street is the best part of old Kota Kinabalu to get to know on foot. On weekdays it is coffee shops, faded signboards and afternoon shade; on Sunday the whole of Jalan Gaya gives way to the market, and people arrive with fruit, handicrafts, breakfast and the mood of not being in a hurry.
Hear its story first →These notes are for first-time visitors — and for anyone who always stops ten extra minutes when passing by.
One street, seven turns.
Gaya Street is older than the name Kota Kinabalu. It was rebuilt after bombing, grew up through renamings, and finally gave its Sundays to the market. Walk down the timeline and you are walking through the city’s modern history.
One version traces it to Gaya Bay and Pulau Gaya (Gaya Island) south of the street; another popular story links it to a colonial official of British North Borneo. Both versions survive; the historical record is still open.
Built in memory of Francis George Atkinson, first governor of British North Borneo, it stands on Signal Hill — one of Kota Kinabalu’s pre-war buildings to survive the bombing. Look up from Gaya Street and you can see it.
The fledgling port city took its name from Charles Jessel, deputy chairman of the British North Borneo Chartered Company. The old town around Gaya Street began to grow.
During World War II, Allied bombing flattened much of Jesselton, destroying a large number of pre-war buildings.
As the city rebuilt, most of the shophouses along Gaya Street date from this period. The five-foot-way arcades — a building language left by colonial planning — link shop, pedestrian and the Kota Kinabalu weather in one continuous gesture.
Jesselton became Kota Kinabalu, and Gaya Street continued as the living spine of the old town.
Pasar Minggu grew from street vendors into a large weekly open-air market that closes the road every Sunday — a Sunday ritual of Kota Kinabalu that continues to this day.
The most common story traces the name to Gaya Bay and Gaya Island; other sources connect it to a colonial official. With no firm archive, both threads are told side by side — a familiar way for locals to open a conversation.
Unverified; two versions coexist.Chinese-style gate arches stand at both ends of Gaya Street, their inscriptions wishing peace and prosperity upon the neighbourhood. They mark the entrance of the old Chinese community and have become the most familiar frame in market photographs.
Photographers love standing under the gate.Many shophouses rebuilt in the 1950s are still family-run: shop below, home above. Old shopkeepers say the five-foot way is part of the shop and part of the street — for brewing tea, playing chess, waiting for customers.
Oral account, for reference only.
SUNDAY MARKET / 07:00—12:00Start at the street corner — no need to rush the route. Drift first to the steaming stalls for a hot breakfast, then linger over woven rattan, plants and local snacks. The pleasure of the market is not what you buy, but how every stall lays the city’s everyday life out in the sun.
The five-foot way links shop, pedestrian and weather. Faded façades, narrow signboards, old louvred windows and deep shadow under the eaves — the quietest scenery on Gaya Street.
← Walk slower, and the buildings begin to talk.
Airport: Kota Kinabalu International Airport is about 8 km from the city centre. A taxi or ride-hailing app is usually most direct; the airport bus reaches the centre, then walk along Jalan Pantai.
Buses: aim for a city-centre stop, then walk into Jalan Gaya from the waterfront side. Allow time for detours during the Sunday market.
Taxi: just say “Gaya Street Sunday Market / Jalan Gaya”, and settle your return plan before getting out.
Best time: Sunday 07:00–10:00 — cooler, with the fullest choice of stalls; evenings are good for returning to the nearby night market for food.
Suggested stay: 2–3 hours; with breakfast, an old-town walk and nearby sights, plan half a day.
Entry / cost: the street and Sunday market are usually free to enter. Spending is at each stall’s posted prices; keep small cash on hand.
Public lots and mall parking in the city centre are the safest bets. The Sunday market may take over some roads, so arrive early and avoid parking in stall lanes or junctions.
Tip: wear comfortable shoes, carry water, protect against the sun; bring a light umbrella in the rainy season.
Good food around Gaya Street needs no complicated guide: for breakfast look for laksa, kopi and crispy snacks; in the evening, stroll along Jalan Gaya and soak up the energy of the Api-Api night market.
Put the flavours on the map →
8 photos · field photographs, click to enlarge
Keep this map on your phone. Once you arrive, start at the corner and follow the voices, the aromas and the shadow under the eaves.
Open Google Maps ↗Arrive between 7 and 10 am on Sunday — the temperature is comfortable and the choice of stalls and breakfast is fullest.
The market usually winds down around noon, with stallholders starting to pack up from 11:30. To see it in full, come early.
During the Sunday market, Jalan Gaya is closed to traffic for pedestrians; cars must detour, so park in a nearby public lot or mall car park.
The airport is about 8 km from the city centre — take a taxi, ride-hailing car or airport bus, then walk into Jalan Gaya.
Stalls are mostly cash-based — bring small notes in ringgit (RM). Some vendors accept QR payments; ask before buying.
The street and Sunday market are usually free to enter; individual stall purchases and nearby attractions are charged separately.
A non-profit educational compilation from public sources and on-site visits.
Compiled from written sources and oral accounts; corrections welcome where facts differ.