Venue
Penampang, Sabah, Malaysia
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Kaamatan Harvest Festival, Sabah guide
Sabah gives thanks for the rice harvest.
In short
Kaamatan runs through May, with the state finale in Penampang on the 30 and 31 May public holidays and the programme appearing a few weeks before. Villages celebrate with gongs, dance and rice wine, and the finale crowns the Unduk Ngadau. It suits travellers keen on Kadazan-Dusun culture; plan for the final two days.
Kaamatan is Sabah's thanksgiving for the rice harvest, kept by the Kadazan-Dusun, Murut, Rungus and related peoples of northern Borneo. Through May, villages give thanks with gongs, dance and rice wine, and the state celebration in Penampang draws the districts together for a finale that ends when a young woman is crowned Unduk Ngadau.
For a visitor it is the clearest way to see Kadazan-Dusun culture as its own people keep it: ritual specialists at work, district troupes in their best dress, families sharing tapai among the stalls. Sarawak opens its own harvest festival, Gawai Dayak, the day after the Sabah finale, so the two can share one Borneo trip.
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Key Facts & Stats:
Ends: Monday, 31 May 2027
Where: Penampang, Malaysia
Venue: Hongkod Koisaan
Held: Every year
Type of event: Cultural Events, Folk Festival
Currency: Malaysian ringgit (MYR, RM)
Time zone: Malaysia Time, UTC+8
Language: Malay
Map
Getting around
Hotels near the venue fill up around the event dates.
Accepting tapai and photographing the bobohizan
Expect to be offered tapai more than once, at a stall or by a family who has waved you over to sit. A small sip is polite. Declining with a smile is fine too, and it is easier to say so at the first cup than the fifth.
- Ask before photographing the bobohizan, and never step into a ritual space for a better angle.
- Keep your voice down and your phone low while prayers and offerings are under way.
- If a host insists, a second polite no is enough; there is no need to explain.
What to wear in the hottest months
April and May are the hottest months in Kota Kinabalu, with average highs of 33.1 C and lows of 24.7 C. May also brings about 212 mm of rain spread over roughly 12 days.
- Wear light, loose clothes that cover shoulders and knees; this is a cultural gathering, not a beach day.
- Bring a hat, sunscreen and a refillable water bottle.
- Carry a compact umbrella, which doubles as shade.
- Shoes should cope with grass and mud around the field.
Cash and meeting points in the crowd
Most food and craft stalls deal in cash, so bring small notes in ringgit and do not count on a card machine. On the final two days the grounds are packed with thousands of people.
- Agree a meeting point with your group beside one of the traditional houses, not a stall that may move.
- Keep children close in the crowd around the main hall.
- Carry your bag in front of you in the thickest crowds.
What happens on the day
- Through May
District celebrations
Villages and districts across Sabah hold their own thanksgivings and choose the contestants they will send to Penampang.
- Finale days, morning
Rice rites
The bobohizan, the ritual priestesses, lead their ceremonies while the grounds are still cool. Come at opening time to follow a rite from the front of the crowd.
- Finale days, midday
Stages and contests
Sumazau dancers move to gong ensembles, singers and gong players compete, and troupes from each district perform in their own dress. Food and craft stalls line the grounds all day.
- Finale days, afternoon
The traditional houses
A slow walk around the traditional houses that ring the field, and a long sit in whatever shade you can find.
- Finale, evening
Crowning of the Unduk Ngadau
The festival closes with the pageant that names the year's Unduk Ngadau. The hall is fullest now, so go in early and stay put.
Etiquette and dress
At the rituals
The bobohizan's ceremonies are religious rites, not stage shows. Watch quietly, keep out of the ritual space, and ask before photographing the priestesses at close range.
Tapai and rice wine
You will be offered tapai, the rice wine, at stalls and in houses. Accepting a sip is polite, refusing politely is fine, and nobody should be pressed to drink.
Traditional dress
Costumes are often heirlooms, with silver belts and beadwork. Admire them, but ask before touching or borrowing a headdress for a photograph.
Greetings
"Kotobian Tadau Tagazo do Kaamatan" is the Kadazan greeting for the festival, and visitors who try it are always welcomed.
Staying in Kota Kinabalu and travelling to Penampang
Almost everyone who comes for the finale sleeps in Kota Kinabalu and travels out to Penampang for the day. The city has spread south into the district through Putatan and Donggongon, so the festival grounds are never far away. Most hotels are in the city centre. Backpackers gather in the hostels of Chinatown, around Gaya Street, and in nearby Australia Place. Late May is a peak week for Sabahans heading home. Book your room as soon as your flights are fixed.
Give the trip four or five days around the holiday. Districts around the state run their own Kaamatan events earlier in May, and the state programme for Hongkod Koisaan usually appears only a few weeks before the finale, so keep your pageant evening flexible until it is out.
Penampang deserves a spare half day of its own. St Michael's Church in Donggongon went up after the Second World War, its granite hauled in by buffalo, and its stained glass remembers those lost in the war. Monsopiad Cultural Village, about 30 minutes' drive from the city, is open from 9am to 5pm; agree a taxi fare and a pickup time before you set off. For the rest of the country, start with our Malaysia destination pages.
The legend of Huminodun and the rice spirit
Kadazan-Dusun belief traces the rice harvest to a death. Huminodun, daughter of the creator Kinoingan, was sacrificed so her people would not starve, and from her body grew rice, coconut, maize, ginger, tapioca and yams. The festival thanks her, and the Unduk Ngadau title carries her memory.
In the field, the rice spirit is called bambaazon. Before harvest, farmers tie seven paddy stalks, the toguruon, to a split bamboo stick planted at the centre of the paddy, and the bundle goes into storage with the grain. The Magavau goes further. In it the bobohizan, the ritual priestesses, call back the grains dropped during harvesting so the spirit stays whole and the next crop does not fail. In the past it was also the bobohizan who chose the day of the closing celebration.
The state holiday came much later. Sedomon Gunsanad Kina proposed it at a conference in 1956, it was gazetted on 9 May 1960, and the first large celebration followed in 1961. Drink is part of the thanks. Tapai, the rice wine, is poured from a sumbiling, a bamboo vessel, and the stalls also sell lihing, bahar and montoku.
Getting there
Flying in
Kota Kinabalu International Airport is about 8 km southwest of the city; all passenger flights use Terminal 1 on Jalan Kepayan, while Terminal 2 across the runway handles cargo and charters. Most international travellers connect via Kuala Lumpur, Singapore or other Asian hubs; from Thailand, Bangkok to Kuala Lumpur flights link with domestic services.
Entry rules
Sabah has its own immigration control, so even visitors arriving from Peninsular Malaysia show their passport. Travellers from Bangladesh can see our Malaysia visa page and Malaysia eVISA page.
From the airport
A taxi into the city costs about RM30 on a ticket bought at the counter in arrivals; Grab is usually RM10 to RM15. The airport lies on the southern side of town, so you can ride straight to Penampang if you land on a festival morning.
To Hongkod Koisaan
Grab or a taxi is simplest. Buses and minibuses for Penampang leave from the Wawasan bus terminal on Jalan K.K. Bypass, for roughly RM0.50 to RM2; tell the driver you want the KDCA hall.
Leaving the grounds
When the pageant ends everyone wants a ride at once. Book a driver for a fixed return time, or walk out to the main road before you call one.
Where to stay during the festival
We have no hotels listed in Penampang yet, so the ones below are in Kota Kinabalu, the nearest area where we list hotels. The next edition runs from 1 May to 31 May 2027. Book as soon as your dates are fixed, since rooms close to the festival are the first to go.
Kota Kinabalu
Shangri-La Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu5-star hotel
No reviews yet
from$201.00/ night
- Internet – Wifi
- Airport shuttle
- Swimming pool
3 Rooms available
Book Now
Weather and what to pack
May is the start of the south-west monsoon in Sabah, hot and humid with frequent showers. The 1991 to 2020 normals for Kota Kinabalu give an average high of 33.1°C and a low of 24.7°C, with 212.3 mm of rain on about 12 days of the month.
Mornings are usually the driest and most comfortable part of the day; heavy showers and thunderstorms tend to build in the afternoon and evening.
Worth packing
- A compact umbrella or light rain jacket
- A hat and sunscreen for the open festival grounds
- Light, breathable clothes and a spare shirt
- Insect repellent
- A refillable water bottle
- Cash in small notes for food and craft stalls
Car hire in Penampang
Airport transfer to Kaamatan Harvest Festival, Sabah
Met at arrivals at Kota Kinabalu International Airport (BKI) and driven door to door to Hongkod Koisaan.
- Kota Kinabalu International Airport (BKI) → Hongkod Koisaan
- 11 km · 15 min
Restaurants and food in Malaysia
Places to eat in Malaysia before or after the celebrations.
Nancy's Kitchen
13, Jalan KL 3/8, Taman Kota Laksamana, Seksyen 3, 75200 Melaka, Malaysia
Cuisine:NyonyaPeranakan
- Dine-in
Nasi Kandar Line Clear
177 Jalan Penang, 10000 George Town, Penang, Malaysia
Cuisine:Nasi kandarMalaysian Indian Muslim
- Dine-in
- Takeaway
Teksen
18 & 20 Lebuh Carnarvon, 10100 George Town, Penang, Malaysia
Cuisine:Penang ChineseZi char
- Dine-in
De.Wan 1958
Level 2-2, The LINC KL, 360 Jalan Tun Razak, Taman U Thant, 50400 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Cuisine:MalayMalaysian heritage
- Dine-in
Dewakan
48F Skyviews, Naza Tower, Platinum Park, 10 Persiaran KLCC, 50088 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Cuisine:Modern MalaysianTasting menu
- Dine-in
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
General
No. Only Sabah and the Federal Territory of Labuan close for it, on 30 and 31 May. Elsewhere in Malaysia those are ordinary working days, although Sarawak starts its Gawai holiday straight afterwards.
Yes, that is all the word means. You will also see it written as Tadau Kaamatan, meaning the harvest festival, or Pesta Kaamatan in Malay.
The name translates as place of unity. It is the hall of the Kadazan Dusun Cultural Association in Penampang, and its grounds host the state finale each year.
Yes. Young men compete for the Randawi Tavantang title, and like the women's contest it closes the festival in Penampang.
Sugandoi is the singing competition of Kaamatan. It sits in the festival programme alongside the pageants, the gong-beating contests and the displays of arts and crafts.
Look for mipulos (arm wrestling), mipadsa (knuckle wrestling), monopuk (blowpipe shooting), momolositik (catapult) and migayat lukug, a tug of war. Gong-beating contests run alongside.
Slowly, to the beat of gongs, with arms spread out to the sides like wings. It is a Kadazan dance, and during Kaamatan you will see troupes perform it on the festival stages.
An expensive ritual feast once held after an especially good harvest, and also to mark rebuilding a house, a birth or recovery from illness. It shows how far rice rites reached into ordinary family life.
Try the tamu, the weekly market in Donggongon on Thursdays and Fridays. Alongside food and household goods it sells bangles, headbands and gongs. The festival grounds also have craft stalls on the final days.
Families & accessibility
Yes. Married women enter the Zandi Tavanus, while children have their own contest, the Runduk Tadau Dazanak. Both are part of the wider festival programme.
Getting there
The airport coach stopped running in 2024. City minibuses costing RM1 to RM3 still pass along the main road outside the airport, but you have to walk out to them, which is hard work with luggage in May heat.