Introduction

Local Time

Sabah is using the Malaysian Standard Time with UTC Malaysia + 8 hours, it is also 8 hours ahead of GMT.

Climate / Temperature

The climate throughout the state is considered to be equatorial / tropical - with the estimated temperature of 32°C (90°F) for lowland areas and the average 21°C (70°F) for highlands area, Sabah is typically hot and sunny all year round. In a tropical climate, it is advisable to dress comfortably in lightweight linens / cottons, T-shirt, shorts, or jeans to avoid overheating. Rainfall is also common throughout the year, but it can be considerably wetter during the North East Monsoon (October - February) season, and hotter/drier between May and September.

Languages

Bahasa Malaysia is the national language which is spoken widely across ethnicities in Sabah. However, the way Sabahans speak Bahasa Malaysia is with the Sabahan Baku dialect; which is a little different from West Malaysian dialect. Apart from the respective indigenous mother-tongue such as Kadazan, Dusun, Bajau, and Murut; Mandarin and some Chinese dialects like the Hakka and Cantonese, as well as the English language are also spoken here.

Source: Sabah Government Official Website
https://sabah.gov.my/en/content/introduction