Pulau Berhala, Sandakan

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About Pulau Berhala

Pulau Berhala, or Berhala Island, is the island at the entrance to Sandakan Bay in Sabah. This forested island measures 5 hectares in size and is a habitat for birds especially raptors such as the Brahminy kites, serpent eagles and sea eagles.

Before the Second World War, Berhala Island used to be a quarantine station for immigrants from China and the Philippines. During the Second World War, it was used as a prison camp. Among those who were imprisoned here included novelist Agnes Keith and her husband Harry Keith. It has a lighthouse built in 1951 and managed by the Marine Department of Sabah.

Today Pulau Berhala is being develop for tourism, particularly for visitors to Sandakan. It has a sheer cliff that rises out of the sea, and a strip of white sandy beach ideal for picnic and snorkelling.