Well breif as my time was in BS all i can say is the people are very kind the Palace is very impressive and most things the western traveller craves are pretty cheap. The only downside i found was similar to thailand, the bathroom facilities are what we would call "pit toilets"! so ew but still its a good little quick trip location if your intersted in the lifestyle and religious aspect.

visit kampong aya the worlds largest water village

Don't topo after 1700.

Jerudong Park is quite nice and it seems to be the only place to go out in Brunei ...

I only stopped at the airport and I can say this, the transit lounge was small and I was extremely happy to get back onto my connecting flight.

You can go on a short boat tour in BSB. It's not the most exciting thing in the world unless you want to see numerous almost identical mosques. Not much else to do there. Locals will approach you, be friendly they're almost all just curious.

When I lived in Brunei, Gadong was one of the main places we went to shop (and eat McDonald's =P).

visit brunei during the Hari Raya Festival and get a chance to meet-and-greet the king (if you're a guy) or queen (if you're a girl). The locals even open their doors and let strangers eat with them

Head to the tourist office in town. They don't get a lot of tourists so they are super-friendly and will be able to help you get a great deal on a place to stay.

the empire hotel is really beautyfull!!!but spooky!its a massive hotel with a few gests.fantastic pools and a great mini club for the kids and a kids pool.the rooms are massive actually everything is massive in that hotel!we werent impressed with brunei but the hotel is worth the visit.