Sit on the Left side of the plane for the best views on flights from Taipei to Kota Kinabalu. While takeoff from Taipei offers excellent views of Taiwan's mountains and strait, the landing approach into Kota Kinabalu provides the more dramatic and iconic scenery: Mount Kinabalu is one of Southeast Asia's most visually striking peaks, and the descent reveals it in full relief against the Sulu Sea. The landing sequence is the highlight of this route.

During takeoff from Chiang Kai Shek International (TPE), sit on the Right side for the best views. Right-side seats capture the northbound climb-out over the Taiwan Strait and the dramatic eastern coast of Taiwan, including the Central Mountain Range rising sharply inland. The westward turn toward Borneo unfolds progressively, offering extended views of the strait and coastal geography. Notable sights include: Taiwan Strait (immediate water body), Central Mountain Range (snow-capped peaks visible inland), northeastern Taiwan coastline, Taipei basin receding westward.

When landing at Kota Kinabalu International (BKI), sit on the Left side for the best views. Left-side seats offer the best views during the southwestbound descent into Kota Kinabalu, including Mount Kinabalu (Borneo's highest peak at 13,435 feet) and the Crocker Range, which dominate the inland landscape. The approach also reveals the Sulu Sea and coastal mangrove systems before touchdown. Notable sights include: Mount Kinabalu (distinctive pyramidal peak), Crocker Range (parallel ridgeline to the south), Sulu Sea (turquoise coastal waters), Kota Kinabalu city and harbor (coastal settlement).

The flight from Chiang Kai Shek International (TPE) to Kota Kinabalu International (BKI) takes 2h 50m.

Sulu Sea (open water body between Mindanao and Borneo), scattered Philippine islands and reefs in the Celebes Sea, transition from Taiwan's temperate geography to tropical Borneo's equatorial landscape, gradual shift from strait-based navigation to open-ocean crossing