[2] Just east of Lahad Datu is the village of Tunku, a notorious base for pirates and slave traders in the 19th century.

[3] Based on a Jawi manuscript from 1408 in the Ida'an language, the town is believed to be the first site in northern Borneo where Islam was first introduced.

[4][dead link‍] On 23 September 1985, 15 to 20 armed foreign pirates from the neighbouring Philippines landed on this town, killing at least 21 people and injuring 11 others.

Years later, eight of these Sulu heirs, who insisted they were not involved in the standoff, hired lawyers to pursue legal action based on the original commercial deal.

Lahad Datu is linked to other towns and districts via Federal Route 13, a part of larger Pan-Borneo Highway network in the east coast of Sabah.

Works of constructing a new bypass road on Sandakan-Tawau route has been commenced on mid 2016, to relieve the traffic congestion on the town itself.

First Palm City Centre (FPCC) along Jalan Pantai is an integrated commercial development by Titijaya Land Berhad.