Sipadan Mabul Resort, Mabul and Kapalai
Superb diving facilities and exciting trips to Mabul and Sipadan from a rustic and charming resort
per person, full board
Overview
- Unlimited day-time muck diving right off the resort's jetty
- Fun, social atmosphere with family-style meals and rustic-chic lodging
- Outstanding facilities for divers with nitrox, PADI and TecRec courses, and custom speedboats
- Spacious and private oceanview chalets set on a white sand beach
Set on Mabul Island, Sipadan Mabul Resort - also known as SMART Divers - strikes the perfect harmony between luxury, adventure, and an authentic Malaysian experience. Get to know this famous area with PADI courses, guided diving and snorkelling, muck and macro scuba safaris, and a variety of land-based excursions. Or, relax your days away at the resort's white sand beach, full-sized pool, and soothing Jacuzzi spa. Adventurous guests can continue the excitement with adrenaline-fuelled day trips to Sipadan starring sharks, turtles, massive shoals of pelagic fish, and powerful ocean currents.
Rooms
- Item 1 of 2
Detached chalet
1 x King bed, sleeps 2
Air conditioning, Ensuite bathroom, Fan...from $218 /night - Item 1 of 2
Suite chalet
1 x King bed, sleeps 2
Air conditioning, Ensuite bathroom, Fan...from $310 /night - Item 1 of 2
Water bungalow
1x king bed, sleeps 2
Air conditioning, Ensuite bathroom, Fan...from $316 /night
Resort checklist
Meal plans:
- Full Board
Diving in Mabul and Kapalai
- TurtlesYear round
- TrevallyYear round
- Rare OctopusNot frequently
- Exotic cuttlefishNot frequently
- Clown frogfishYear round
- Giant frogfishYear round
- MandarinfishNot frequently
- SeahorseNot frequently
- Unique crabs & shrimpsNot frequently
- Exotic NudisYear round
- Artificial reefsYear round
- Ghost pipefishNot frequently
Update Oct 2023 - The nearby island of Sipadan will be closed for the month of November every year in order to give the reefs and marine life a respite from dive tourism
Mabul and Kapalai can be summed up in one word - ‘muck’! At Mabul Island and Kapalai, diving is all about diversity and interesting critters, rather than great visibility and big fish. Although there are some interesting reefs, they are not a patch on those of Sipadan nearby. But the mix of different habitats around Mabul and Kapalai means a great diversity of life and these islands have become well known for unusual species and ‘muck’ critters. There are even artificial reefs around Mabul and Kapalai that have attracted a great deal of life - including giant groupers for those that need their big fish fix!
A typical dive on Mabul or Kapalai might mean hunting for leaf scorpionfish, frogfish, ribbon eels, different crustaceans and ghost pipefish. Blue ring octopus are also commonly found here. The sheltered sandy bays are home to more sought after ‘muck’ critters including the elusive mimic octopus, Ambon scorpionfish, frogfish, flamboyant cuttlefish, sea horses and some unusual nudibranchs. Wherever you dive, you will encounter amazing numbers of reef fish, schooling snappers and goatfish, sting rays and gobies in the sand, anemones in the shallows with their resident ‘Nemos’, and - this being Sabah - passing turtles.