Sipadan Mabul Resort, Mabul and Kapalai

Superb diving facilities and exciting trips to Mabul and Sipadan from a rustic and charming resort

from$218 /night

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

  • Detached chalet

    1 x King bed, sleeps 2

    Air conditioning, Ensuite bathroom, Fan...
    View room details
    from $218 /night

  • Suite chalet

    1 x King bed, sleeps 2

    Air conditioning, Ensuite bathroom, Fan...
    View room details
    from $310 /night

  • Water bungalow

    1x king bed, sleeps 2

    Air conditioning, Ensuite bathroom, Fan...
    View room details
    from $316 /night

Resort checklist

Number of rooms:49
Overwater bungalows:Yes
Restaurants and bars:1

Meal plans:

  • Full Board
Official dive center rating:NAUI, PADI
House reef:Yes
Nitrox:Yes

Your stay at Sipadan Mabul Resort

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Diving in Mabul and Kapalai

  • Turtles
    Turtles
    Year round
  • Trevally
    Trevally
    Year round
  • Rare Octopus
    Rare Octopus
    Not frequently
  • Exotic cuttlefish
    Exotic cuttlefish
    Not frequently
  • Clown frogfish
    Clown frogfish
    Year round
  • Giant frogfish
    Giant frogfish
    Year round
  • Mandarinfish
    Mandarinfish
    Not frequently
  • Seahorse
    Seahorse
    Not frequently
  • Unique crabs & shrimps
    Unique crabs & shrimps
    Not frequently
  • Exotic Nudis
    Exotic Nudis
    Year round
  • Artificial reefs
    Artificial reefs
    Year round
  • Ghost pipefish
    Ghost pipefish
    Not 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.